Two Record Breaking Milestones for Eurostar
Eurostar added one more reason to celebrate this holiday season as the international high-speed rail operator passed two significant and record breaking passenger milestones. Coinciding with the start of its twentieth year of operation, 2013 has seen Eurostar carry, for the first time, 10 million passengers in a single year. This landmark achievement brings the total number of passengers who have travelled with Eurostar since operations began in 1994 to an impressive 140 million.
The first commercial Eurostar services departed London, Paris and Brussels on the 14th November 1994 and by the end of the year, more than 150,000 passengers had travelled between the Capital cities. Since then, annual passenger numbers have grown steadily as more and more people experience the excitement of a journey on Eurostar through the Channel Tunnel. The record breaking passenger milestones were achieved today (30 December 2013) as 2013 draws to a close.
Recent signs of a recovery in the UK economy along with a busy summer for leisure travel across its routes have helped Eurostar attract 10 million passengers onboard its services in a single year. Travellers from across Europe have joined an increasing number of international passengers from countries as far afield as the USA, Australia, China and Brazil.
Passenger numbers also received a boost in 2013 following the introduction of new routes and new destinations to an expanding Eurostar timetable. As well as a new winter ski service to the Swiss Alps, this summer saw the successful trial of Eurostars Route du Soleil service direct to Provence in the south of France and has led to the introduction of the route on a permanent basis from 2015.
Looking back on 2013, a host of events this year in London, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam helped contribute to Eurostars record breaking year;
Eurostars top 10 most memorable moments in 2013
1. Royal Baby, Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge, arrives 22 July
2. Sizzling UK summer temperatures – 9th warmest since records began in 1910
3. Chris Froome storms to victory in the Tour de France in Paris 21 July
4. Champions League Final at Wembley between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund – 25 May
5. David Bowie blockbuster exhibition at the V&A – 23 March 2013 to 28 July
6. Andy Murray becomes the first Brit to win Wimbledon since 1977 7 July
7. Rolling Stones 50th anniversary concerts in Hyde Park 6 July and 13 July
8. David Beckham plays his last ever professional game for PSG at Parc des Princes in Paris, 18 May
9. Artic Monkeys concert in Brussels 9 November
10. The famous Rijksmuseum reopened in Amsterdam after 10 years on renovation 13 April
And demonstrating the continuing popularity of Eurostars services with celebrity travellers, the 2013 VIP passenger manifest includes names from all walks of life;
Eurostars top 10 celebrity and VIP travellers in 2013;
1. The Beckhams David, Victoria, Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz & Harper
2. One Direction Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles & Louis Tomlinson
3. Mick Jagger
4. Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall
5. Madonna
6. Liza Minelli
7. Rihanna
8. Paul and Stella McCartney
9. Kanye West and Kim Kardashian
10. Katy Perry
Nick Mercer, Commercial Director for Eurostar said: 2013 has been a record breaking year for Eurostar. With a leap in passenger numbers as well as the introduction of new routes and new destinations, we are seeing growing demand from customers across Europe and indeed around the world. As we enter our twentieth year of operation, we have a year of activity planned on the run up to our 20thbirthday in November.
Eurostar is celebrating onboard all week the achievement of its passenger milestones offering passengers surprise upgrades from Standard class to Standard Premier class.
