Which option is fastest overall?

Door to door, the pet taxi via Eurotunnel usually wins: no check-in two hours early, no cargo wait, no kennel collection. London to central Paris in about six hours total, including the pet check-in and the crossing.

Which option is best for a nervous cat?

The tunnel, by far: a 35-minute crossing in a familiar-smelling vehicle beats a 90-minute ferry separation or hours of airport cargo handling. A secure carrier plus a worn blanket of yours does the rest.

Is a pet taxi worth it over driving my own car?

If you enjoy the drive and have the documents sorted, DIY works. Owners choose us when they have no car, no wish to tackle French motorways, an anxious pet, or luggage and family that turn the drive into a logistics exercise.

Practical Guides 2026-07-29 7 min read

Pet Taxi vs Eurostar vs Ferry vs Flying: Crossing the Channel with a Pet

Four ways to cross the Channel with a dog or cat, compared on stress, time, cost and paperwork - with an honest verdict for each kind of traveller.

In this guide

1. Eurostar: fast for people, closed to pets
2. Ferry: cheap crossing, lonely pet
3. Flying: the paperwork marathon
4. Door-to-door pet taxi: the verdict

Eurostar: fast for people, closed to pets

London to Paris in 2h16 sounds perfect - until you read the pet policy. Eurostar carries registered assistance dogs only. No pet tickets exist, on any route, at any price. Unless your dog is a certified assistance animal, Eurostar is simply not an option, which is why every other row of this comparison exists.

Ferry: cheap crossing, lonely pet

Dover-Calais ferries take about 90 minutes and accept pets travelling with a vehicle. The catch: on most sailings your dog or cat stays alone on the car deck or in an onboard kennel while you go upstairs. Foot passengers generally cannot bring pets. Sailings slip in bad weather, and a pet left alone in a strange, vibrating car deck is the single most common horror story owners tell us.

Flying: the paperwork marathon

Pets arriving in Great Britain must travel as manifest cargo through an approved route with a cargo agent - no cabin arrivals. Outbound to the EU, small pets fly in-cabin on some airlines. Between cargo fees that routinely exceed the human ticket, airport animal reception queues, and hours of separation, flying makes sense mainly for journeys far beyond driving range.

Door-to-door pet taxi: the verdict

A chauffeured pet taxi via Eurotunnel Le Shuttle combines the only 35-minute crossing with zero separation: your pet stays beside you in the same climate-controlled vehicle from your doorstep to the destination address. It is not the cheapest line on the table - but on stress, total door-to-door time and simplicity it wins for almost every owner, especially with anxious pets, cats, or multi-pet families. Our London-Paris fares start from £715 with a fixed written quote.

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