Eurotunnel Chauffeur — Cross the Channel by Car, Without Driving
Reach England by car, with your luggage, your pet or your equipment, without taking the wheel or booking the shuttle. Your private chauffeur collects you in Paris, the Paris region, Lille, Brussels or Normandy, drives the car onto LeShuttle and drops you at the address of your choice across the Channel. And back again.
Request a crossing quote ↗This page is about the crossing itself: what happens between junction 42 of the A16 and the slip road onto the M20, and what a private chauffeur changes about it. We did it again at dawn on 23 September 2026, one passenger and her cat on board; the photographs were taken that morning. For the full capital-to-capital journey, timings and fixed fares, our Paris to London chauffeur page remains the reference.
You Stay in the Car
Check-in lanes, border checks, boarding, 35 minutes under the sea: nothing takes you out of your seat.
Anywhere in England
London, Kent, Ashford, Canterbury, Brighton, Oxford, Cambridge — and the return leg to France.
Shuttle and Paperwork Handled
LeShuttle booking, passport details 24 hours ahead, the chauffeur's own ETA, Congestion Charge and ULEZ.
This service sits within our long-distance and international range. First Class saloon for up to three passengers, Business Van for a family, a crew or a full load.
Good to know
- Coquelles terminal, A16 junction 42 — signed "Terminal tourisme", just west of Calais. Check-in, border checks and boarding all happen from inside the car.
- 35-minute crossing, straight onto the M20 at Folkestone: London about 1h45 away, Ashford and Canterbury minutes from the terminal.
- A passport for everyone, plus an ETA or a visa depending on nationality; a French residence permit exempts you from nothing. Check your case on gov.uk.
- Pet on board: Pet Reception before the border, between 2 hours and 1 hour before departure. Our LeShuttle pet travel guide covers microchip, vaccination and worming.
The Eurotunnel with a chauffeur, step by step
Arriving at the terminal. On the A16 your chauffeur leaves at junction 42 and follows the "Follow / Suivre" signs to the check-in lanes, a row of white canopies topped by a green or red light. The booking is recognised, the shuttle confirmed, the barrier lifts. You have not taken anything out of your bag.
Pet Reception, if an animal is travelling. Before the border, a dedicated building: booking reference, the animal's papers, microchip scanned through the window, "PETS" tag on the mirror. Nobody gets out. On 23 September the cat was cleared at 10:46 for the 12:16 shuttle.
Two border checks, from the car. French border police check you out; a few metres on, UK Border Force checks you in. Windows down, passports out, and the border is behind you before you have seen the sea. Everyone's passport details went across the day before, the chauffeur has his ETA, the lane keeps moving.
The boarding lane. An illuminated board calls the letters; at the end of the platform, the LeShuttle locomotive, number 9026 that morning. Your chauffeur crawls up the ramp, follows the car in front into the carriage, parks, switches off and cracks a window as the display asks. The doors close, a chime, the train slides away.
35 minutes under the Channel. A steady hum, a slight pressure in the ears, the soft light of beige walls. Two emails, a nap, the cat stroked. At Folkestone the doors open, the train empties carriage by carriage and you are on the M20 with no further formalities.
What your chauffeur takes care of
The shuttle. We book the LeShuttle slot that fits your day, with enough margin for the checks, and move it if your plans change. The crossing is included for the vehicle, the chauffeur, the passengers and the pet.
Passport details 24 hours ahead. Eurotunnel requires Advance Passenger Information, the passport details of everyone on board, the day before departure. We collect them at booking and send them across.
Your authorisations and his. The chauffeur travels on his own ETA. We remind you what your passport implies: an ETA within a few days for visa-exempt nationalities, a Standard Visitor visa to apply for several weeks ahead for the rest, whether you live in France or not.
The English road. Driving on the left, Kent roundabouts, London's Congestion Charge and ULEZ: registered, paid, built into the quote. Heading south, pick-up at your UK address and the same formalities before boarding, at Folkestone.
Who crosses the Channel with a chauffeur
People with luggage. A season in London, a full wardrobe, skis, golf clubs: in the Business Van it all goes in one load, nothing weighed, nothing surcharged.
People travelling with a pet. Eurostar refuses animals and airlines usually put them in the hold; on LeShuttle your cat or dog stays on the back seat with you. See our guide to travelling with a pet on LeShuttle and, if you land at Roissy, our CDG to London chauffeur with pet page.
Film crews and light removals. Flight cases, lighting, boxes, framed artwork, a bicycle: one van, one load, one driver who waits. Often simpler than a hire van returned abroad.
People who would rather not fly. By choice, for health or for privacy: the car is a private space end to end, with no terminal and no crowd.
LeShuttle, ferry or Eurostar: the honest comparison
Eurostar is still the fastest station to station for a lone traveller with light luggage bound for central London. It does not carry pets, assistance dogs aside, caps luggage and leaves you at St Pancras with a car still to find.
The Calais–Dover ferry takes the car too, but the crossing is a good deal longer and passengers go up to the decks for the voyage: the animal stays below, without you. The sea can push timings around.
LeShuttle combines what the other two lack: 35 minutes, everyone in the car, unlimited luggage, your pet beside you, frequent departures, weather no object. It is our default choice. Timetables and conditions on leshuttle.com.
The chauffeur's view
Wednesday 23 September 2026, 05:30, Terminal 2E at Roissy. One passenger, two cases, a cat complaining and then asleep before Senlis. The advantage of CDG: you are already north of the city, the A1 and then the A26 in the half-light. Plenty of room before the 12:16 shuttle, so a coffee at Saint-Omer. At Coquelles the terminal comes out of the mist with its "See you on the other side". Pet Reception at 10:46, tag on the mirror, two border checks in five minutes. On the platform, 9026, and that small pleasure of driving an E-Class into a train. Thirty-five minutes of beige silence, English light, the first roundabout on the left. Drop-off on West End Lane, West Hampstead, cat still asleep.
Eurotunnel Chauffeur FAQ
Can we stay in the car during the Eurotunnel crossing?
Yes, on LeShuttle it is the rule: everyone stays inside the vehicle for the 35 minutes, pets included. The chauffeur switches off the engine, cracks a window as the on-board signs ask, and you read, work or doze until the doors open at Folkestone.
How long does the Eurotunnel take with a chauffeur?
The crossing takes 35 minutes. At Coquelles, add the check-in lanes, the two border checks and the boarding queue. We book a shuttle with a comfortable margin, Pet Reception included if an animal is travelling with you.
Does the chauffeur need an ETA to enter the UK?
Yes. To UK Border Force the chauffeur is a traveller like any other: passport and a valid Electronic Travel Authorisation. Our chauffeurs on the Channel routes already hold one. You present a passport plus, depending on your nationality, an ETA or a Standard Visitor visa.
Do I have to book the LeShuttle crossing myself?
No. We book the crossing for the vehicle, chauffeur, passengers and any pet, and send the passport details of everyone on board to Eurotunnel 24 hours before departure. The LeShuttle fare is built into your price, both ways on a return.
What happens if we miss the shuttle?
In practice it does not happen: we leave with a margin calculated on traffic and border-check times. If an exceptional queue did cost us the slot, the terminal moves the vehicle onto a later departure and your chauffeur handles the rebooking. There is nothing for you to do.
Can we start somewhere other than Paris, or travel from England to France?
Yes to both. Pick-up in Paris, anywhere in the Paris region, Lille, Brussels or Normandy; drop-off at any address in England: London, Kent, Ashford, Canterbury, Brighton, Oxford or Cambridge. Heading south, your chauffeur collects you at your UK address and brings you back on the same shuttle.
How much does crossing the Channel with a chauffeur cost?
Paris to London is a fixed fare: 1,549 EUR in Business Class, 1,949 EUR in the Business Van, 2,139 EUR in First Class one way, all-inclusive (chauffeur, fuel, tolls, shuttle, Congestion Charge, ULEZ). From CDG, Business Class starts at 1,300 EUR. Any other British destination, starting point or the UK-to-France direction: on request, same inclusions.
Paris ↔ London via LeShuttle — fixed fares
All-inclusive: chauffeur, vehicle, fuel, tolls, LeShuttle crossing, Congestion Charge and ULEZ. Other British destinations quoted on request.
Business Class
1549€one way · up to 3 passengers
Return 2649€ · from CDG from 1300€
Business Van
1949€one way · up to 7 passengers
Return 3329€ · luggage, equipment and pets welcome
First Class
2139€one way · up to 3 passengers
Return 3649€ · S-Class saloon
From-prices for a private Paris–London transfer. From CDG, the €1,300 Business Class fare applies when booked at least three weeks ahead, LeShuttle crossing included; under three weeks, a supplement may apply depending on LeShuttle availability at the requested time. UK → France direction: billed at €2.70 per km in Business Class plus a €300 LeShuttle supplement when booked well ahead. Lille, Brussels, Normandy, Kent, Brighton, Oxford, Cambridge: on request, same inclusions.
Your chauffeur across the Channel
Starting point, destination address, passengers, luggage, pet: give us the essentials and we come back with a complete quote, LeShuttle crossing included. Or book online and name your British destination.
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