Eurotunnel Le Shuttle with a baby

Le Shuttle (still often called Eurotunnel) carries your car on a train from Folkestone to Calais. For a family with a baby it's one of the simplest ways to reach France: you stay with your car, there's no luggage limit, and your baby doesn't need a ticket of their own. Here's what Le Shuttle and GOV.UK say, with links so you can check.

Everything below comes from Le Shuttle's own pages and Help Centre, GOV.UK and the French government's Service Public site, checked October 2026. Rules change, so check before you travel.

Quick answers

Booking: what to add for your baby

Le Shuttle prices by vehicle, not by passenger. Its Help Centre says the ticket includes your vehicle and up to nine people, and the number of people in it doesn't change the price. That makes it good value for a family compared with paying per person.

You do still need to list everyone. Advance Passenger Information (API) is a UK Government requirement, and Le Shuttle says it's mandatory for every passenger: you add each person's passport details to your booking or your Le Shuttle account, and it should be done 24 hours before travel. Without API for everyone, you won't be able to travel. If the number of people travelling changes, you can amend it online (unless your booking includes insurance, when you need to call), then add the new passenger's API.

Hiring a car for the trip? Le Shuttle says to check with the hire company that you can take the car abroad, carry a VE103 certificate, and book using the make and model or vehicle type if you don't know the registration yet (Le Shuttle: hire cars). Ask the hire firm for a baby seat when you book, and see car seat rules in Europe.

Passports and border checks

Every baby needs their own passport to travel abroad. GOV.UK's France entry requirements say your passport must have been issued less than 10 years before you arrive and have an expiry date at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave the Schengen area. A child passport lasts 5 years, so check older siblings' passports too. Our baby passport guide covers how to apply and how long it takes.

UK and French border checks happen before you board in Folkestone, so when you arrive in Calais you drive straight off with no further stops.

The EU Entry/Exit System (EES)

GOV.UK says that if you enter the Schengen area through Eurotunnel Le Shuttle at Folkestone, any EES checks are completed at the border before you leave the UK, and that Le Shuttle has built a pre-registration area with self-service kiosks. Children under 12 aren't fingerprinted, but babies can be photographed and get their own record. EES is free and there's nothing to do before you travel.

Le Shuttle's own EES page said there would be no EES biometric capture at its terminals during the summer 2026 holiday period, and that it was waiting for the French authorities to confirm when the system would be fully launched there (Le Shuttle: EES). Check that page before you go, and allow extra time in case checks are running. Our EES with a baby guide explains what happens at the kiosks.

On the day

Le Shuttle asks you to arrive no more than 2 hours and no less than 1 hour before your booked departure, as early access to the terminal can't be guaranteed at busy times (Le Shuttle: arriving early). Folkestone is about 2 hours' drive from London.

• Check in at a self-service or staffed booth using your booking reference. You'll get a "hanger" with a letter on it to hang from your mirror.
• Park and go into the terminal. This is the best time for a nappy change, a feed and the toilet.
• Boarding starts 25 minutes before departure. When your letter shows "Ready to Board" on the departure boards or the Le Shuttle app, head back to the car.
• Have passports ready for the UK and French border checks, then follow the signs and staff onto the shuttle. Cars usually go on the double-deck carriages, so you may drive up a small ramp.
• The crossing takes about 35 minutes. You stay with your car, but you can get out to stretch your legs.
• Drive off in Calais with direct access to the motorway.

Baby facilities at the terminals

Le Shuttle's family facilities pages say both terminals have:

• Baby changing in the toilets, which are accessible and have room for a pushchair or pram.
• Shops selling nappies, toiletries and other baby items in case you've forgotten something.
• Places to sit and child-friendly food options. Folkestone also has picnic tables for sunny days.

At Calais, Le Shuttle says the kids' room is currently closed for works (Le Shuttle: Calais family facilities).

On board, toilets aren't guaranteed. Le Shuttle says the shuttles have small toilet cubicles, but it can't guarantee they'll be working during any particular crossing. It recommends using the terminal toilets before travelling. There are also toilets in the boarding lanes and at the petrol station just after you leave the terminal.

Flexiplus lounge: if you book Flexiplus, families are welcome in the lounge. Le Shuttle says the Calais lounge has a small children's area with a TV, and free children's activity packs are available on request, subject to availability (Le Shuttle).

Baby milk and food

Going to France: GOV.UK says you can't take meat, milk or products containing them into EU countries, but there are exceptions, including powdered baby milk and baby food.

Coming back to Great Britain: GOV.UK says you can't bring in cheese, milk or other dairy products, or pork, beef and lamb, from the EU. You can bring up to 2 kg per person of powdered infant milk, infant food or special food needed for medical reasons, as long as it doesn't need refrigerating before use and is in branded, unopened packaging (unless it's in use) (GOV.UK: bringing food into Great Britain).

Le Shuttle suggests stocking up on snacks before boarding, so pack a feed and a change bag in the front of the car rather than in the boot.

Driving in France with a baby

• Car seats: France's Service Public says children under 10 travel in the back in an approved child seat. A baby can only go in the front in a rear-facing seat with the airbag switched off, or if the rear seats are missing, unusable or already full of children under 10. A UK seat approved to R129, R44/03 or R44/04 meets the French rule. Our car seat rules in Europe guide has the details for other countries.
• Your car: GOV.UK's France travel advice says to check whether you need a UK sticker, and that every vehicle in central Paris, Lyon and Grenoble needs a pollution sticker from 8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday. GOV.UK's driving abroad guide lists the documents to take.
• Near Calais: GOV.UK advises keeping your car doors locked in slow-moving traffic and not leaving your vehicle unattended.
• Breaks: the Highway Code suggests a break of at least 15 minutes every two hours. Take your baby out of their seat at each stop; the Lullaby Trust says car seats are for travelling, not for sleeping in once you arrive. Our road trips guide has more.

Packing list for the crossing

• Passports for everyone, with API added to the booking
• Car seat fitted and checked before you leave home
• A feed, water, snacks and a change bag within reach, not in the boot
• Nappies and wipes for the terminal stop
• Formula or baby food in sealed, branded packs if you're bringing some back
• Your baby's pushchair if you'll use it in the terminal
• UK sticker, and a pollution sticker if you're driving into Paris, Lyon or Grenoble

Le Shuttle or Eurostar?

If you don't need your car in France, Eurostar lets under-4s travel free on your lap and there's no car seat to think about. Le Shuttle suits trips where you want all your kit and your own car once you're there. Le Shuttle says a car crossing on its service produces far less carbon than taking a ferry. For ferries, see pushchairs on trains and ferries.

Back to rail and ferry travel with a baby.

Sources (checked October 2026)

• Le Shuttle: On the day, The LeShuttle experience, Travel documents, Family facilities at Folkestone, Family facilities at Calais
• Le Shuttle Help Centre: price and number of people, does my baby need a passport?, toilets on board, how long the crossing lasts, arriving early, changing the number of passengers, hire cars, lounge for children, EES
• GOV.UK: France entry requirements, France safety and security (updated 11 August 2026), EU Entry/Exit System, EES campaign news, 8 September 2025, Bringing food into Great Britain, Driving abroad, Highway Code rules 89 to 102
• France: Service Public: seat belts and child seats
• Lullaby Trust: safer sleep on holiday

Last checked and updated: 18 October 2026 · Kiddieko · How we check facts