UK leg of Orient Express to be dropped due to Brexit border controls

Belmond, the company that runs the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express (VSOE), is dropping the London-Folkestone leg of the route from next year.

New biometric border checks following Brexit will make it too difficult for the luxury train operator to cross the border to Calais.

Passengers currently ride in historic carriages of the British Pullman service from London’s Victoria station to Folkestone. There they board coaches by road to cross the Channel to meet Belmond’s continental train at Calais,

But a Belmond spokesperson told the Guardian: “We’re adjusting operations in 2024 ahead of enhanced passport and border controls.

“We want to avoid any risk of travel disruption for our guests – delays and missing train connections – and provide the highest level of service, as seamless and relaxed as possible.”

The EU is introducing a new biometric Entry/Exit System (EES), which will mean most people travelling across the Channel who do not have EU residency will need to provide fingerprints and facial recognition data when they cross the border, instead of having their passports stamped.

The EU and the UK will also be making travellers submit pre-travel authorisation forms similar to the US Esta scheme.

British travellers will pay €7 to give European authorities personal information not on their passports – such as criminal convictions, education and parents’ first names – under Etias, the European Travel Information and Authorisation System.