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Driving to Spain, Eurotunnel food plus dog and top tips

16 replies

MaryOBlige · 15/04/2025 16:40

Hi

I’m driving to Spain next week. I’ve read I’m not allowed meat or dairy on le shuttle. Has anyone done this recently or regularly? It’s just dawned on me I may not be allowed my dogs (dry) food and she has allergies and maybe tea/coffee in a flask with milk might be a problem. Egg sarnies maybe but no butter, mayo? Just how strict is it. Any experience greatly received and other top tips for the journey most welcome

tia

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MinistryofThyme · 15/04/2025 16:42

I travel regularly with my dog on the Eurotunnel. I’ve had my car randomly searched 2 or 3 times. They have never, ever, removed the dog’s food or my sandwiches…

MissScarletInTheBallroom · 15/04/2025 16:43

I also take the Eurotunnel regularly (albeit in a French plated car, which might make a difference). Never once been searched, which is just as well because we are usually smuggling sausages and bacon.

I am 99.9999% certain that no one will give a rat's arse whether your egg sandwich has butter in it or not, even if you are unlucky enough to have your car searched and your dog food confiscated.

MaryOBlige · 15/04/2025 16:44

MinistryofThyme · 15/04/2025 16:42

I travel regularly with my dog on the Eurotunnel. I’ve had my car randomly searched 2 or 3 times. They have never, ever, removed the dog’s food or my sandwiches…

Were your sandwiches compliant? 😏

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MaryOBlige · 15/04/2025 16:46

Ok thanks, that’s reassuring. I won’t overthink it then. And I guess worst case scenario is I lose a sandwich and my dogs special food that’s a pain source…

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DiscoBeat · 15/04/2025 16:47

MaryOBlige · 15/04/2025 16:44

Were your sandwiches compliant? 😏

Best question on here today!

MissScarletInTheBallroom · 15/04/2025 16:47

Actually it says on the French customs website that you can take up to 2kg of pet food for medical purposes.

I have no idea how many days' supply that is.

Ilovegermany · 15/04/2025 16:50

If you have eaten your sarnies before you get to France there is no problem normally. I remember when there was foot and mouth disease in the UK I had to dump my uneaten ham sandwich at the airport in Germany.
I haven’t had dry food problems for my dog going to the UK and the rules are the same both ways. Have you checked if the food is available in Spain or France?

Coali · 15/04/2025 17:04

The eurotunnel lasts about 35mins, you’ll barely have enough time to eat sandwiches! Just eat them beforehand, or wait to you get there and buy a nicer French sandwich!

minnienono · 15/04/2025 17:07

Never been searched either way.

MissScarletInTheBallroom · 15/04/2025 17:10

Coali · 15/04/2025 17:04

The eurotunnel lasts about 35mins, you’ll barely have enough time to eat sandwiches! Just eat them beforehand, or wait to you get there and buy a nicer French sandwich!

You are straight onto the motorway at the other end. French service station sandwiches are not much different from British service station sandwiches really.

Honestly though, all the Brexit stuff about lorry drivers having their ham sandwiches confiscated was massively overblown. Yes, technically it's not allowed. In reality, no one cares. They only want to make sure you're not carrying drugs, firearms or migrants.

My freezer in France is full of sausages and bacon which I bought in Sainsbury's and stashed in the bottom of the cool box in the car. I've also been known to bring clotted cream, and we usually have a few yoghurts knocking around as well. Some of which originated in France and have made a return journey.

MaryOBlige · 15/04/2025 17:41

@MissScarletInTheBallroom love the tale about the yoghurts having a holiday.

we don’t fancy veering off track too much, it’s 26 hours to destination so just want to get there, plus my dog is a huge reactive pain in the arsr. I love a good homemade sandwich anyway. And i probably will want a sandwich before the tunnel but I’m also thinking of the rest of the journey in terms of food and snacks…Like I would have liked to take long life milk to refill the flasks at the motel in France which only has a kettle.

@Ilovegermany thanks. I haven’t checked but I highly doubt it, it’s made in Italy and I get it shipped from Ireland @MissScarletInTheBallroom thanks! I’m taking 15kg 😬 she’s huge and I’m there a month.

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MaryOBlige · 15/04/2025 17:46

Also would love to hear any tips, genius stuff you pack for the journey that I may not have thought of? I’ve never done anything like this before and I’m starting to feel nervous and excited.
I’m to download some podcasts and take a pillow for the non drivers turn to rest…..

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reluctantbrit · 15/04/2025 17:57

We take a cool bag and stock on bread, cheese and charcuterie as soon as we leave the eurotunnel. There are plenty of supermarkets around.

MissScarletInTheBallroom · 15/04/2025 18:22

MaryOBlige · 15/04/2025 17:46

Also would love to hear any tips, genius stuff you pack for the journey that I may not have thought of? I’ve never done anything like this before and I’m starting to feel nervous and excited.
I’m to download some podcasts and take a pillow for the non drivers turn to rest…..

Hmm.

Depending on where you are going (certain large towns and cities) you may need a Crit'Air sticker to show that your car satisfies emissions requirements for driving in urban areas. Check the places you're planning to drive through.

If you have a newish car with a digital speedometer, figure out how to change it to KPH so you don't accidentally get done for speeding.

It's illegal to use any sat nav device which tells you exactly where speed cameras are in France, only the general area, but if you're using something like Google maps or Waze it should automatically adjust to conform to local laws. Speed cameras are much less visible in France than in the UK.

Make sure you have a hi vis vest and a warning triangle in your car in case of a breakdown. (And European breakdown cover, of course!)

Remember to give way to the left and bear right at roundabouts. Occasionally you may encounter a roundabout where those joining have priority; in these cases there will be line markings on the roundabout itself. (Most of them are not like this and work the same way as British roundabouts.)

Watch out for cars coming out of side roads on to your right, they sometimes have right of way.

Also watch out when you have a green light to turn left or right at a junction, because frequently there will be a pedestrian crossing on the road you're turning onto which has a green light at the same time. French urban planners don't seem to have realised that traffic lights were actually invented to avoid exactly this sort of problem. 🙃

Basically just keep your wits about you and don't assume you have right of way in situations where you would normally expect to have right of way.

More general France tips...

Always say "bonjour" and smile when you enter a shop, cafe or restaurant, and "au revoir" when you leave. Even if your total vocabulary is limited to "bonjour", "parlez-vous anglais", "merci" and "au revoir", using these words liberally will make a big difference to your experience in France. Even more so if you can manage to order your coffee/baguette/beer/wine in French. (They will be delighted with this in Spain too.)

If you want to eat in restaurants but are flexible about when, a lot of good restaurants will do a fixed price lunchtime menu that costs a fraction of what it would cost in the evening, so go for a big sit down lunch and a pauper's supper of bread, cheese and wine if you are doing one or the other.

And probably the most important tip of all, if you go to a boulangerie and order a "baguette" you will get a bog standard baguette. If you order a "baguette tradition" or a "tradition" you will pay about 20c more but get the deluxe version with nicer ingredients.

Enjoy!

MissScarletInTheBallroom · 15/04/2025 18:24

The only food items I would bring apart from your dog food is tea bags if you are a tea drinker. You can buy everything else locally. Certainly don't bother bringing long life milk.

MissScarletInTheBallroom · 15/04/2025 18:26

Oh and if you're grocery shopping in France, the fruit, veg, meat, fish and cheese you get at the market will be much better quality and probably cheaper than in the supermarket.

The supermarket is basically for yoghurt, toilet paper, drinks, and anything you realise you need at 10pm when everything else is closed.

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