Amsterdam and London are two major capital cities in Europe which are frequented by many travellers from around the world. The two cities are well connected and you get many options to travel between the two cities with frequent connections. Going from Amsterdam to London you can use flight, train, ferry and buses. Whether you decide to fly, sail or go by train, the key to budget travel in peak season is booking as far ahead as you can.
Flight
Amsterdam London is one of the busiest air routes. From Amsterdam Schiphol airport you can travel to all the six airports of London with a flying time of 1 hour. On this route all the options are available from budget Airlines to full-service airlines. There may or may not be any time advantage in travelling by plane compared to train. All depends on your final destination.
Train
Travelling between Amsterdam to London takes around 4 to 5 hours by train. This also involves a change at Brussels station.
The train service from London to other European cities like Paris and Brussels is provided by Eurostar. There is no direct Eurostar connection available from Amsterdam. The international Eurostar train Terminal is ready at Amsterdam, still due to some pending issues direct service from Amsterdam is not available yet. (The Eurostar train which is coming from London to Amsterdam is returning from Amsterdam to Brussels as a separate train. From Brussels the same train runs another service between Brussels and London.)
The trip from Amsterdam to Brussels Midi which can be made using the high speed Thalys service which runs from Amsterdam Central to Brussels Zuid/Midi via Schiphol, Rotterdam and Antwerp. This takes just under 2 hours. At Brussels Midi station change to Eurostar train inside the same station.
In the return direction from London to Amsterdam, direct Eurostar service is available right now with 3 daily services between the two cities covering the distance in 4 Hrs.
Classes of travel on Eurostar
Eurostar has three classes, Business Premier, Standard Premier & Standard.
Business Premier offers 1st class seating (wider seats 2×1 across the width of coach). The fare includes a complimentary hot meal, champagne & soft drinks served at your seat. Access to Eurostar’s Business Lounges in London, Ebbsfleet, Paris & Brussels.
Standard Premier offers first class seating (wider seats 2×1 across the width of coach). A complimentary cold light meal and drinks are served at your seat. There is no access to the business lounge.
Standard is 2nd class seating (2×2 seats across the width of the coach). Access to pantry car and you can also bring their own food & drink on board.
Facilities onboard Eurostar
- Standard Premier and Standard seating has access to cafe. Snacks & drinks are served in the cafe.
- All the Eurostar trains are fitted with power sockets (European 2-pin & UK 3-pin, 230 volt) at all seats in both classes.
- There is free WiFi available on board and free TV & movies to stream on all Eurostar trains.
- There is a baggage limit of two large items per passenger, maximum 85cm in any one dimension, and one small hand luggage. There is no weight limit on Eurostar train and dimension rule is not strictly enforced. All luggage must be labelled with your name.
- Luggage can be store in luggage racks near the doors, between the seats or overhead luggage racks near your seat.
For class of travel on Thalys and facilities onboard, read this;
Paris to Amsterdam by high speed Thalys train
How to buy ticket
Like air fares, the price rises as the cheaper seats are sold. Booking opens 120 day before travelling date. So, book as early as possible. Both the Eurostar & Thalys parts of the ticket are only valid on the specific train on which you have booked and no refunds or changes to travel plans possible with the cheaper tickets.
- Buy individual tickets for Eurostar online at www.eurostar.com and Thalys from its official websites https://www.thalys.com/nl/en. Both gives you option to select your seat and print your ticket.
- You can also buy your combined ticket at https://www.b-europe.com. This gives you option to select your seat and print your ticket. Give a gap of at least 45 minutes at Brussels for security check and Passport control.
- Another cheaper option is to buy the tickets from NS website. This gives you option to travel from Amsterdam to Brussels by hourly Intercity trains that take 3 hours 20 minutes. Reservation is not possible on this Intercity train and you can travel by any intercity train on that day. You can buy tickets from € 59 which combine these IC trains with the high-speed Eurostar to London. You can buy this at www.nsinternational.nl
Ferry
You can also travel from Amsterdam to London by combining train and ferry service. The Dutchflyer rail-ferry option is available from Stena Line ferries in conjunction with Greater Anglia (GA) and NS Dutch railways. The ferry runs 2 daily (1 in day & 1 overnight sailing) service between Hoek van Holland (Hook of Holland, near Rotterdam) and Harwich.
How it works
From Amsterdam Central catch a train to Schiedam Centrum. From Schiedam Centrum catch Bus 711 for Hoek van Holland. NS train service has been stopped on this route and replacement buses are running. A new Metro service will start shortly from Schiedam Centrum which will stop right next to the ferry terminal.
Sail from Hoek van Holland to Harwich. From Harwich you can catch a direct train to London, Ipswich & Cambridge.
About Stena Lines
Stena line ferries are like a floating hotel. All passengers travel in a cozy private cabin with en suite toilet & shower, satellite TV, and all other facilities which are similar to a hotel. The ferry has restaurants & bar, shop, cinema, & children’s play area. On Stena line cabins are compulsory in night but optional in day.
How to buy ticket
Tickets are available in two option from Netherland, one from Hoek van Holland to London and another ticket starting from any station in Netherland to London.
- Go to the site https://www.stenaline.nl/en-GB-nl and click on the rail & sail page to book from Hoek van Holland to any Greater Anglia station (which includes London, Norwich, Cambridge & other East Anglia stations). You cannot book from any Dutch Station as Stena line would need to post your tickets to an address only in the Netherlands.
- For booking Stena line ticket starting from any Dutch station to any greater Anglia station you should have a local address in Netherland. If somebody can collect your ticket in Netherland at his address you can buy the ticket at Stena lines Dutch site https://www.stenaline.nl/
Bus
There are few companies which operate bus services between Amsterdam and London. These buses take around 12 hours approximately to reach London passing through many cities in Belgium and France. Bus fare is up to € 25. All these buses terminate at London Victoria. The bus companies operating this route are;
All this bus companies operate at least 2 services daily.
