Eurostar has restarted direct trains to and from Amsterdam – but only for seven weeks. An upgrade of Amsterdam Centraal station has required Eurostar passengers to change trains at Brussels since last summer. The firm announced on Monday that it was temporarily reinstating its direct service to and from the Dutch capital until March 29. Between March 30 and April 22 the station will again be unable to accept Eurostar trains direct from St Pancras.
But Eurostar aims to return to a direct service by the end of April, initially with three trains in each direction on weekdays and Sundays – with a fourth train arriving later in 2025. Two trains will run on Saturdays. The work at Amsterdam Centraal has increased the capacity of the station. This will enable Eurostar to run longer trains, meaning its three trains will have 400 seats – 10 per cent more than those when it last operated a four trains per day schedule.
From April 22, Eurostar will operate 600-seat trains from Amsterdam. The trains travel via Rotterdam to and from St Pancras. By September it aims to operate 650-seat trains from Amsterdam. Its aim is to have five trains a day in each direction between London and Amsterdam by 2026. The Eurostar terminal within Amsterdam Centraal has an “eco-friendly design”, “smart lighting”, a new café, ultra-fast wifi and new seating.
Last year it was feared that Eurostar would have to suspend its 186mph service between London and Amsterdam while the station was renovated. But a solution was found by offering passengers the ability to change trains at Brussels, though this lengthened the journey time and reduced services from four to three a day. Gwendoline Cazenave, chief executive of Eurostar, said: “We are delighted that direct Eurostar services between Amsterdam and London are back.
“This is more than just a train journey—it is a seamless connection between two vibrant capitals, offering our customers an efficient, comfortable, and sustainable way to travel. “We know we will welcome more passengers on board as we continue to grow our services and set the standards for connectivity across Europe. “The tripling of capacity on the Netherlands-UK route is step one in a broader strategy to increase Eurostar’s network for customers all across Europe.”.
