Second Class Service At First Class Prices

T raveling first class on         either ticket control or both      the Eurostar from Paris to      sets of passport control before    London (or vice versa)          entering the huge waiting hall in  isn’t really anywhere close to        an attempt to find somewhere to    the romantic vision of a more         sit before boarding.               genteel bygone era. It certainly                                         isn’t luxury by any stretch of        In addition you can’t use the      the imagination and is in fact        business-premier class lounge at   much more oriented to the             Gare du Nord station. It’s         business traveller eager to cut       reserved exclusively for those     down journey time and cram in a       who have coughed up the full       couple of hours work on the           asking price.                      computer – or God help us all –                                          shouting into the mobile ‘phone.      So right from the start then                                             there is a sort of Orwellian       The trip becomes even less of a       selectivity even among first       luxury and more of an indulgence      class trippers – ie; they’re all   if you’ve bought a discounted         equal but some (full-payers and    ticket to treat yourself to a         Eurostar employees) are more       hoped-for touch of comfort. There     equal than others.”                are definite shortcomings.                                                                                     You won’t be allowed to enter the  For the not inconsiderable sum of     hallowed halls for free drinks     more than €200 you’ll have a          and nibbles – them’s the rules     non-exchangeable, non-refundable      and there’s absolutely NO bending  ticket, so woe betide you if you      room.                              miss your train.                                                                                               Still in theory at least the       There’s not even the chance of        service aboard the train should    jumping the queue to go through       be in keeping with the price tag.  But London-bound May Day early        When the meal tray arrived we      morning travelers were in for a       were presented with a sad-looking  disappointment.                       salad embarrassed presumably at                                          being undressed. Moments later a   First class was not exactly           rather self-conscious steward      packed and the crew – charming to     looked even more ashamed than the  the nth degree it has to be           salad as he offered us the CHOICE  admitted – were able to be            of salmon or cheese for the main   terribly attentive. In fact           dish – but obviously NOT both as   sometimes it was just a touch too     would befit the normal course of   much.                                 a meal in France.                                                                                           As the train started its journey      Dropped jaws all round as we       they came rattling through the        plumped for the rubber-soled       carriage with the drinks trolley.     salmon and the beautifully         Now although it’s never really        British-stewed vegetables.         too early in the day for a glass                                         of champagne, even this far from      And even more astonishment when    teetotal passenger had to refuse      the steward had the gall to ask    several of the repeated offers to     whether we had enjoyed the meal –  top up his glass over the next        or the literal French translation  hour.                                 “Did it please you?”                                                                                        Perhaps it was a ploy by the          Maybe the lack of food was simply  staff to ply travelers with as        a public holiday aberration as on  much booze as possible so that        the return trip three days later   they wouldn’t notice the paucity      at exactly the same time of day    of the food on offer and the lack     we were offered a full lunchtime   of choice.                            choice of rubber lamb or rubber                                          salmon.                                                                  And you quickly realize that the   Finally one rather curious fact       extra cost hasn’t just failed to   is that traveling first class         give you very much more comfort    does not actually get you through     during the two hour 15 minute      the barrier at the other end any      trip, it has also given you no     faster as for some reason the         time advantage you had hoped to    carriage always seems to be the       gain over fellow passengers as     furthest away.                        you pigeon-step your way slowly                                          to the exit.                       About the Author Johnny Summerton is a broadcaster, writer and journalist based in Paris. Visit his site for a look at some the stories making the headlines here in France http://www.persiflagefrance.com or for his travel pieces log on to http://www.urlswurld.blogspot.com Published At: www.Isnare.com