Travel to Belgium with cycle using Southeastern High Speed and DFDS ferry Dover - Dunkirk

[Full Standing]

Hi all,

I'm planning to do a trip with my bike in the next few weeks, preferably on a Wednesday or a Thursday. I would start in the early morning at Oxford, take a train to London, and then take a Southeastern High Speed service to Dover Priory (cycling between the two London termini). After that, I'd cycle to Dover port, take a DFDS ferry to Dunkirk (preferably the 12:00 departure). Upon arrival in France, I'm planning to cycle to Adinkerke / De Panne in Belgium (about 40km). Finally, I would take SNCB/NMBS trains to Eupen or Hergenrath and then cycle to my final destination just across the border in Germany. About a week later, I would to the same in reverse.

DFDS requests me to be to be at the port one hour before departure, which would be 11:00. Trainsplit shows an itinerary involving the 09:07 departure from St Pancras International. This train would arrive at Dover Priory by 10:13.

I have a couple of questions on the UK part of the journey.

• Apparently, you can take bikes on the SE High Speed trains, but reservations are not possible (see https://www.southeasternrailway.co.uk/travel-information/on-board-the-train/cycles). Do you have any experience how full the 09:07 (and 08:07) departures are on a weekday with respect to cyclists? How likely is it that I'm denied boarding with my bike on the grounds that too many cyclists have turned up?
• For the part from Oxford to London, trainsplit spit out the 07:00 GWR service from Oxford to London Paddington. IIRC, cycle reservations on these GWR trains are mandatory. I can't book these reservations on trainsplit, so I'd have to use the GWR website. Since the GWR site doesn't offer split tickets, I'm planning to buy the Oxford to London leg from GWR and the London to Dover leg from trainsplit (NB: The split ticket saving is significant). Are there any issues with passenger rights / delay repay if I buy both legs from different retailers? Can I also turn up at a GWR ticket office, asking for this specific split and a cycle reservation on the GWR service? And how would passenger rights be in this case?
• More generally, did anyone on the forum already do such a trip in the past?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Of course, I'd also write a brief report in case I really do this.

I wasn't quite sure whether to post this in the Fares Advice & Policy section or the Trip Planning & Reports section. I have chosen the latter, but feel free to move this thread as appropriate.

 

[leshuttle]

We're also doing some of this trip soon starting from London to De Panne so shall find out. Re the Southeastern bit...

On the Southeastern timetable download you can see if the train is 6 or 12 carriages and how busy it's predicted to be. Should be enough space if it's 12 carriages for many cyclists (8:07), even if the two designated spaces are full, should be space near the doors provided it doesn't obstruct them.

Bicycles require a supplement to be paid when travelling on SNCB/NMBS.

Would advise asking in the fares section about that separately, but in my limited understanding, rights are generally applicable for split tickets too if you can show the full itinerary from the bookings with the minimum connection times respected.

 

[Bald Rick]

I regularly travel out of St Pancras on Southeastern High Speed services between 0745 and 0930, and have never, ever seen anyone with a bicycle on board. (Caveat, I have not been looking for bicycles, but I’m sure I’d remember it if it was a frequent occurrence)

 

[Full Standing]

Thanks for the responses.

We're also doing some of this trip soon starting from London to De Panne so shall find out. Re the Southeastern bit...

Nice! To me, it seems that this route is the most straightforward one to get from London to Belgium with a bike, isn't it?

Bicycles require a supplement to be paid when travelling on SNCB/NMBS.

I'm aware of this, but thanks for pointing it out. It is indeed a bit unusual (from a UK perspective) to need an extra ticket in order to take a bike on the train, so it might be helpful for future readers of this thread.

I'm not sure whether I have time to do the trip this summer. But I will probably do it sometime later this year. I'll write a short report once I've done it.

 

[leshuttle]

As a follow-up, we travelled from St Pancras, and with the Tour de France festivities underway, the train to Dover was busy with cyclists. Nevertheless, everyone managed to store their bikes either in the designated area or close by within the same carriage.

On the Belgian side, our experience with SNCB proved a bit more challenging. From De Panne to Kortrijk, the standard intercity trains offer only a narrow space at the end of the first-class carriage—barely enough for one or two untethered bikes. Thankfully, we were allowed to sit nearby in first class despite having standard class tickets. However, the high step between platform and train made lifting bikes on and off quite difficult.

Heading back we thought of taking the TER train back to Dunkirk from Lille, but realised they now require bicycle reservations and were already fully booked. We'd have cycled the full distance back to Dunkirk ferry port but for heavy backpacks, strong headwinds and rain spells, so ended up retracing our train route back via De Panne.

 

[Full Standing]

Thanks for the update! I'll be heading off next week and keep you posted.

 

[Cameron Bowden]

You can obtain bike reservations for GWR from your local station in advance even if you didn’t buy your ticket from them.

If I’m taking my bike into work, I get the reservations on my way back home on the day (or a few days) before. Could be an option if you still wanted to get the split ticket.

I also think you can get them through the GWR website without having to buy the ticket from them, but can’t remember the exact details on how to do this.

 

[Full Standing]

Follow-up from my side: I made the trip yesterday, and everything went perfectly well. I arrived at my final destination (Aachen in Germany) with an insignificant delay of approx 5 minutes.

Some details of my journey. I started in Oxford and took the 06:00 GWR service to London Paddington, arriving there at 07:07. Then, I cycled to London St Pancras International, mostly following the towpath of Regent's canal. Not all parts were accessible though, so a fair share of the ride was on the roads. I've had an advance ticket for the 09:07 Southeastern train, and since I arrived at St Pancras about an hour earlier than this, I've used the time to cycle to Aldwych and back. On the Southeastern train, I was the only cyclist, I didn't encounter any issues and the journey to Dover Priory went smoothly.


Regent's canal a few hundred meters west of London zoo. One can see a canal and a paved towpath to the left of it; the photo is taken down the canal. There are trees on both sides.

Ticketwise, I used to forum's website to get the tickets, selecting the option "let me use oyster/contactless across London" as I didn't need cross-London transfer.
The cycle reservation for the GWR train was obtained through the GWR website which lets you get a reservation without requiring you to present a ticket. I booked the cycle reservation a shortly before proceeding to payment on the forum's website.

Arriving at Dover Priory, I cycled to the port (through the city centre and then along the seafront, avoiding the busy A20). At the port of Dover, cyclists simply have to follow a red line on the ground making navigation pretty straightforward. The first bit is separate from the cars and lorries, you only join the other traffic shortly before French immigration. After immigration, you need to follow the cars for a very short bit until you are guided to a building for the cycle check-in, where you receive the lane number and the ticket. In the assigned lane, cycles may proceed to the front and are the first to board the ferry. At Dunkirk, they are also the first to be let off, which is very convenient. I sailed off on the 12:00 DFDS ferry to Dunkirk which departed on time.


The red line guiding cyclists, seen before passing through French immigration. One can see an asphalt way with a red line painted onto it, following the direction of the way. To the left of the way, there is a sign reading "no unauthorised pedestrians" and immediately below it, there is a sign pointing down the way with both "check-in" and a cycle symbol on it. Also to the left of the way, behind concrete barriers, multiple car and lorry lanes are visible. Further left, one can see the white cliffs of Dover.


The cycle spaces aboard the ferry. One can see a few cycle racks with cycles attached to it. A cycle symbol is painted on the wall behind these racks.

After disembarkation (at around 15:20 Brussels time), it was easy to locate the exit of the port. I first cycled to the village of Loon-Plage. The route from the port to Loon-plage was a large main road but not too dangerous to cycle on. However, one needs to be careful to not take the wrong exit on one of the roundabouts as some lead to motorway approach roads. From Loon-Plage I mostly followed the Eurovelo route 4 to the border with Belgium which was a pleasure to cycle on. At some point, I passed a migrant camp (near Grande-Synthe) and a large crowd of people walked along the road carrying bags with life jackets in them.


Part of the cycle route in Zuydcoote. One can see a cycle path crossing a road in a residential area. The photo is taken along the cycle path. To the right of the cycle path, abandoned railway tracks cross the road as well. On the other side of the road, there is a small rest area with tables and benches as well as an information board whose content is not visible.

I arrived at De Panne at around 17:20 and caught the 17:52 SNCB train. I bought the cycle supplement at the ticket machine which was possible without any issues. The cycle area is rather small and in the vestibule of first class, so I needed to go to a different coach to take a seat. Also, it was quite a challenge to lift the bike onto the train. I stayed on the train to Gent Sint-Pieters, where I changed onto the 19:25 IC train towards Eupen. Cycle accomodation on this train was much better and I could take a seat next to my bike. I stayed on this train to Welkenraedt, where we arrived at around 22:00 (we were delayed as the train was diverted via the Montzen route, L 24 and then L 39). I then got on the 22:08 service to Aachen and arrived there at around 22:30.


"Cycle space" on the De Panne to Gent train. One can see a vestibule of a train carriage and two doors next to each other on the same side of the train, about one metre apart from each other. There are two bikes in front of the right door, stretching into the area in-between the doors.

All in all, a very nice day out. And the total cost was about £40 + €45.

 

[Full Standing]

Next update: I returned to Oxford yesterday. I started in Aachen (Germany) at 05:45 and cycled to Welkenraedt (Belgium) to catch the 07:49 IC train towards Ostende. I arrived way earlier than this and had lots of time to spare at Welkenraedt.


View en route from Aachen to Welkenraedt. The viaduct in the background is part of the high speed line Aachen-Liège (near the junction at Hergenrath). One can see a large field with grass on it. In the front, there is a gate separating the field from a small road (the road is only partially visible). To the left, along the road, a few cycle signs are visible, one of which shows the destinations "Lüttich", "Herve", and "Astenet". In the far background, across the field, one can see a modern railway bridge carrying a railway line over a valley.

The train left Welkenraedt on time and I stayed on the train to Gent Sint-Pieters. There, I changed onto the 10:53 IC train to De Panne. This time (and unlike my outward journey), proper cycle spaces were provided.


Cycle spaces on the Gent to De Panne train. One can see the cycle area of a modern train. Foldable seats are attached to the wall on both sides of the carriage. One can see two people sitting, on opposite sides, operating their mobile phones. Further, three cycles in total are visible and placed along the walls. In the background, around five metres from the camera, a transparent door separates the cycle area from the vestibule of the coach. Inside the vestibule, to the left, the entrance door to a toilet is visible.

I arrived at De Panne around 13:10 and was booked on the 18:00 sailing from Dunkirk. I could have caught an earlier ship, but I decided to drive slowly and also have a look at the beaches and the town of Dunkirk. Again, I was pleasantly surprised by the great quality of the cycling infrastructure. I mostly followed the Eurovelo route 4 from the French border to the village of Loon-Plage, which is close the the port of Dunkirk. Cycling to the port was no problem. Unlike Dover, cyclists just drive though the car lanes. In the assigned lane and on the ship, I've had a nice chat with two other cyclists and even exchanged phone numbers with them. One of the two is German and was about to start a two-week cycling tour through the UK. He's even going to visit me for one night next week.

Upon arrival in Dover, the cylists were let off first and cyclists follow a red line on the ground to get out of the port. I then headed to a chippy for some Fish&Chips and took the 20:48 train to St Pancras. I then cycled down Euston road / Marylebone road to Paddington station and took a GWR train to Oxford (with a bargain advance for £4.30 with 16-25 railcard). I arrived in Oxford around midnight.

All in all, the return journey was even better than the outward and I had a wonderful conversation aborad the ferry. The total price was around £16 + 38€, so much cheaper than the outward.

It's a trip I can only recommend if you want to go to the continent and fancy some cycling.

 

[PaulJ]

Guidance on your travel from St Pancras to Dover! If it's a 12 car set, you'll want to make sure you stow your bike in front 6 carriages only. For safety reasons, the High Speed trains carry no passengers at all in the rear 6 carriages on the section between Folkestone and Dover.

 

[telstarbox]

Useful info and sounds like a good trip!