Eurostar, the high-speed passenger service that links the UK with the Continent, will launch its latest brand campaign, “Exploring is beautiful” on Saturday (17 July). Born of the brand philosophy, “Always Moving Forward”, the campaign is designed to inspire travellers to venture beyond Eurostar’s core destinations and positions high-speed rail travel as the short-haul option for the future. The campaign is an invitation to explore Europe by Eurostar, using convenient high-speed rail connections.

Fully integrated, this campaign will be activated through a mix of TV advertising, radio, outdoor, online, CRM and social media. It will offer an inspirational take on destinations such as Lyon, Avignon in the heart of Provence and Cologne, which are all easily accessible by high-speed rail and a short train ride away from London St Pancras International.

“Exploring is beautiful” - TV

Reflecting the spirit of exploration, the creative is designed to capture people’s imaginations. Directed by Fallon’s Juan Cabral, it showcases a young girl’s tenacity and inquisitiveness as she searches for animals that will talk to her. The ad acts as an emotional reflection of a Eurostar journey, where travellers begin exploring the moment they board the train. The end line, “Exploring is beautiful”, communicates the brand ethos and acts as an invitation to start an exploration of one’s own.

The TV ad will be broadcast nationally on both terrestrial and satellite channels from Saturday 17 July (media planning by Vizeum).

“Europe by Eurostar” online

From Saturday 17 July, Eurostar will launch a new social media platform, www.europebyeurostar.com. Created in partnership with social media agency We Are Social, the website will encourage people to further explore Europe and book their own get-aways. Visitors will have the option to post online their comments and tips once they’ve returned from their trip. As part of the campaign, Eurostar has also invited influential bloggers to guest post on the platform, sharing their experience from their visits to Europe.

Europebyeurostar.com will also host a competition to join a special Explorer Train for a complimentary two-day discovery in Lyon, Avignon, Cologne, Brussels & Bruges. To be in with a chance to win a seat on this train, participants will have to provide a picture of their own exploration trips. The best entries submitted will be entitled to two seats on the trip, which will take place from 24 to 26 of August.

The platform will be complemented by online banners, developed by Rapp, which will showcase the comfort and convenience of a high-speed rail journey to Europe starting with Eurostar.

“Exploring is beautiful” - outdoor

In parallel, the campaign will be supported by outdoor visuals, shot by the photographer Jesse Chehak. The visual will provide a closer look at the wide variety of destinations available.

“Exploring is beautiful” - radio
Kicking off last (24 July), the radio ads will showcase some of Eurostar’s connecting destinations such as Cologne and Lyon. Continuing the exploration theme, the ads will provide an intriguing insight into these cities highlighting their proximity via high-speed rail.  With Lyon only 5h04 minutes via Lille and Cologne only 4h11 minutes via Brussels with Eurostar, exploring these cities has never been so easy.

Eurostar’s Director of Sales and Marketing, Emma Harris, said: “We have seen an increasing number of people using our services for connecting destinations in Europe. The volcano ash cloud has been an eye-opener for many, as thousands of stranded passengers discovered the comfort and ease of high-speed rail connecting journeys throughout Europe.”

She added: “For the first time in our history, we wanted to focus our campaign on connecting destinations, beyond Paris, Brussels or Lille. Travellers can now book their journey from more than 200 towns and cities in the UK to more than a hundred destinations on the continent. Our Exploring is beautiful campaign will with no doubt inspire many more to follow in their footsteps”.