Brussels to Paris at 300 km/h on the new Eurostar train

This classic European high-speed train has gotten quite a facelift join me as we traveled from Brussels Belgium to Paris France at 300 km an hour this service was traditionally called the Talis but it’s been gradually rebranded to Eurostar you will hear me use both Talis and Eurostar in this video just

Like the company still does the journey from Brussels to Paris only takes just over 1 hour and 20 minutes I’m trying traveling in second class today and I paid €49 for this one-way ticket but I have also tried the Eurostar Talis in first class and I will link to that

Video at the end of this one welcome to my channel Marcus travels the journey starts at Brussels M which is one of three main train stations in Brussels there’s the north one the central one and then this one the South one welcome to the Brussels South Railway Station

Definitely one of the more depressing Railway stations in Europe and that’s such a shame because antp for example in the same country is such a beautiful railway station let’s go inside and find the Talis Train to Paris the Brussels medidi train station doesn’t look particularly impressive from this angle

Or from this angle I guess this is the main entrance this station gets even more depressing as you enter there’s no sunlight and the ceilings are low but there are plenty of places to eat including my favorite ice cream shop Haag and dots I actually used to live in

Brussels and you may get the impression that I don’t like it but I do however Brussels is a hard City and I will tell you more as we explore the station if you want to take the train to London enter the channel tunnel terminal here Brussels has had its fair share of

Attacks in recent times you can see it here with these transparent and exposed trash bags there is a sense of heightened security wherever you go in Brussels these days some of that security is a bit undercover for example check out this so-called Gas and Electric utilities truck with blue

Police lights on top and I don’t think your average fiber optics cable company needs these white blinking lights of an undercover officer now back to the station check out this Coy seating among the plants that looks pretty nice here we have the classic departure board boards from I don’t know the ’70s you

See this style all over Belgium here we also have plenty of ticket machines and wait what’s that you can pedal to generate power I guess this is to charge your phone here we have the Belgian Railways ticket office as well as another phone charging station in the

Back of the station there’s lockers and other services as well to get to the tracks to the Eurostar train I have to pass through this barrier which just looks Shady because I’m traveling today on a standard ticket I.E second class I don’t have access to a lounge here at

Brussels Medi but given the sorry excuse for a lounge that I experienced on the Euro star in Amsterdam a few days earlier this is no great loss let’s leave the underground and head for the track the train has arrived right there on track number six behind me I see that

It’s already branded as Eurostar so I’m hoping that it has also the upgraded cabin interior let’s board and find out my seat is in car number eight a second class car on the Eurostar Talis train the cabin is laid out in a 2 plus2 seating configuration it mostly consists

Of Airline style seating but there are a few seats facing each other with a table in the middle my seat is at the window and just behind it is one of these badly designed coat hooks the same bad design as we saw in first first class but some

Things are actually better than the old first class that I tried a few days earlier because today we have an updated cabin for example there is a small shelf where you can put your personal items and then above that we have the big baggage shelf for your biger bags in

Front of me I have these cup holders that are really very much better designed than the weird brace In First Class I also have both regular and USB power outlets and there’s one set for each passenger you will see here an arrow and a trash symbol pointing down

To indicate that you will find the little trash bin down here I also have a really sturdy tray table in front of me it comes with this elastic band for holding small items like phones as demonstrated by my fellow passenger later during the trip as I sat down I

Didn’t have anybody sitting next to me but just before departure a gentleman showed up with some serious cold symptoms I have a few clips of him coughing right there next to me but I’m not going to play them I don’t want to gross you out the armrest next to the

Window cannot be moved and there is a switch for the light just below it but the armrest in the middle can be moved up and down the leg room in the seat is not massive but it didn’t actually bother me this is not a very long trip

Just under 90 minutes one thing that really stands out is the sense of privacy in these seats they’re quite tall so you don’t really see anybody else in front of you the luggage storage situation is really good we have the baggage shelves in the cabin plus all

The space in the vestibules between the cars and here you can still see the old Talis logo even though most of this train is Eurostar branded because I’m in second class today there is no service at my seat but there is a cafe car when you enter the cafe car you might think

There is no staff here what they do have is two vending machines one for cold items and one for hot drinks there is a menu on these tables but it’s a bit unclear who to order from I just got myself a bottle of Pepsi Max and there’s

One thing that you should know these vending machines are clearly not designed for trains because trains shake and when I open my bottle my very much shaken up Pepsi Max spilled all over the place so my recommendation is don’t use these vending machines for fizzy drinks and I cannot be the first

Person who’s had this problem Eurostar really should install machines in here that can handle the vibrations on a train other than that the space in the cafe car is pretty nice there’s a few tables in there these kind of leaning benches and very nice views out the windows the lavatory here in second

Class is pretty nice it is well lit and there are two big sturdy handles to hold on to the trash bin is operated with a foot pedal which is really nice so you don’t have to touch the lid there is a big coat hook in here a mirror and the

Water Works in my estimation this is a better lavatory than the one that I had In First Class A few days earlier we are nearing the end of the trip and should be arriving in Paris cter NOA in approximately 5 minutes time I will share my recommendation in just a moment

If you got value from this video please hit the like button and consider subscribing to Marcus travels for more travel reviews there are also other ways to support in the description below the video overall I have to say that the Eurostar service from Brussels to Paris it’s nice when this kind of train

Connection exists there is no reason to fly and cruising along at 300 K km an hour is just a lovely way to travel comparing this new cabin in second class to the old Cabin In First Class I note that Eurostar has made some nice improvements and I am going to link to

That video in just a moment those improvements include the nice power supplies the updated cup holders as well as the baggage shelves plus I didn’t experience any of the jerkiness that I had on the previous train this was a very nice and smooth ride welcome to Paris gun nor I just stepped

Off the Talis Eurostar from Brussels it was a very nice smooth comfortable ride except for that little incident with the Pepsi Max one downside of this connection is that it terminates in Paris gonor which is an overcrowded badly designed hell hole of a station Paris gardar is such unbelievable

Garbage I don’t want to be here but that’s a topic for another day click or tap the screen right here to watch that first class Eurostar experience where I highlight five areas that Eurostar needs to work on in their first class product thank you for watching Marcus travels

Today and I will see you in the next video

The classic Thalys train has been upgraded to the Eurostar service! Join me from Brussels to Paris Gare du Nord at 300 km/h on board one of Europe’s premier high-speed trains. Learn more about the seats, the service and much more.

If you enjoy my work, you can:
☕ Buy me a coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/MarkusPresents
✍️ Book one of my communication workshops for your company: https://markuspresents.com/workshops

📝 This video is NOT sponsored. I paid for this trip myself. The train company did not know ahead of time that I was going to make a video, and the views presented are my own. Some product links are affiliate links. If you use them I may receive a small commission, at no additional cost to you.

✈️🚄 Trip details:
Route: Brussels Midi to Paris Gare du Nord
Date: Oct. 28, 2023
Class of service: Standard (second class)
Paid with: Cash

🎬 Related videos mentioned:
Thalys Eurostar first class: https://youtu.be/3Pp8hs_FCSI

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⌚ Sections in this video (Brussels to Paris at 300 km/h on the new Eurostar train):
00:00 | Eurostar from Brussels to Paris
00:44 | Brussels Midi railway station
03:22 | Boarding the Thalys Eurostar
04:00 | Improved cabin design
05:10 | Seat features in second class
05:53 | Cafe car
06:59 | Lavatory in good shape
07:32 | Conclusion and recommendation
08:29 | Arrival at Paris Gare du Nord
09:00 | Eurostar in first class

🏢 Companies mentioned:
@eurostarofficial

5 Comments

  1. hey markus, so nice to see the new eurostar in your video! Normally we would say, we let you travel eurostar so we don't have to, but this is super nice! I would not even have looked at eurostar for the next few decades if not for watching your review.

  2. Haha, the Sibelga van is definitely not a police car. The gas company is allowed to have blue lights, because they sometimes must do a very urgent intervention (gas leaks). And the proximus van is allowed to have warning lights too (albeit not blue). So you were seeing ghosts I'm afraid. The surveillance of the Brussels station is mainly with CCTV.

  3. I want to book Eurostar from Brussels to Paris CDG
    Only 1 train showing In itinerary
    But I have only 2.5 hrs transit if I take that train. I have to take a flight to Toronto from there
    If train is on time I think that option is fine
    If not I have to take the train to Paris Nord and then take RER B to CDG back

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