Eurostar unveils “Eurostar Celestia” – First double-decker trains through the Channel tunnel

Eurostar has announced a €2 billion investment in up to 50 new double-decker trains, named Eurostar Celestia, marking a major milestone in the company’s goal to carry 30 million passengers annually. Built by Alstom and based on the Avelia Horizon platform, these will be the first-ever double-decker trains to operate through the Channel Tunnel and on the UK network.

The initial order for 30 trains includes an option for 20 more, with the first entering service in May 2031. Each 200-metre train will seat around 540 passengers, a 20% increase in capacity, and can operate in 400-metre formations carrying over 1,000 passengers. The new trains will serve Eurostar’s existing network across five countries, as well as new destinations including Geneva and Frankfurt.

Named after the Latin word caelestis (“heavenly”), Eurostar Celestia aims to embody the elegance and excitement of European high-speed travel. The entire fleet will be maintained at London’s Temple Mills depot, which will undergo an €80 million upgrade and create 350 new skilled jobs.

Designed with sustainability and accessibility at its core, Celestia trains will be 97% recyclable, use 25% recycled materials, and achieve 20–50% energy savings compared with Eurostar’s current fleet. They are also engineered for climate resilience.

Eurostar CEO Gwendoline Cazenave called the order “a golden age for international sustainable travel,” while Alstom CEO Henri Poupart-Lafarge said the Avelia Horizon design “embodies our vision of sustainable and competitive European mobility.”

Once delivered, the new fleet will operate alongside Eurostar’s 17 e320s, expanding the total fleet to 67 trains—a 30% increase in capacity for the growing cross-Channel network.