Le Shuttle Today - Warning!

[The JRM Cali Crew]

Taking our Cali to France for the first time on Le Shuttle. Just a warning (and a moan) about Le Shuttle delays this week. I am currently writing this, waiting to board. The time is 14.15. Our scheduled departure was 11.54. We arrived at the terminal at 9.30. I think we might, MIGHT, be boarding a train at about 15.15. It seems as if these delays are around all week. I just want to warn anyone travelling on Le Shuttle (LS) this week to be prepared for big delays.
As our first experience of LS me and my wife have found it to be bewildering, organised chaos. Direction and advice about how the whole thing works is scant. I ended up watching videos on You Tube from other travellers about what the process is. I shouldn’t have to do that. Clearly, from looking at the codes on the ‘hangers’ on other vehicles, it has been a free for all, with vehicles on much later trains going through much earlier than their departure time. We have a Standard Plus ticket and know that this is allowable, but when the delays are so serious this should have been controlled much better.
Our biggest regret was not getting a Flexi Plus ticket as clearly these vehicles have had no or little delay.
It is now 14.30 with no sign of boarding. We’ve been here 5 hours now with little chance of reaching our first campsite today. Be warned!

 

[acer]

That must be hugely frustrating for you. Thank you for alerting everyone.

Any idea what the problem is? Is it the EES issue?

I’m obviously not denying your experience, but we have been through le shuttle dozens of times and not had a problem. In fact, around half the time we’re able to catch an earlier train than the one we’re booked for. Hopefully, your return trip will be smoother.

 

[andyinluton]

Their website states 3 hour delays due to unexpected reduction in capacity. There won't have been later people jumping in front of you unless the problem is just with the over 1.8m carriages or they have flexiplus tickets.

We swear by flexiplus & make it a challenge to see if we can recover the extra cost of the ticket in the value of the food grabbed from the kiosk.

 

[Winston Rumfoord]

Second the above points - we take le shuttle 4-5 times per year and never had a problem and find it very easy, organised, and quick. Sorry to hear you’ve had a bad experience, I’d give it another chance - clearly you arrived too early

 

[sidepod]

Their website states 3 hour delays due to unexpected reduction in capacity. There won't have been later people jumping in front of you unless the problem is just with the over 1.8m carriages or they have flexiplus tickets.

We swear by flexiplus & make it a challenge to see if we can recover the extra cost of the ticket in the value of the food grabbed from the kiosk.

That is a sh*t ton of sarnies!!!

 

[Black Forest]

I have found the Shuttle a consistent game of two halves and I'm sure others experiences are different, but this is mine..
Le Shuttle France - Brexit Island = absolutely no problem, car, cali or motorbike
Le Shuffle Brexit Island - France = delays, cancellations and general asshattery. Almost as if non flexi ticket holders are penalised. 3 or 4 hrs delay has been usual.

France IMHO runs Le Shuttle with less people on the ground visibly, than the UK and getting back to That Europe is hateful. I'm at the point that the ferry Dover Calais / Dunkirk would be a better option than waiting watching flexi ticket holders or people arriving after me, drive straight through and onto the train as the OP describes.

Tesco vouchers take the sting out of it a bit but sitting in the second holding area in Folkstone for absolutely ages on a motorbike which can go anywhere between cars, in the rain, is beyond comprehension.

Let us know how it is on return JRM and I hope this hasn't taken the edge off your holiday.

 

[sidepod]

A cynic would suggest they do it deliberately just to force people to spend double on a flexi.

The whole thing is a loathsome shambles.

It could be so slick and seamless but they chose to make it a painful as possible.
Add in the M25 each way and it’s on par with a trip to the dentist.

 

[WelshGas]

I have found the Shuttle a consistent game of two halves and I'm sure others experiences are different, but this is mine..
Le Shuttle France - Brexit Island = absolutely no problem, car, cali or motorbike
Le Shuffle Brexit Island - France = delays, cancellations and general asshattery. Almost as if non flexi ticket holders are penalised. 3 or 4 hrs delay has been usual.

France IMHO runs Le Shuttle with less people on the ground visibly, than the UK and getting back to That Europe is hateful. I'm at the point that the ferry Dover Calais / Dunkirk would be a better option than waiting watching flexi ticket holders or people arriving after me, drive straight through and onto the train as the OP describes.

Tesco vouchers take the sting out of it a bit but sitting in the second holding area in Folkstone for absolutely ages on a motorbike which can go anywhere between cars, in the rain, is beyond comprehension.

Let us know how it is on return JRM and I hope this hasn't taken the edge off your holiday.

Of course nothing to do with the fact that the French Border control is at Folkstone as well as the Euroshuttle Control. Very little on the French side in comparison.

 

[Lambeth Cali]

When it works well it’s excellent and very straightforward. We’ve had frustrating 2 hr delays a couple of times on what we’re peak days. It sounds like there was a technical problem and you’ve been very unlucky.
I hope you give it another go. For us it’s way better than the ferry experience.

I now look at this website when we are an hour out as it tells me how it’s looking.

Live Departures

Get the current status of and live departure information for all services at LeShuttle™. 4 departures hourly. Fast, easy & eco-friendly. Book now.

www.leshuttle.com

 

[Doorbundle]

Mrs Db won't use the tunnel. Over the years with DFDS, turn up an hour before sailing, Dover-Dunkirk rarely an issue, a restful 2hr trip in the Cafe or main restaurant for breakfast or evening meal, sometimes in the premium lounge. Our experience has invariably been good. If you're early and there's space, flexible friendly DFDS staff will offer to get you on the next, rather than your booked ferry.

 

[Black Forest]

Of course nothing to do with the fact that the French Border control is at Folkstone as well as the Euroshuttle Control. Very little on the French side in comparison.

Agree. Nothing to do with that, it's been very slick. The delay is after that in the holding pens or even in the arrivals car park. You can see your departure is delayed before passport check...

 

[colintfcolintf]

We used to love the tunnel, especially with the Frequent Traveller package where a return trip was £96 (in the last year it ran) we used to buy 10 crossings for £480
Now we find the overnight with cabin Harwich - Hook of Holland is often cheaper and is now our preferred route. Buying a flexible ticket also give lounge access

 

[wildslammer22]

Of course nothing to do with the fact that the French Border control is at Folkstone as well as the Euroshuttle Control. Very little on the French side in comparison.

Juxtaposed customs has been in play on Le Shuttle and Eurostar for well over 25 years. It adds an extra step in the process but as it’s hardly a new thing it’s unlikely to be the root issue of present day delays.

 

[wildslammer22]

We used to love the tunnel, especially with the Frequent Traveller package where a return trip was £96 (in the last year it ran) we used to buy 10 crossings for £480
Now we find the overnight with cabin Harwich - Hook of Holland is often cheaper and is now our preferred route. Buying a flexible ticket also give lounge access

The Harwich-Hoek is usually very good value too especially if your end destination in Northern Europe. The North Sea can be a bit ‘lumpy’ at times though!

 

[Maidment_Ocean]

6 crossings in last 3 years only had delays once when there had been a train breakdown in the tunnel causing 2 hr delay. Tend to do April / May crossings. Avoid school holidays at all costs.

 

[dspuk]

Out of the dozen or so times we have used we’ve had this experience only once and on the UK side. Every other time it’s been pretty slick and zero issues. Both ways. We make it a habit to not travel abroad at all in school holidays.

Just marked it down as one of those things that happens. I used to travel a lot for work and you soon learn to not get upset by delays else you’ll have an aneurism.

Sure there was an explanation. As always with travel companies (and UK rail pretty good about this nowadays) a little bit of explanation at the time as to why goes a long way.

 

[Barbara]

Their website states 3 hour delays due to unexpected reduction in capacity. There won't have been later people jumping in front of you unless the problem is just with the over 1.8m carriages or they have flexiplus tickets.

We swear by flexiplus & make it a challenge to see if we can recover the extra cost of the ticket in the value of the food grabbed from the kiosk.

Question about the lounge. I assumed that I could not use it with the van as it is not a standard height I.e greater than 1.85. am I correct? is there another kiosk I missed as maybe better than going into the main area? I did once find a bacon roll stall but that was long ago.

 

[andyinluton]

Question about the lounge. I assumed that I could not use it with the van as it is not a standard height I.e greater than 1.85. am I correct? is there another kiosk I missed as maybe better than going into the main area? I did once find a bacon roll stall but that was long ago.

Its the small car park just before you get on the train, same one for overheight, motorcycles and cars.

You need an access code to lift the barrier to get into it.

Its like a Greggs & costa coffee rolled into one.

 

[Mrb08]

We got caught up in the mayhem in half term. Train broke down in the tunnel around mid day, all further crossings delayed so our 15:30ish departure from France ended up being 20:05.
Not that fussed about the delay, it can’t be helped but the total lack of information from the French was the main issue, it was carnage tbh.

 

[The JRM Cali Crew]

That must be hugely frustrating for you. Thank you for alerting everyone.

Any idea what the problem is? Is it the EES issue?

I’m obviously not denying your experience, but we have been through le shuttle dozens of times and not had a problem. In fact, around half the time we’re able to catch an earlier train than the one we’re booked for. Hopefully, your return trip will be smoother.

Not an EES issue. In fact we saw nothing of EES. They started off by advising that there was 30 minute delays but it was anything but. We asked at the customer service desk who told us to go through much earlier than the screens advised, which we did. There was a lot of frustrated and angry people so I guess it wasn’t just down to us being total LT newbies.

 

[The JRM Cali Crew]

Their website states 3 hour delays due to unexpected reduction in capacity. There won't have been later people jumping in front of you unless the problem is just with the over 1.8m carriages or they have flexiplus tickets.

We swear by flexiplus & make it a challenge to see if we can recover the extra cost of the ticket in the value of the food grabbed from the kiosk.

Flexiplus is absolutely the right way to go next time. Those guys were just sailing through! Thanks for the advice!

 

[The JRM Cali Crew]

Second the above points - we take le shuttle 4-5 times per year and never had a problem and find it very easy, organised, and quick. Sorry to hear you’ve had a bad experience, I’d give it another chance - clearly you arrived too early

We pretty much arrived on time, then customer service advised us to board earlier than the departure screens were advising so, clearly, they were anticipating big delays. Next time Flexiplus!

 

[The JRM Cali Crew]

I have found the Shuttle a consistent game of two halves and I'm sure others experiences are different, but this is mine..
Le Shuttle France - Brexit Island = absolutely no problem, car, cali or motorbike
Le Shuffle Brexit Island - France = delays, cancellations and general asshattery. Almost as if non flexi ticket holders are penalised. 3 or 4 hrs delay has been usual.

France IMHO runs Le Shuttle with less people on the ground visibly, than the UK and getting back to That Europe is hateful. I'm at the point that the ferry Dover Calais / Dunkirk would be a better option than waiting watching flexi ticket holders or people arriving after me, drive straight through and onto the train as the OP describes.

Tesco vouchers take the sting out of it a bit but sitting in the second holding area in Folkstone for absolutely ages on a motorbike which can go anywhere between cars, in the rain, is beyond comprehension.

Let us know how it is on return JRM and I hope this hasn't taken the edge off your holiday.

Le Shuttle hasn’t taken the edge off but a broken top bed hinge has! Might try an upgrade to Flexiplus to come home.

 

[The JRM Cali Crew]

When it works well it’s excellent and very straightforward. We’ve had frustrating 2 hr delays a couple of times on what we’re peak days. It sounds like there was a technical problem and you’ve been very unlucky.
I hope you give it another go. For us it’s way better than the ferry experience.

I now look at this website when we are an hour out as it tells me how it’s looking.

Live Departures

Get the current status of and live departure information for all services at LeShuttle™. 4 departures hourly. Fast, easy & eco-friendly. Book now.

www.leshuttle.com

View attachment 148419

I was looking at that on the app and it was advising of a 30 minute delay, which got worse and worse in the terminal building. It’s all a learning experience!

 

[Black Forest]

Flexiplus is absolutely the right way to go next time. Those guys were just sailing through!

That's the rub. Each time, each delay I have been stuck in, it seemed Flexi-plus were going straight through at the expense of the ordinary punters who were waiting...

@JRM hope you get the bed sorted and have a good holiday.