6 Tips For Exploring Europe With Pets

Exploring Europe With Pets
With some forward planning and our tips below, there’ll be no reason to leave your pets at home.|©iStock/Nataba

The best way to make friends in a foreign country… bring your pet.

Over the last three years, my husband Warren and I have slow-traveled to 24 countries across three continents… with our two dogs, Katie (a 12-year-old Chihuahua-Yorkie mix) and Arya (a 3-year-old mixed breed).

Arya has made us countless friends. She’s not shy and happily walks up and sniffs each dog she encounters. Her curiosity breaks the ice, and we get to know people almost immediately. It’s just one of many reasons bringing our dogs on our overseas adventures has been so much fun.

For the last two years, we’ve been exploring Europe. During that time, we’ve been to 21 countries, including Serbia, Montenegro, Romania, Turkey, Slovenia, Hungary, Greece, Spain, France, and Portugal.

We’ve learned a lot about traveling with pets. Each country has different requirements, and it can feel overwhelming at times, with the proper preparedness, these obstacles can be overcome.

Here’s what you need to know when traveling around Europe with your furry friends…

1) Requirements for Entering Europe

We started our European adventure flying from the U.S. into Serbia. The requirements for getting into the country with our dogs were the least extensive of any other European country. The dogs were required to be microchipped (this is mandatory throughout Europe), have an up-to-date rabies vaccine, and an international health certificate.

Both our dogs had already been microchipped and vaccinated for rabies. But if your dog doesn’t have either, your local vet can easily organize this for you.

The only requirement we needed to enter Serbia was a health check-up on each dog and the international health certificate, which had to be signed by the USDA. Before leaving for Europe, we visited family in Tennessee and found a vet in Knoxville who offered the digital USDA signature. Serbia allows a digital signature, so the veterinarian’s office was able to send these documents to us a few days after our visit via email. It’s mandatory to show these certificates prior to boarding the plane, and they must be timely.

Serbia required this certificate to be issued no more than 10 days before entry. This is the standard for most European countries. Besides the European-wide requirements, each country will have individual entry requirements for your pet. Allow plenty of time to research and get all the mandatory vaccines required. Accuracy and timeliness are crucial.

A great resource to check nearly any country’s pet importation requirements is Pet travel.com and if you’re departing from the U.S., see the USDA APHIS website.

2) Flying With Your Pet

Flying with pets can be stressful, but with some training, it gets easier. Months prior to our European travel, we purchased two airline-approved dog backpacks. We worked with the dogs to help them get used to them, and they quickly adapted to being placed in them. It made our journey a lot easier.

The most pet-friendly airline is KLM. It offers an animal hotel at the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport for your pet (it’s the only one of its kind in the world). Pets are given an opportunity to eat, drink, rest, and exercise during their stay.

Right now, KLM charges between €75 and €400 to bring your pet with you on your flight (the fee depends on your departure and destination airports).

Add your pet to your flight reservation when booking your ticket—there’s limited availability for pets on each flight. If you plan to travel with your pet in the cabin, they must fit in an airline-approved carrier under the seat in front of you.

If your pet needs to fly in the cargo hold, travel during the summer months can be difficult due to higher temperatures. Some airlines will not allow animals in the cargo hold during the summer. If you’re traveling during the hotter months, try to take an overnight flight that departs in the evening to avoid the heat of the day.

If you have a higher budget, consider a private charter or a shared private jet. There are Facebook groups where pet owners can connect with other owners looking to fly their pet overseas. They provide their route and month of planned departure, combine their funds, and contact the private jet company for flight options. This cuts out the middleman and saves each person money for the flight. One such group is Chartered Air Travel with Pet s.

An alternative to air travel is by sea. Currently, the only option is Cunard’s Queen Mary 2. There are 24 kennels on board, and there’s a waitlist. Your pet won’t be allowed in your cabin with you (they do have access to a walking area and indoor playroom). Dogs and cats are the only animals allowed. The current cost to take your pet aboard the Queen Mary ranges between $800 and $1,000 per voyage.

3) Finding Pet-Friendly Accommodation

We almost always stay in pet-friendly Airbnbs. One of the most pet-friendly places was Antalya, Turkey. The hosts provided bowls, treats, and even leashes.

On several occasions, we’ve reached out to properties that weren’t listed as pet-friendly and asked for an exception. Due to our glowing reviews from Airbnb hosts, we often receive an invitation to book (it never hurts to ask). And since we’ve built a positive reputation through reviews, we generally pass up Airbnb listings that charge pet fees.

It’s always important to read the fine print and the house rules before agreeing to a stay. On more than one occasion, we’ve agreed to a reservation and then read the rules stating dogs could not be left alone in the apartment. This will certainly dampen the freedom you have to explore places that aren’t dog-friendly, such as old churches and museums.

If we’re traveling from one country to another and it requires a stopover for a night, we often rely on pet-friendly hotels, like the Ibis Hotel Chain. But they do charge extra for your pet.

If possible, work with your pet prior to international travel. Stay in different accommodations and take them out of their normal routines.

4) Tips for Getting Around

We predominantly travel around by car. But occasionally we do take public transportation with the dogs. Many countries do require muzzles, and some charge a fee for the pet’s passage (usually about half the price of an adult ticket). We traveled by underground metro in Lisbon recently and there was no fee for the dogs.

Initially, public transportation for our pups was a bit daunting and stressful, as there were a lot of sights and sounds. But now Katie and Arya jump on trains and buses like old travel pros.

The most pet-friendly country we’ve encountered so far is Turkey. Our pups were welcomed into small shops, nearly every restaurant in Istanbul and Antalya, and even aboard day cruises. They sat beside us as we sailed around Fethiye, enjoying the beautiful views of the islands offshore. We weren’t charged for their passage, and the ship provided them with water and lots of friendly head scratches.

5) Finding Vets and Pet Supplies

Searching Facebook groups in new locations, checking Google reviews, and occasionally asking Airbnb hosts are fantastic ways to find quality vets, great pet shops, and pet-friendly local restaurants, bars, hangouts, and tourist sites. (We share lots of the information we’ve learned in various countries on our own Facebook page.)

During a recent stay in Krakow, Poland, we had an emergency with Katie that required immediate treatment.

We searched for vets near us on Google Maps and located a highly reviewed vet in moments. The treatment was very reasonable (and high quality) and we were in and out, medications in hand, within an hour. Our Airbnb host offered to do translation for us too, so don’t be shy about asking for help from them in circumstances like this.

It’s generally easy to find quality pet food in almost every country. Not all pet brands are available in each country, so we plan and often buy a few additional bags if we know we might have difficulty finding it in the next place (as we travel around by car, this is easily done).

6) Eating Out and Exploring

Prior to leaving the U.S., we practiced taking Katie to restaurants and teaching her to behave accordingly. When we adopted Arya we wasted no time acclimating her to our lifestyle. She was taught that her place in the restaurant was beside Warren’s chair. Katie is much smaller so she sits quietly in my lap. We never allow the dogs off their lead in a restaurant setting—though they are extremely well-behaved, we don’t want an out-of-character encounter.

One of our daily routines is to head to the largest park within walking distance of our accommodation. We ensure we have three items—a full roll of poo bags (these are essential, many cities will fine you for not picking up your dog’s mess), a collapsible water bowl, and a bottle of water.

The EU Pet Passport: What You Need to Know

The EU pet passport is the golden ticket to traveling easily throughout Europe. This passport allows your pet to travel freely throughout the EU territory without the need for an additional International Health Certificate or any quarantine period.

We got our pet passports when we were in Bulgaria, as they don’t require you to be resident in the country to obtain one. Not all EU countries will issue a passport to a nonresident, but it’s generally at the discretion of the veterinarian (they issue the pet passports). We’ve had friends who couldn’t get one in France as non-residents, and other friends who could. Spain is an easy country to obtain an EU pet passport without a resident card.

We found a Bulgarian vet that would issue the EU pet passport for both dogs. We sent him a WhatsApp message (in English as well as in Google-translated Bulgarian) to check that his office could provide us with the passports. Upon arrival, we showed all the required documents, as well as our own passports. Each dog was given a quick exam and the pet passports were issued. The cost for both EU pet passports was approximately $40.

As we travel around Europe, we simply show the pet passports, along with our own, at the borders, and pass through freely.

Note: There are a few Scandinavian countries that require a veterinary certificate to be issued in addition to the EU pet passport. One example is Norway, which requires a health certificate as it’s mandatory to have a fox dwarf tapeworm treatment before entering the country.

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