Cross-channel
Removals from Folkestone to Europe
The Channel Tunnel terminal is inside this town. That is the whole reason cross-channel work is a lead service here rather than something we also offer — and it is a bigger advantage on some routes than others, which we would rather say than gloss over.
A European move from Folkestone begins the way a local one does: somebody looks at the property, measures the volume properly, and writes down what is going. The route, the vehicle and the customs entry all follow from that inventory.
What is different from a move across town is twofold. The packing specification changes, because a load crossing a border is handled more and may be opened. And the timetable stops being set by the driving and starts being set by the documents.
France
The route we run mostThe route this town is built for. Onto the shuttle minutes from your door, off at Coquelles, and straight onto the French motorway network. Normandy, Brittany, the Loire, the Charente and the south.
Read the route → Removals from Folkestone toSpain
The length of France then over the Pyrenees — La Jonquera for the east coast, Irún for Madrid, Andalucía and the west. The document sequence and summer trailer heat are the two things worth planning.
Read the route → Removals from Folkestone toItaly
Across the Alps or round them into Liguria. The route where the arrival constrains the job: limited traffic zones, hill towns, and permits that want arranging weeks before the lorry does.
Read the route → Removals from Folkestone toPortugal
The longest run, with one consular certificate at the front of it that sets the whole timetable. Start it earlier than feels necessary — and expect storage to be part of the plan.
Read the route →What the terminal actually buys you
Two things, and it is worth separating them because firms tend to blur them together.
A leg removed. Every other UK remover doing a French job has to get the loaded vehicle to Kent before the real journey starts. From here that leg is a few minutes. On a France move that is a large share of the domestic cost; on a Portugal move it is a small share of a very long total.
A handling point removed. On Le Shuttle the vehicle drives onto the train with your goods aboard and drives off the other side. Nothing is unloaded or transhipped at the crossing. Since handling is where damage happens, that is arguably the more valuable of the two — and it applies equally on all four routes.
Export wrapping is a different specification
This is where a cheap cross-channel quote usually hides, so it is worth being explicit. A load crossing a border travels further, is handled more, and may be opened for inspection. Domestic packing is not built for any of that.
- Heavier cartons, and more edge and corner protection
- Moisture protection on upholstery and mattresses, not just dust covers
- Purpose-made cases for framed work and mirrors
- Crating for stone and glass tops
- An inventory specific enough that an opened carton matches the paperwork
If you are comparing two quotes, check whether the other is pricing export or domestic packing. It is the single commonest reason two numbers differ on this route.
Dedicated vehicle or shared space
Dedicated
Your load, your vehicle, your dates, and the fewest possible handlings. Right for a full household with firm dates at both ends, and right whenever the contents mean handling count is itself a risk.
Shared space, or groupage
Your goods travel with other consignments going the same way and you pay for the space you occupy. It suits smaller loads, second homes being furnished, and dates that can bend. The real trade-off is more handlings rather than simply more waiting, and we will point that out rather than sell the cheaper option quietly.
Customs, since Brexit
A household move into the EU is now a formal customs movement. It needs a detailed inventory that doubles as a packing list, evidence you are transferring your normal residence rather than importing goods commercially, and the destination country's own relief process.
That last part is where the four genuinely differ — France wants attestations and proof of address, Spain wants the NIE and padrón in a particular order, Italy wants the inventory in a particular format, and Portugal wants a consular certificate obtained before the goods move at all. Each route page sets out its own sequence rather than repeating a generic paragraph.
Storage while the paperwork catches up
Sales almost never line up with residence documents. So on a good share of these moves the household is packed, loaded into store here, and travels once the documents exist. It is quoted as one arrangement, and the storage inventory is the document that becomes the customs list.
What to send us
Both addresses, a sense of the volume, rough dates, whether shared space is an option, and how far along you are with any residence paperwork. Start on the quote page; the local side is on house removals.
Moving abroad
Cross-channel questions
Is starting next to the tunnel a real advantage or a slogan?
Real, and largest on the France route. The terminal is at Cheriton, inside the town, so the Kent leg every other firm has to build in simply does not exist. On a run to the Algarve it is a smaller share of the total, and we say so rather than overstating it on every route.
Why does no transhipment matter?
Because handling is where damage happens. On Le Shuttle the vehicle drives on and off with your goods aboard, so the crossing adds no handling point at all. That is worth more than the hour it also saves.
Dedicated vehicle or shared space?
Dedicated if your dates are firm and it is a whole household. Shared if the load is modest and you can accept a delivery window. The honest trade-off on shared space is more handlings, not just more waiting — which matters more if the contents are valuable.
What does the customs side involve now?
A household move into the EU is a formal customs movement. It needs a detailed inventory doubling as a packing list, evidence you are transferring residence rather than importing commercially, and the destination country's own relief process — which differs in every one of the four.
How long will it take?
That depends on the route, the clearance and, on shared space, when the vehicle fills. Your written quote gives an expected window. We will not give you a day count we cannot stand behind.
Can the load wait in store first?
Very commonly. Sales rarely line up with residence paperwork, so the household is packed, held here inventoried, and travels once the documents exist.
Next step
Planning a move to Europe?
Send both addresses, rough dates and a sense of the volume. We will come back with the route, the options and what has to be true before the vehicle can leave.