Planning a trip from the UK to France by car? This guide covers everything you need to know about how to rent a car in the UK and drive to France, including essential documents and equipment that you’ll need, plus travel tips about crossing the English Channel.
If you are using your own car, check out our other dedicated guide How to drive from the UK to France
Whilst flying and taking the train are great options for getting where you need to go quickly, driving offers unparalleled freedom to explore France at your own pace. If you don’t own a car in the UK there are options to rent and take it abroad. We’ve put together everything you need to know to help plan your drive to France.
You may also may be interested in these other guides:
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Where to rent a car in the UK to take to France
Not all car rental companies in the UK allow their vehicles to be driven abroad, particularly now that rules have changed post-Brexit. However, there are a couple of options:
- Enterprise
- Europcar
Both car rental companies allow you to take your rented car to France and have locations across the UK for easy pickup and drop-off. Both companies are much the same in terms of price.
Cost and fees
As well as paying for renting a car you will need to pay for an additional European Travel Coverage fee. This allows you to take the car abroad and acts as your car insurance and breakdown cover in France. Both Enterprise and Europcar offer European Travel Coverage starting from £90 for 1-2 days.
- Information on Enterprise European Travel Coverage can be found here.
- Europcar’s cover is called Europdrive. More information is available here.
Other costs to consider when driving to France, are the toll roads. Taking the toll roads in France is probably your best option if you are travelling long distance as they can considerably cut down the amount of time you spend driving. The toll roads are also very quiet with hardly any traffic which makes for a nice driving experience. However, the toll roads can be expensive.
- For example, the toll roads to Annecy from Calais cost approximately £50.
Of course, if there are a few of you in one car you may be able to split that cost between yourselves making it great value for money. You also do not need to take the toll roads and can choose to take other roads. This will certainly be the better option if you have plenty of time, plan on making lots of stops rather than one long distance drive, and want to see the scenery (which is not great from the toll roads). Recommendations on where to stop in France if you are heading south can be found in our other guide.
Documents you will need to rent a car and drive to France
To rent a car:
- Driving licence.
- Driving licence check code (for UK licence holders): This is used to share your driving licence information with the car rental company. You can obtain this code from the UK Government website.
- International Driving Permit (for non-UK licence holders): Contact your local authority for details.
- Proof of address (within the last 3 months).
To take the car to France:
- Driving licence: A must have wherever and whenever you are driving.
- Proof of ID: Such as passport.
- VE103B form: This will be supplied by the car rental company as part of the European Travel Coverage.
- Car insurance: This will be supplied by the car rental company as part of the European Travel Coverage.
- Travel insurance: Ensure that you have the correct travel insurance which includes traveling and driving in France.
- Clean air stickers (Crit’Air vignettes): You will only need a Crit’Air sticker displayed on your car when driving in certain cities when there is a risk of dangerously high air pollution. Cities include Paris, Annecy, Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Strasbourg, Toulouse, and others. It is not expensive, but drivers will face a large fine if they don’t have one. To find out more visit the French Government website.
Equipment you will need to drive to France
France has specific driving regulations, so ensure you have the following:
- Headlamp beam deflectors: Depending on your car you will either need deflector stickers or you will have to adjust the beam manually.
- UK sticker: All vehicles registered in the UK must display the letters ‘UK’ when driven in France. Some cars may already have this for example in their registration number plate. If not, you will need to purchase one. (Vehicles displaying the letters GB are no longer valid).
- A warning triangle: Compulsory in every vehicle.
- Reflective jackets: Each person travelling within your car will need a reflective jacket in the event of a breakdown or emergency.
- Breathalyser.
You can purchase all of this equipment that you’ll need to drive in France in one kit. Here are the best options:
- AA Euro Travel Kit – the Automobile Association (AA) is the UK’s leading provider of roadside assistance and their all-in-one kit provides everything you will legally need to drive in Europe. It also includes handy extras such as a European Driver’s Handbook and a map of the UK roads.
- Family Motoring and Leisure European Travel Kit – a slightly cheaper kit which provides all of the essentials.
How to take your car to France
Train
- Folkstone to Calais via the Euro Tunnel (just 35 minutes).
- Prices vary starting from £77 for one way. Taking the Euro Tunnel is our preferred method as it is quick and convenient.
Ferry
- Dover to Calais (approx. 1h 30m).
- P&O Ferries have up to 15 sailings a day. Prices vary starting from £39.50 for one way.
- Portsmouth, Plymouth or Pool to Cherbourg, St Malo, Caen, Le Havre or Roscoff (shortest crossing approx. 4h 30m).
- Brittany Ferries offer crossings to a choice of destinations the shortest of which is Pool to Cherbourg . Prices vary starting from £89.00 for one way.
How much time will I need to drive to France?
As noted above, crossing the channel from the UK to France (arriving in Calais) doesn’t take much time:
- 35 minutes via the EuroTunnel train
- 1 hour 30 minutes via the ferry
However, you will need to take into consideration driving times once you’re in France. It’s a huge country and if you’re used to driving in the UK, then the distance it takes to get from one place to another may shock you.
- For example, diving from Annecy to Calais using the toll roads and taking a few quick stops along the way took about 9 hours. We would certainly recommend you break up this journey with an overnight stay somewhere (we found Troyes to be a lovely town). We have more information and recommendations for places to stay overnight in this guide.
French road regulations
- Alcohol limit: For drivers that have less than three years of experience, the alcohol limit is 0.2 grams per litre. If you have more than three years’ experience the limit is 0.5 grams per litre. Both are lower than the English, Welsh and Northern Irish limit of 0.8 grams per litre (the Scottish limit is 0.5).
- Headphones: All drivers and riders are prohibited from wearing headsets and headphones whilst driving, be it for music purposes or for phone calls. However, this does exclude motorcycle helmets that have integrated systems.
- Low emission zones: Paris has a Low Emission Zone which means that petrol and diesel cars registered before 1997 are banned from 8am to 8pm on weekdays. As of 2020, only vehicles made in or after 2011 are allowed. Diesel and petrol lorries and buses made before 1997 are banned in Paris as well.
What not to take in your car to France
- Meat or products containing meat.
- Milk or dairy products.
- Fresh fruit apart from bananas, coconuts, dates, pineapples and durians.
- Vegetables.
- Plants.
- Plant products.
Pros and cons of driving to France
Pros
- Freedom to go where you want, stop where you want, and see more.
- Travel at your own leisure.
- If there are lots of you in one car, it may be cheaper than each getting plane/train tickets, plus renting a car once at your destination (if needed).
- Comfort of your own car rather than a rented car.
- You can probably fit more bags and equipment in your car than you would be able to take on a plane or train. Particularly useful if you plan on skiing or camping.
- Depending on your car type and if you get the Euro Tunnel it may be much more environmentally friendly to drive rather than take a plane.
Cons
- It may take more time to reach your destination than if you flew or took a train.
- It can be expensive to rent a car and take it abroad. It can also be expensive to take the toll roads.
- It can get tiring particularly if one person drives the whole time.
Thank you so much for the information! It is very helpful
On what agency did you pick-up the car in the UK?, cause I’m trying online
and the website keeps saying “its not possible on that location”
Hi Cesar, thanks for your message! We used the London King’s Cross branch of Europcar. Once you have selected the vehicle you want to rent, there should be an option to choose ‘Europdrive Cover’ which will allow you to take the car out of the UK. However, some of their vehicles such as Mercedes cannot be taken out of the UK. More information about the cover and which vehicles are allowed can be found here: https://www.europcar.co.uk/en-gb/p/services/europdrive
As stated on their webpage, the cover can be purchased over the phone, online or at the pickup station a few days prior to your pickup date. If online isn’t working for you, perhaps give them a call.
Good luck and let us know how you get on!