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Of course pedestrians can travel on the Eurostar trains through the Channel Tunnel (with limited options for transporting bicycles), but that's not what I mean. My question is: can pedestrians and/or cyclists board the shuttle trains between Coquelles, France and Folkestone, UK? If yes, how does it compare price-wise with the ferries? (For cars, a tunnel is significantly more expensive than a ferry.)

Oh, and I also don't mean cycling through the Tunnel like Chris Froome, even though I'd love to do that.

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    The price difference between the car through the tunnel and on a ferry are not fixed, in some cases the tunnel turns out to be cheaper, always worth to check both.
    – Willeke ♦
    Commented Aug 23 at 8:13
  • If we compare like for like, in my experience a ferry is a lot cheaper. Of course, a non-refundable tunnel ticket bought weeks in advance might be cheaper than a ferry ticket bought on the spot, but that's not a fair comparison.
    – Johnnyjanko
    Commented Aug 23 at 8:20
  • In your experience, you have likely not travelled at the time my brother got a better deal on the channel two days out than on the ferry (for that same time of travel.) And I have heard more people about that. So it is worth to spend a few minutes to compare.
    – Willeke ♦
    Commented Aug 23 at 9:39
  • A long time ago there was Duo Line which were reciprocal bus services from Canterbury>Cité Europe in Calais and from Calais to Canterbury. They basically let you go to the other side for shopping as a foot passenger. I don't know if single tickets were allowed/tolerated. A few details on this page: photo-transport.co.uk/buses/cross-border/cross-border.htm. Obviously not an answer to this question btw!
    – Rich
    Commented Aug 25 at 6:55

2 Answers 2

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Apparently so, if you travel by bike.

Taking your bike on LeShuttle is simple, with fares starting at just £50 per bicycle, each way. Our cycle service operates between the Holiday Inn Express in Folkestone and the CIFFCO building opposite Cite Europe in Calais, carrying cycles and cyclists on a specially adapted, spacious minibus. You'll be collected and taken to the terminal and onto the shuttle for the 35 minute journey.

A one-way ferry ticket for a bicycle costs £23.

Pedestrians are out of luck

Unfortunately, pedestrians cannot travel on the Eurotunnel Le Shuttle trains. They must use the Eurostar train or the ferries.

I think some buses go on the Shuttle, so that would be an option, depending on where exactly you are traveling. I'm not sure you can actually buy a ticket from Dover to Calais, but maybe I haven't searched hard enough.

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  • How about pedestrians without bicycles?
    – Johnnyjanko
    Commented Aug 23 at 5:32
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    @GiacomoCatenazzi It's counterintuitive, but I suppose the bicycle ticket includes a seat in the minibus, and the driver's wages
    – Berend
    Commented Aug 23 at 11:14
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    @jcaron - it is possible to take a taxi even with Brexit - indeed I this is indeed the only currently available option if you are a pedestrian who wants to take their pet across the channel (e.g. lepetexpress.com, petmovesabroad.co.uk)
    – Neil Tarrant
    Commented Aug 23 at 15:28
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    @NeilTarrant They aren't really taxis is the usual sense of the term, the first one at least is really a dedicated mini-bus service across the channel for pedestrians and their pets (which means they can arrange the necessary permits to work on both sides of the border, which a regular taxi may not be able to do, I'm not sure you can just hop on a taxi in Calais and tell the driver "to the UK, quick!"). £175 though. But they seem to sell the service like hot cakes! What wouldn't we do for our pets...
    – jcaron
    Commented Aug 23 at 16:11
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    @Johnnyjanko I could find Calais-London or Lille-London so it's possible to take a bus not too far from the French end of the tunnel (and not only from Paris) but I couldn't find any bus with a stop in Kent.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Aug 23 at 23:41
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Whilst the website suggests you can go by bike, this if often not the case. The "bike" option is actually a minibus that goes from a hotel. You cannot book it on the website, instead you have to contact them to make an enquiry.

This minibus service was out of action for a while and it is quite hard to get it booked. I have tried a few times and been told it isn't running.

tl;dr Don't assume you can cross, get in touch with them and see what the current status is.

I have used the ferry and £25 seems to be a standard price. I've booked on the app just hours before travel with no problem; capacity isn't an issue as there is plenty of space for cycles.

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