Eurostar route from London to new European destination to launch in December

Eurostar is launching a new direct route between the UK and Belgium from December.Rail travellers will be able to book direct journeys from London St Pancras to Antwerp-Centraal from December 14. Up to four trains a day, which already run between London and Amsterdam, will introduce the direct connection with existing stops at Lille-Europe, Brussels-Midi, Rotterdam-Centraal and Amsterdam-Centraal.However, the route will only be direct on the outward leg from London due to customs and border issues.According to Eurostar, there are no current plans to introduce a direct return service from Antwerp to London as “this would require dedicated UK border and customs facilities at Antwerp-Centraal”.Eurostar said: “Adding Antwerp as a direct stop on our London-Amsterdam services will make journeys to the city quicker and more convenient, providing customers with a more comfortable city centre to city centre travel experience.”Eurostar reached a historic milestone across its five-country network in January, carrying 400 million customers since services began in 1994.The achievement follows a record 2025, with 20 million customers choosing to travel with Eurostar, an increase of 500,000 passengers.