Book your pet-friendly cabin

Every member of your family deserves to relax and enjoy the journey when you travel – pets included. Our pet-friendly cabins are available on our Liverpool, Holyhead, Fishguard and Cherbourg routes and are the perfect way for your whole family to stay together during your time at sea.

 

Our comfortable, pet-friendly cabins are designed with pets and their humans in mind. You’ll be able to stretch out, relax and enjoy the trip. And your pets will spend their time at sea in their favourite place: right by your side.

 

Read on to learn more about booking your pet cabin and our policies around pet travel on the Irish Sea. We look forward to welcoming you and your pet onboard.

Pet Cabins FAQ

Our pet-friendly cabins are available on the following routes:

 

  • Cherbourg - Rosslare: Stena Horizon
  • Liverpool - Belfast: Stena Edda and Stena Embla
  • Holyhead - Dublin: Stena Adventurer and Stena Estrid
  • Fishguard - Rosslare: Stena Europe

 

No pet cabins are available on our Cairnryan - Belfast route. Pets are not permitted in Stena Superfast Suites. In May 2023 we opened a Pet Lounge on our Cairnryan - Belfast route.

A maximum of 2 pets per booking are permitted in each cabin per booking. Additional pets must be placed in kennels (if available) or left in your vehicle on vessels where doing so is permitted.

 

If you are traveling on foot with more than 2 pets and you have a cabin booked but have not pre-booked a kennel(s) for the additional pets, you will not be permitted to travel.

 

If the vessel does not have kennels and/or does not permit pets to remain in your vehicle, you will not be permitted to travel and the cost to change your booking will be incurred.

Our pet cabins are adapted 2- or 4- berth Standard Cabins. The cabins include en suite facilities including toilet, sink, shower, towels and shower gel (all for passenger use only) and TV.

 

Additionally, the vinyl-floored cabins come with water bottles and pee pads for pets. 

For hygiene reasons, we do NOT provide beds or bowls for pets. For maximum comfort, we highly recommend you bring beds, bowls and poop bags for your pets.

Dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters & ferrets are permitted in pet-friendly cabins and kennels. The maximum number of pets per cabin is 2 per booking.

 

Rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters and ferrets must be in a secure carrier case and remain secured within this case for the duration of the crossing within a pre-booked kennel or pre-booked cabin – they cannot be taken out of the carrier case.

Pet cabins can be booked online or via our Contact Centre. Due to high demand, you must pre-book and book early to secure your place.

As we have a limited number of pet cabins on each vessel and high demand, we advise all passengers to book their pet cabin at the time of making their booking. If available, pet cabins can be added to an existing booking in advance of travel.

 

Customers should not show up at the port without a pet cabin already confirmed on their booking. If you do so and if there is no pet cabin available, you will need to put your pet into a kennel (if a kennel is available) or leave the pet in your vehicle if permitted on the vessel. However, if we have no kennels available or if the vessel does not have kennels or permit pets to remain in a vehicle, you will be unable to travel on that sailing.

 

If you are not permitted to travel due to not having a confirmed pet cabin or kennel, you will need to rebook on an alternative sailing that has pet cabins or kennels available. You will then have to pay any amendment fee, any fare difference and the cost of the pet cabin or kennel.

For the safety of your pet and other passengers, your dog must be on a non-retractable lead and should wear a muzzle whenever you are in a public area – meaning any time you are outside of your cabin. That includes all onboard spaces where pets are permitted in addition to the terminal and on transfer busses.

When exiting your vehicle to go to your cabin, your pet must either be in a carrying case (maximum dimensions 80cm x 52cm x 52cm) or on a non-retractable lead. For safety, we also recommend pets wear muzzles while in public spaces.

Only guide and assistance animals are permitted in all areas of the vessels, including bars, restaurants and shops.

If your pet struggles with being alone, you should remain in the cabin. If you need to leave the cabin, you should only do so for a very short period of time. If your pet cannot self-soothe, please do not leave them alone for any amount of time as they may become noisy, damage the cabin or disturb other guests.

On Stena Adventurer (Holyhead – Dublin) and on Stena Europe (Fishguard – Rosslare), pets must remain in their cabins for the duration of the crossing. All pet owners must clean up after their pets both in the cabins and on the decks.

 

Pets travelling on Stena Edda (Liverpool – Belfast), Stena Embla (Liverpool – Belfast), Stena Estrid (Holyhead – Dublin), and Stena Horizon (Cherbourg – Rosslare) can get fresh air, exercise and toilet breaks in a dedicated area on the outside deck. Pets must remain on a non-retractable lead and should wear a muzzle in this area. 

There are no changes to how you check-in if you are travelling with a pet and have a pet cabin booked, whether you are travelling with a vehicle or on foot.

All pet-friendly cabins have additional cleaning requirements for which we use pet-friendly cleaning solutions.

 

We ask all cabin guests to kindly dispose of any dog waste prior to leaving the cabin.

No. It is strictly forbidden for owners to shower their pets in the pet cabins. Using the shower for this purpose can cause issues with drainage and could require us to remove the cabin from service and you will be liable for any damage incurred.  

Yes, your pet must be up to date on all vaccinations and flea prevention medication.

Pet-allergy sufferers should not book a pet cabin under any circumstances.  

Any damage done to furniture or bedding will be charged directly to you. In our Terms of Business, we state (5.6.5): We do not accept any responsibility for any liability or damage caused by your pet while on board. You accept that if an injury or incident occurs which was caused by your pet, you may be reported to the relevant authorities, and in some cases, it could give rise to criminal or other legal liability.