Tipped

Nice station

November 17, 2008

I travelled north a few weeks ago, and we went from St Pancras, our train was delayed due to signal problems somewhere in the midlands, i found a member of staff (who were all dotted around to help people - very good service, the lady was very nice and looked at our tickets and even told us a cheaper train journey that went straight there!
She made us feel a lot better by telling us that if we missed our connecting train in sheffield that the cost would be reimbursed and we didnt need to worry.

The service and staff in St Pancras are brilliant, il always try travel from there in the future

Keywords: london, train, clean

Meet me at St Pancras

August 28, 2008

I’ve taken the Eurostar from the newly refurbished St Pancras 3 times now and really can’t say enough good things about it. The real star of course is the building and the Barlow shed. According to their website when the station first opened in 1868, William Barlow's train shed was a spectacular feat of Victorian engineering and held the world record for the largest enclosed space (689 ft long by 100 ft high and 243 ft span) for many years. Go see this place!

Now they boast the worlds longest Champagne bar, drank there 3 times and it’s awesome, has heated leather seats, nice snacks, ideal way to wait for your train. They’ve a few other drinking spots as well including the The Betjeman Arms and des Vins Cafe & Wine bar. If it’s coffee your after then all the shops pretty much suck just like the rest of London (with a few notable exceptions, see my other Tips).

As far as food and shopping, loads of places, some sound better than others, but since I haven’t done either there I’ll not offer any Tips. The website says a permanent farmers market is coming soon tough which’d be really cool.

And finally the much talked/balked about statue of the couple embracing. I love it! How could someone not?

Keywords: eat, drink, shop, eurostar

Takes me Back

March 27, 2008

So I like St Pancras for a couple reasons. Let me count the ways:
1. It's my local tube station, and it is supremely connected to all kinds of lines from the finnicky Northern Line to the useful Circle Line. It also throws in the crucial Picadilly and Victoria lines for good measure.
2. The lovely new train shed that they built to hold the Eurostar. Although the extension is pretty (I can see it from my window), it's the Victorian part of the shed that really impresses me with its massive iron shell holding up the windows.
3. The hotel in front, which is currently shrouded under some scaffolding, is a beautiful example of Victorian Gothic architecture - it often reminds me of the Victoria Terminus in Bombay.

And there's more than that, but I don't know how many more I can detail here. The newly reopened Eurostar section of the station has a ton of new shops and restaurants (including the much hailed champagne bar), and a few of the shops have yet to open up so there might be more surprises in store. All in all, one could have uglier train stations (read: nearby Euston or Kings Cross) facing your bedroom window.

Keywords: Victorian Gothic, Eurostar, Champagne Bar, Train Station