Dogs and trains ?

We are planning another visit to Paris in the late summer, as it is such a dog friendly place we thought we would bring George(Boston Terrier) with us. I know Eurostar don%26#39;t allow dogs,except guide dogs, what about other train lines in France ? We could drive all the way to Paris but wouldn%26#39;t use the car once there so would prefer a train journey from Calais if possible..does anyone have any suggestions, ideas or experience of travelling from the UK to Paris with a dog by train??

Ps What about the best dog friendly hotels while we are on the subject??

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Many hotels accept animals and usually refer to that on their websites (sometimes there is a small charge).

Have you really thought through how having your pet will impact your activities, though? Musuems and many stores do not allow them. You will not be able to leave the dog unattended in the hotel. Perhaps you have already %26#39;scaled%26#39; back your sightseeing plans with this thought in mind...

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Here%26#39;s a link from the SNCF site sncf-voyages.com/info_resa/…home.htm

You can also phone Rail Europe for advice.

We%26#39;ve travelled through France several times in the car with our dog %26amp; most places are dog friendly, even restaurants as long as you can tuck them away in a corner. Our dog is medium sized %26amp; fortunately very well behaved %26amp; we%26#39;ve never had any problems with him. We only do outdoors sightseeing when he%26#39;s with us though, or if there%26#39;s a cathedral or museum we particularly want to see we take turns.

We did look into taking him on the train %26amp; couldn%26#39;t see any problems on the normal rail system, however, because our dog is too big to carry we would have had problems with transport on the metro or buses in Paris.

Isn%26#39;t it fantastic,though, to be able to travel abroad with our dogs now.

By the way, we%26#39;ve crossed the channel by both ferry %26amp; Eurotunnel %26amp; we will stick to Eurotunnel every time now when we have the dog with us, it%26#39;s far less stressful for him as we stay in the car with him rather than leaving him in the car on his own on a noisy car deck.

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We%26#39;ve owned dogs that we have absolutely doted on and organized our lives around in many matters great and small....but as much as we%26#39;ve loved these dogs...we would NEVER in a million years...put them through the stress and ordeal of a tourist visit to a city like Paris, London, et al. It%26#39;s NO KINDNESS to the pet you love.

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You can take dogs on trains anywhere in France. For a smaller dog that you can keep in a basket its 5 euros and you need to buy the ticket in the station. Muzzles are required. However, I have taken my dog on the train here more times than I can remember and I have never used a muzzle and have never been told I needed one. So basically it%26#39;s no problem, just keep him on a leash.

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Oh you can take the TGV direct from the Calais Frethun station to Paris. Travel time is about 1h40 mins.

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If it is a dog that fits in a bag, i think you can take it on an SNCF train, if it is bigger i think the rule is that you pay a special ticket for the dog which is half the price. Note that on the RER and metro you are not allowed to take a dog if it doesn%26#39;t fit in a bag.

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Thanks for the help. I take the point about animal welfare and of course we would not be taking George to really busy areas,the idea is for walks around the city, picnics and the odd visit to Mon Bon Chien (the dog biscuit shop). I shall look into the TGV option.

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Raphy is 100 percent correct about the rules on dogs in the metro. However, I have taken my dog on the metro several times and she is too large to be carried in a basket. I just try to avoid peak times so she has plenty of room to sit comfortably and I don%26#39;t do it alot.

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KDKSAIL

Our dog is a lot more stressed at being parted from us than being in a city. How do you think dogs cope that live in a city?

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%26gt;%26gt;%26gt;Our dog is a lot more stressed at being parted from us than being in a city. How do you think dogs cope that live in a city?%26lt;%26lt;%26lt;

%26quot;...put them through the stress and ordeal of a *** tourist visit *** (emphasis added) to a city like Paris, London, et al...%26quot;

If the dog is acclimated to a normal life in a large city, acccustomed to being transported about a busy, crowded urban enviornment via public transportation EVERY DAY, then sure, no problem. But if an animal isn%26#39;t acclimated and accustomed to this then it is simply an attempt by an owner to assuage their own feelings of %26#39;guilt%26#39; at leaving their beloved pat at home---in a safe, familiar enviornment, on a relatively regular schedule of diet and exercise, most likely with people it knows. It%26#39;s not that the pet can%26#39;t be parted from its owner...it%26#39;s far more likely that the owner can%26#39;t be parted from the pet.