> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://rochsociety.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Crossing the Atlantic With a Dog: The Queen Mary 2 Kennels - URL: https://rochsociety.com/queen-mary-2-kennels-crossing-the-atlantic-with-a-dog/ - Published: 2026-10-22T16:36:23.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-22T16:36:23.000Z - Description: Queen Mary 2 is Cunard's ocean liner, and it carries pet dogs across the Atlantic in its own kennels on crossings between New York, Southampton and Hamburg. What the kennels are like, the USD 2,500 fee, the breeds turned away and the paperwork at each end. - Author: Jennifer Nuttall - Tags: Travel Behind the funnel on Deck 12 of Queen Mary 2 there is a New York fire hydrant and a Liverpool lamp post, and they are there for the dogs. Queen Mary 2 is Cunard's ocean liner, which the line calls [the world's only ocean liner](https://www.cunard.com/en-gb/cruise-destinations/transatlantic-cruises?ref=rochsociety.com), crossing the Atlantic between Southampton and New York in seven nights. On those crossings it carries dogs and cats in its own kennels, so a dog can cross by sea instead of in the hold of a plane. This guide comes from [Cunard's kennels page](https://www.cunard.com/en-gb/cruise-ships/queen-mary-2/queen-mary-2-kennels?ref=rochsociety.com), its kennel booking terms and the government rules at each end, read in October 2026. ## Which Crossings Take Dogs Cunard offers kennels on Transatlantic Crossings sailing to or from New York, Southampton or Hamburg. Only dogs and cats are accepted, and a kennel can only be booked alongside an eligible guest booking. Cunard already sells crossings into December 2027 and may limit the kennels on any voyage, so ask for one the day you book the cabin. ## The Kennels on Deck 12 The kennels sit on Deck 12 with their own deck space beside them, where dogs stretch their legs in the open air and use the hydrant and the lamp post when they need to. Each kennel is air conditioned, with a fleece blanket, and every dog is given a fitted coat to take home. There are two sizes. The upper kennels are for pets of 25 lb or less and the lower kennels for pets over 25 lb, and Cunard asks owners of larger dogs to contact it about the maximum length and height, because it says it cannot take every large breed. On the way across each dog gets a portrait session with the ship's photographer and the kennel master, who dresses in Cunard's bellhop uniform and brings a Queen Mary 2 life ring, a Cunard jacket and a small bellhop hat for the dog. The photographs are for sale afterwards. ## A Day at Sea With Your Dog The kennels open to owners several times a day; Cunard confirms the hours on board but gives these as a guide: 8 to 10 in the morning, 11 to noon, 3 to 6 in the afternoon and 8 to 8.30 in the evening. Only guests sailing with a pet may go in. You can walk and feed your dog yourself in those hours, or leave it to the kennel master. Before you sail, Cunard sends a list of the pet foods it can serve on board, drawn from UK suppliers and included in the kennel fee. If none suits your dog you may bring its own food, and freshly cooked chicken, vegetables and broth can be ordered on board. Dogs stay in the kennels and on their deck for the whole voyage and do not come inside the ship, the one exception being assistance dogs. There is no vet on board. Every pet is given its own lifejacket when it boards, and if the emergency alarm ever sounds, you collect your dog from the kennels and take it to your muster station with you. ## What It Costs and How to Book Cunard's [kennel booking terms of May 2026](https://web.archive.org/web/20260916121318/https://www.cunard.com/content/dam/cunard/inventory-assets/ships/QM/gallery/kennels/Kennel-Booking-Terms-and-Conditions-US.pdf), which apply to kennels booked on or after 18 May 2026, set the fee at USD 2,500 per kennel per voyage, on top of the fares, whatever the length of the voyage. (Cunard's own link was not loading in October, so this is the archived copy.) A USD 250 deposit is due when you book and is not refundable. The balance falls due with the balance of your voyage fare, ordinarily 120 days before departure, and if it is not paid the kennel can be cancelled and the deposit lost. Cancelling costs a share of the fee that rises as the sailing approaches: USD 250 at 120 days or more, USD 625 from 119 to 90 days, USD 1,250 from 89 to 60, USD 1,875 from 59 to 30, and the full USD 2,500 inside 29 days. If Cunard cancels the kennel, you get back everything you paid, deposit included. To book, call Cunard on 0344 338 8641 in the UK or (800) 728-6273 in the US, or email kennels@cunard.com. ## Breeds Cunard Turns Away Beyond size, Cunard does not carry the dogs banned under the UK Pet Travel Scheme: the XL Bully, the Pit Bull Terrier, the Japanese Tosa, the Dogo Argentino, the Fila Brasileiro, and any mixed breed dog that includes them. If you are sailing to or from Hamburg, Germany adds its own rule: the Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier and Bull Terrier may not be brought in, except with a visitor staying no more than four weeks who carries original papers that identify the dog, such as a pedigree or vaccination certificate, according to [German customs](https://www.zoll.de/EN/Private-individuals/Travel/Entering-Germany/Restrictions/Dangerous-dogs/dangerous-dogs%5Fnode.html?ref=rochsociety.com). ## Sailing Into Southampton Southampton is on the British government's [list of approved sea routes for pets](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pet-travel-approved-air-sea-and-rail-carriers-and-routes/pet-travel-sea-routes-and-companies-you-can-use?ref=rochsociety.com), which names Cunard for New York to Southampton and Hamburg to Southampton. A dog arriving from the US needs a microchip, a rabies vaccination given after the chip and at least 21 days before travel, and the Great Britain pet health certificate, which the USDA must endorse within 10 days of arrival, according to [USDA APHIS](https://www.aphis.usda.gov/pet-travel/us-to-another-country-export/pet-travel-us-united-kingdom-great-britain-england-scotland?ref=rochsociety.com). Our guide to [taking a dog from the US to the UK](https://rochsociety.com/us-to-uk-with-a-dog/) walks through each document. The tapeworm rule needs care. Britain wants a vet to treat the dog [between 24 and 120 hours before it enters](https://www.gov.uk/bring-pet-to-great-britain/tapeworm-treatment-dogs?ref=rochsociety.com), and a crossing from New York takes seven nights, with no vet on board. Cunard's own [assistance dogs page](https://www.cunard.com/en-us/accessibility/assistance-dogs?ref=rochsociety.com) says that on a crossing from New York to Southampton the treatment must be given no more than five days before embarkation, and that the crew check the paperwork on the pier. The kennels page does not address it, so ask Cunard to confirm in writing when you book the kennel, and give your vet the date. ![Queen Mary 2 with a tug alongside among the container cranes of a port](https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1724320500997-5db1ff6c924b?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=crop&fm=jpg&q=80&w=2000&h=1333) Photo by [Wolfgang Weiser](https://unsplash.com/@hamburgmeinefreundin?utm%5Fsource=ghost&utm%5Fmedium=referral&utm%5Fcampaign=api-credit) / [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/?utm%5Fsource=ghost&utm%5Fmedium=referral&utm%5Fcampaign=api-credit) ## Sailing Into New York or Hamburg For the US, a dog that has spent the past six months only in countries the CDC does not list as high risk needs three things: it must be at least six months old, carry a microchip a universal scanner can read, and travel with a receipt for the CDC Dog Import Form, which you can complete on the day. Such dogs may enter at any seaport, according to the [CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/importation/dogs/rabies-free-low-risk-countries.html?ref=rochsociety.com). Neither Britain nor Germany is on the [CDC high risk list](https://www.cdc.gov/importation/dogs/high-risk-countries.html?ref=rochsociety.com). A US dog bound for Hamburg needs a microchip, a rabies vaccination, the 21 day wait and an EU health certificate endorsed by the USDA within 10 days of arrival, according to [USDA APHIS](https://www.aphis.usda.gov/pet-travel/us-to-another-country-export/pet-travel-us-germany?ref=rochsociety.com). Germany only accepts pets from outside the EU through listed points of entry, and the port of Hamburg is on [its list](https://food.ec.europa.eu/document/download/ba0c08d3-5287-422c-90f0-541ee88d3d55%5Fen?filename=pm%5Fnon-com%5Fentry%5Fdeu%5Fen.pdf&ref=rochsociety.com), with the Hamburg Veterinary and Import Office on Reiherdamm doing the checks. Our [US to Europe guide](https://rochsociety.com/us-to-europe-with-a-dog/) covers the certificate. ## Why Owners Choose the Ship A dog flying into Britain from the US must, with few exceptions, travel as cargo on an approved route, according to [gov.uk](https://www.gov.uk/bring-pet-to-great-britain/travel-routes-pets?ref=rochsociety.com), however small it is. On Queen Mary 2 the same dog crosses with you, and you sit with it four times a day. For a pug or a French bulldog, which several airlines will not put in the hold at all, it can be the only way to cross without flying in the cabin, as our guides to [flat-faced dogs](https://rochsociety.com/travelling-with-a-flat-faced-dog/) and [flying a dog in the hold](https://rochsociety.com/flying-a-dog-in-the-hold/) explain. ![A dog in a red harness lying on a sea wall looking out over the water](https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1661098945752-b1f84c877cb1?crop=entropy&cs=tinysrgb&fit=crop&fm=jpg&q=80&w=2000&h=1333) Photo by [Davide Vattuone](https://unsplash.com/@dvattuo?utm%5Fsource=ghost&utm%5Fmedium=referral&utm%5Fcampaign=api-credit) / [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/?utm%5Fsource=ghost&utm%5Fmedium=referral&utm%5Fcampaign=api-credit) ## Before You Book Cunard says it has carried animals on its ships for close to two centuries, and these kennels are what remains of that. Check your dog's size and breed with Cunard first, book the cabin and kennel together, and set the vet's appointments against the sailing date, because the certificate and the tapeworm treatment both run to the day you arrive.