Emma Harris, Eurostar's Director of Sales & Marketing

By Claudette Covey

Published on: October 12, 2009

Eurostar trains travel under the English Channel via the Channel Tunnel between downtown London to downtown Paris or between London and Brussels, with both trips taking less than three hours. Eurostar also offers limited services from London to the gates of Disneyland Resort Paris at Gare de Marne-la-Vallée-Chessy, and seasonal destinations in France. All told, the rail service provides links to more than 100 destinations across Europe. We spoke with Emma Harris, Eurostar’s director of sales and marketing for the U.K. and international markets. Harris, who is responsible for brand management and the global advertising strategy, played a pivotal role in the company’s 2007 relocation to London’s St. Pancras International from Waterloo Station.

What is the experience like for passengers in the new St. Pancras station? It’s really a destination unto itself. St. Pancras International has wonderful shops and restaurants that offer virtually everything. At the station’s upper concourse, travelers can find the world’s longest Champagne Bar, at more than 295 feet long, and a pub and brasserie. On the ground floor they can find wine bars, coffee bars, a gourmet burger restaurant and a sushi bar. There are also gorgeous clothing stores, including the shirt maker Thomas Pink, the world-famous toy store Hamleys, and a Belgian chocolate store, Neuhaus. These are just a few of the features and amenities available at the station. This year St. Pancras also is introducing a Farmers Market, which will be a permanent station feature.

What advice would you give to North American travel agents who want to book more European vacations using Eurostar as a means of transportation? We all know the stresses caused by air travel -- particularly if you’re making that big transatlantic flight. With rail travel you get an authentic European experience and you don’t have to deal with the stresses of the airport. It’s a much more civilized way to travel, particularly for anyone who really wants to see Europe while getting from point A to point B and soaking in the spectacular countryside. In addition, with the longer check-in lines at airports, it’s quicker to take a high-speed train. From London to Paris, our on-time rate is at 96 percent as well, so our travelers know they will arrive on time. Ultimately, Eurostar travel is less stressful, quicker and more environmentally friendly.

How much business do you get from North American travel agents -- and how much do you pay them in terms of commissions? We get about 30 percent of our business from North American travel agents. We’re the only train company in the world that’s on the GDS, which makes it really easy for agents to book Eurostar. Rail Europe (http://agent.raileurope.com), Eurostar’s official distributor, pays Eurostar commissions, which are based on agency productivity. Rail Europe also offers agents the option of adding a service fee of as much as $600 on a single Eurostar booking, which is a really lucrative sales opportunity for them.

Currently, Eurostar operates as a partnership including SNCF, SNCB and Eurostar U.K. By 2010, it will operate as a single entity. How will this impact the way Eurostar does business and the way in which travel agents sell its rail products? It won’t, really. The big difference will be internal, with Eurostar running its own operations in other countries. We’ll be able to make better -- and quicker -- decisions. Travel agents, however, won’t see much of a difference.

How will Europe’s high-speed rail network expand in the next five to 10 years? Massively! By 2020, Europe's high-speed track mileage should triple. There are confirmed projects for lines within and linking France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Austria, Portugal and Sweden. High-speed trains from Amsterdam to Madrid -- via Paris, Lyon and Barcelona -- are a certainty in the works within 15 years. As the network expands we firmly believe people will switch increasingly away from flying between the U.K. and Europe and towards high-speed rail.

Do you partner in any way with airlines? We partner with airlines all over the world. In the U.S. we have a fantastic partnership with Virgin Atlantic, and have just implemented interlining e-ticketing with them, which means that Virgin Atlantic passengers can simply make a booking on Eurostar at the same time as they book their air ticket via the Virgin Atlantic or through their local travel agent. We are, in fact, the only rail operator in the world to be registered on primary screen GDS, so we see many more of these e-ticketing arrangements launching globally.

With the environment a growing concern for consumers and businesses alike, what is Eurostar’s strategy to help ensure its trains reduce carbon footprints? The environment is an increasingly important issue to us as a business. It is very, very important to us. Trains are 10 times more efficient than air travel. For instance, travel from London to Paris via Eurostar uses 10 times less carbon emissions. We’ve worked very hard to go a lot further than that. Our “Tread Lightly” initiative, launched in 2007, considers the environment in everything we do. We plan to reduce our carbon emissions by 35 percent by 2012. The “Tread Lightly” initiative runs right through the blood of our business. Eurostar also uses local and seasonal food so we don’t have to ship goods from afar.

What are your predictions for future growth from the North American market? We believe that President Barack Obama is furthering the idea that the future lies in high-speed rail travel versus air travel. He’s driving this concept home in the U.S., as well as the fact that there’s a huge market for it. Thirty-six percent of the people coming over from North America and traveling to London are using Eurostar’s services. That’s a huge amount -- and there’s a huge opportunity to grow that market. You can travel to two cities in one day. The Eurostar journey should be an iconic part of any traveler’s stay in Europe.

Claudette Covey is a contributing editor to TravelPulse.com.