Corporate travellers tired of the Brussels change-over will soon have a faster rail option to Belgium’s second city. Eurostar confirmed on 26 July that it will start four daily direct trains from London St Pancras to Antwerpen-Centraal on 14 December 2026. The leap is made possible by timetable padding freed up after completion of signalling upgrades in the Channel Tunnel and the Belgian high-speed line. The new southbound run shaves more than 30 minutes off the current trip, which forces passengers to detrain at Brussels-Midi and board an SNCB InterCity. Journey time will drop to 2 h 41 m, bringing Antwerp within the golden ‘three-hour business-meeting radius’ favoured by many corporate travel policies. There is a catch: northbound trains will still start in Brussels because Antwerpen-Centraal lacks UK Border Force and French passport-control facilities. Until a permanent pre-clearance zone is built – something Belgian rail operator NMBS says is “under study but unfunded” – travellers returning to London must back-track to Brussels to clear exit formalities. For global mobility managers the service nonetheless opens up new assignment patterns. Antwerp is home to Europe’s largest integrated chemical cluster and a fast-growing creative-tech scene. Door-to-door access from London Heathrow to Antwerp Deurne airport currently demands a lay-over in Amsterdam or a long taxi ride from Brussels; the direct train could become the preferred corridor for week-long rotations. Ticket sales will open in September, with introductory Business Premier fares expected to undercut comparable flight prices. Eurostar says it will review the viability of adding a London-bound stop in Antwerp once bilateral discussions on juxtaposed controls progress.
Source: Euronews Travel
