Travel Question of the Day: Simon Calder on how to get cheap train fares between Brussels and Paris

Have a travel question that needs answering? Ask our expert Simon Calder

Gare du Nord: Izy's very lowest fares are scarce

Q You wrote in The Independent about Izy, the low-cost trains between Brussels and Paris that you said offered “third and fourth class”. I have been looking to book, but the cheap fares you mention have not been available.

Name withheld, Brussels

A Izy, an offshoot of the existing high-speed operator Thalys, is offering standing places for €10 and fold-down seats for €15 for the 200-mile journey between the French and Belgian capitals. As with low-cost airlines, the very lowest fares are scarce. My understanding is that these prices are available for a limited number of seats, but are in high demand and therefore need to be booked well in advance.

Normal seats (known as Standard) and premium class (“Standard XL) are also available, and give the certainty of being able to relax in some comfort during the journey. The starting point for Standard is €19 and for XL €29, though prices rise once the cheapest deals have been snapped up.

John Potter, publisher of the European Rail Timetable, makes the interesting point that: “When the allocation of Standard €19 seats sell out and the price increases to €29, the Standard XL price of €29 jumps to €39 and so on upwards. That way, you will never have Standard XL prices lower or equal to Standard.”

Every day, our travel correspondent Simon Calder tackles readers’ questions. Just email yours to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder