GENERAL INFORMATION What kind of travel can I book on Aria? You can book the following type of tickets on Aria: Blue vouchers, PALS, FIP, Duty Travel Can I use my Eurostar Vouchers in Aria? How can I get my tickets once I ve booked them on Aria? All tickets can be printed using the print-at-home facility on our website: www.eurostar.com or collected at the station from the self-service ticket machines. Only the cardholder can collect at the station. How can I pay in Aria? Bookings can be paid for by card. The staff member does not need to pay using their own card. What type of cards are accepted? American Express MasterCard (credit & debit) Visa (credit & debit) How do I book my ticket if I am wheelchair user? Please email your enquiry to staff.travel@eurostar.com We will be able to answer your queries between 09:00 and 17:00, Monday to Friday. I have issues with my tickets previously booked via the staff travel line before the launch of Aria? What shall I do? Please email staff.travel@eurostar.com We will be able to answer your queries between 09:00 and 17:00, Monday to Friday. You may also call the Staff Travel Line: 03457 023 832 Can I select my seat/meal at the time of booking in Aria? Yes. After you have selected your trains. I ve already made my booking but would like to change my seat and/or modify my meal I preference. You need to visit the Manage a booking section on www.eurostar.com You will need the booking reference and the traveller s name. I have a problem with Aria, whom shall I contact? for technical & functional issues: email: elgar.helpdesk@eurostar.com or call: 0344 822 0119 The support is only offered between 08:00-17:00 Monday - Friday excluding Bank Holidays. Any emails received outside of these times will be responded to the following day. for other non-technical issues: email: staff.travel@eurostar.com
PALS BOOKINGS What is a PALS booking? Pals tickets are an employee concession that allow your friends and family to travel at reduced rates. They can only be used by the named person as printed on the ticket, are not transferable and cannot be on-sold. Which routes can I book? You can book all Eurostar direct routes plus a range on onward French destinations, a list of which can be found on the Intranet. How do I book Amsterdam? Amsterdam is currently booked in 3 parts due to the return journey involving a change of trains in Brussels. Find out more here. How many PALS bookings do I have? You can make 10 bookings each year, from January to December, and each booking can be for up to 5 people. Your annual allocation is 10 bookings, even if your employment begins late in the year. You can check how many PALS Bookings you ve used and how many you still have in My Profile. Can I carry over my unused PALS bookings from last year? No. If you don t use all your PALS allocation before the end of the year it won t be carried over to the following year. How long in advance do I have to make my PALS booking? You need to book at least 1 day before the date of travel. Can I change my PALS ticket? No. Tickets are NOT exchangeable, refundable or transferable. Can I change a name? No. Name changes are not permitted on ANY type of ticket.
FIP BOOKINGS What is a FIP ticket? FIP tickets are reduced rate tickets for yourself and your family to travel on Eurostar. Who can use FIP tickets? Each person must have a Rail Staff Travel Card (also known as Box/Priv. card) and/or a FIP International Reduced Rate Card. FIP tickets cannot be purchased for friends nor for family who are not in possession of one of these cards. How can I get my FIP card? You need to complete an application form. Details can be found on the Intranet. Which routes can I book? You can book all Eurostar direct routes. You cannot book to any other onward destination. How do I book Amsterdam? Amsterdam is currently booked in 3 parts due to the return journey involving a change of trains in Brussels. Find out more here. How many FIP bookings do I have? There is no limit to the amount of FIP tickets that can be purchased. How long in advance do I have to make my FIP booking? No advanced purchase is needed. Can I change / refund my FIP ticket? Tickets are exchangeable and refundable before departure of each leg. For refunds you need to phone staff travel on: 03457 023 832 and quote: SR00091999 ARIA. Refunds can only be processed prior to departure. Do I have to carry my FIP card when travelling? Yes. You must carry your Rail Staff Travel Card (also known as Box/Priv. card) or a FIP International Reduced Rate Card when travelling as one of these cards identifies you as rail staff eligible for that fare. Ticket checks are frequently carried out at check-in to ensure that one of these cards are held. If one of these cards cannot be produced when requested then travel can be refused and a new full fare ticket may need to be purchased. It is not sufficient to carry your Eurostar ID pass as a substitute. Where else can I buy FIP tickets? FIP bookings for onward continental travel (and for Eurostar travel for non-eurostar rail staff) can be made by calling: International Rail Ltd (IRL): 0871 559 1075 (this number is dedicated for FIP bookings only)
IRL have launched a bespoke website through which staff can make an enquiry or buy tickets: http://www.bookmyrst.co.uk/ Other providers (who will probably charge an administration fee): Rail Canterbury: 01227 450088 Ffestiniog Travel: 01766 772030 Trainseurope: 0871 700 7722 Voyages-sncf.com: 0844 848 5848 You will need to quote your FIP card number so have it to hand! FIP tickets are also sold at all Eurostar stations. Can I upgrade my FIP booking in Aria? Not on Aria. You need to phone staff travel on: 03457 023 832 and quote: SR00092119 ARIA
BLUE VOUCHER BOOKINGS What is a blue voucher booking? Blue voucher bookings are those made using your free employee travel vouchers. Which routes can I using my blue vouchers? You can book all Eurostar direct routes plus a range on onward French destinations, a list of which can be found on the Intranet. If you are booking to any of our onward French destinations then you need to book as Pals even though you are using your blue vouchers. As it will be a Pals booking it will come out of your Pals entitlement and will be subject to the usual Pals conditions. How do I book Amsterdam? Amsterdam is currently booked in 3 parts due to the return journey involving a change of trains in Brussels. Find out more here. Can I use my vouchers to travel to Disney via Lille (indirect with a change at Lille to a TGV)? Yes. If you need to change a Disney booking from a direct to indirect service or visa-versa you will need to phone staff travel: 03457 023 832 and quote: SR00092120 ARIA. I require a 24hr stopover on a connections booking but Aria won t allow it? This cannot currently be processed by Aria. In this situation phone staff travel on 03457 023 832 and quote: SR00091997 ARIA. Why won t Aria allow me to use vouchers to cover the cost of Any Belgian Station (ABS) tickets? Because there s an additional cost involved for the ABS add-on which cannot be covered by vouchers. How many vouchers do I have to use for a booking / can I part-pay by card? You can pay either using all vouchers or a combination of vouchers plus a card payment. A minimum of 1 blue voucher per traveller must be used (this does not include any qualifying dependent children). If you are not using a minimum of 1 voucher per traveller then you need to book as Pals. Will I get any money back if I use extra vouchers to cover an amount that s less than 24.50 / 28.00? No. Can I change / refund my blue vouchers ticket? Tickets are exchangeable before departure of each leg. Exchangeable refers to date & time only. Destination changes are not possible. Name changes are not possible. They are not refundable.
Can I upgrade my booking? This cannot currently be processed by Aria. In this situation phone staff travel on 03457 023 832 and quote: SR00092119 ARIA. As my dependents travel for free on my vouchers how do I book travel for them? You ll need to give us a few details about them first. Just go to Aria and select My profile. Dependent children can be only included on the same voucher as an adult traveller when the adult travelling with them is: The employee to whom the voucher was issued or their spouse or partner Dependants must be under the age of 25 and either: The child of the employee The child of the employee s spouse or partner and permanently living with the employee And either: In full-time education or earning less than a weekly wage as published each year by Rail Staff Travel at Rail Delivery Group. Find out more here. Children under 4 must be able to sit unaided for a seat to be booked for them on your vouchers. If you make a mistake when entering their details, just email elgar.helpdesk@eurostar.com You ll need to re-enter these details every year just to make sure we have the most up-todate information. Please note: If you re paying towards the cost of your ticket by card, this will be reflected on the cost of your dependants tickets. For example, if you use one voucher for a return journey to Paris in Standard class for yourself, and decide to pay the remaining 24.50 by card, each dependant on this booking will also have to pay 24.50 for their journey. Do I need to send my blue vouchers to the Eurostar Business Support Centre (Ashford)? Yes if you are UK based. No if you are based in France or Belgium. Your voucher allocation is available on Aria and will be updated automatically every time a booking is made. UK based staff - you should send your vouchers promptly by using the secure silver post boxes which are emptied once a week and the contents securely delivered to EBSC. Locations: St Pancras International: In the notice case room or the terminal briefing room.
TMI: On the mezzanine level. Ashford Station Times House: Opposite reception. Please don t send your vouchers by post unless they re sent by special delivery. How long do I have to send my vouchers to staff travel? You need to send your vouchers as soon as possible after making a booking noting that they should reach staff travel within 14 days of a booking having been made. If vouchers are not received within 14 days of a booking being made then you ll receive an automatic email reminding you that they re still outstanding. If they still haven t been received after 21 days then your line manager will receive an email advising them that your vouchers remain outstanding. If after 28 days your vouchers are still outstanding a final email will be sent, after which the HR department will then be notified so that they can take further action. If your vouchers are not received within two weeks of a booking being made your booking may be cancelled. If you ve already travelled, the next booking you make may be cancelled until we ve received the vouchers owed. If you ve failed to send vouchers more than twice since the launch of Aria, you ll be blocked from using the site.
DUTY TRAVEL BOOKINGS What is a Duty Travel? Duty travel is travel for work purposes for Eurostar and Momentum staff only. Which route can I book for my duty travel? Only Eurostar direct services can be booked via Aria. What if I need to travel on Thalys or TGV for work? If your request includes travel on Thalys, please email: duty.travel@eurostar.com If the request includes travel on other international train operating companies, please email: traveldesk@eurostar.com Tickets must not be issued at any other point of sale other than the duty travel team. Detailed information can be found on the Duty Travel page of the Intranet. Which class can I book? Staff are permitted to travel one-way in Standard and one-way in either Standard Premier or Business Premier. Business Premier is only permitted for journeys that depart before 08h00, or arrive after 20h00 (local time). If a journey includes a departure before 08h00 AND an arrival after 20h00 then only one leg of the journey is permitted in Business Premier (the other will be in Standard). Staff members who have a journey that includes a departure after 08h00 and/or an arrival before 20h00 are not able to travel in Business Premier and must choose a mixture of Standard and Standard Premier. Standard Premier Duty fares are subject to availability so, if the time criteria for Business Premier is not met and there is no availability in Standard Premier, then travel in Standard applies for both legs of the journey. Can I book my duty travel between Brussels and Lille or Lille and Brussels? Yes, but not on Aria. You need to email: duty.travel@eurostar.com