If you've ever planned a Eurotrip with London as your base, you've probably realized the English capital is far from being the most convenient hub for exploring the rest of Europe.
Great Britain is an island, after all, and though you can get pretty much anywhere flying, often for less than a train ride within England, your options traveling by train, via the English Channel tunnel, are quite limited.
You can reach Paris, of course, at the other end of the Eurostar line, and a handful of destinations in Belgium and the Netherlands. Going further than that, however, you would need to change trains.
But soon enough, Britain's less-than-impressive international rail connections will get a surprising boost, making it easier to cross the Channel and reach a gorgeous destination in Central Europe:
London To Switzerland By Train!
With demand for train travel in Europe increasing, and hot on the heels of the Paris to Berlin and Brussels to Venice overnight trains, the UK and Swiss governments have just confirmed plans to launch direct, long-distance services between London and Switzerland.
More specifically, the city of Geneva, straddling the western shores of the alpine Lake Geneva, and home to one of Switzerland's most important financial centers, and a number of international organizations.
As read in a memorandum published by the governments on May 9, they are prepared to ‘lay the groundwork' for passenger trains between the two countries, a bold initiative that would have sounded like a politician's fanciful scheme had that been put forth only five years ago.
Then again, this is the revival of the railway, and between the long-anticipated Lisbon–Madrid line, and a continent-wide train route linking 39 cities across Europe, it's not far-fetched to envision that, at some point in the near future, it will be possible to travel from England all the way to Switzerland.
After all, the infrastructure already exists.
You Can Already Travel From England To Switzerland By Train—But It Takes Time
Though there are no direct trains between London and Geneva at this point, travelers can already reach Paris in around 2h25 thanks to the Eurostar, which famously travels inside a tunnel underneath the seabed.
From Paris, they can switch to the French ‘TGV' train, reaching Geneva after 3h11. Essentially, the existing routes simply need to be joined in Paris.
Trains arriving from London St. Pancras usually pull up to Gare du Nord, Paris' northern station, while TGVs headed for Switzerland commonly leave from Gare de Lyon, facing the southeast.
Once you factor in transfers and waiting in between trains, it's at least a 7-hour journey from London to Switzerland. Meanwhile, simply flying from London to Geneva takes roughly 1h40, and it's generally much cheaper.
The direct London to Geneva train would take under 5 hours, and it would be a lot more competitive than the currently-available option with a change in Paris: after all, it essentially matches the total travel time flying, as travelers are advised to arrive at the airport 2 to 3 hours before an international flight.
Add to that nearly 2 hours of actual flight time, and you'll be touching down in Geneva Airport at around the same time train passengers would be rocking up to the train station.
When Will The Trains Launch?
As far as operations go, it is likely that temporary, ‘modular' border controls would be installed in Geneva, allowing for passengers to undergo UK border control already in Switzerland, a practice already observed in other Eurostar terminals like Paris and Amsterdam.
According to Gwendoline Cazenave, Eurostar's chief executive, the materialization of any new services between London and Switzerland is still some ‘years away', as there are barriers to accessing the cross-channel market, but it's far from being a pipe dream.
Albert Rösti, one of seven Federal Councillors working for the executive branch of the Swiss government, has stated that a London to Switzerland service is an ‘ambitious goal', but likely to launch within the next decade.
Swiss officials also weighed in by adding that, besides Geneva, two additional Swiss cities, Zurich and Basel, could host trains from London, and the Federal Transport Department is already tasked with presenting an action plan to the central government.
The agreement signed between London and Geneva is already a reassuring step in the right direction.
Ready For Your Trip? Check The Latest Entry Requirements For Your Destination Here
↓ Elevate Your Travel↓
Sign Up Now For Travel Off Path Premium! No ads, VIP Content, Personal Travel Concierge, Huge Savings, Daily Deals, Members Forum & More!
✈️Join Our Travel Off Path Community Forum: Where travelers unite, ask questions, share experiences and even find like-minded travel buddies!
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR LATEST POSTS
Enter your email address to subscribe to Travel Off Path's latest breaking travel news, straight to your inbox.
This article originally appeared on TravelOffPath.com
Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.