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Premier Inn Folkestone is the Channel Tunnel stop that happens to suit a cruise. Parking is free, there's a Cookhouse & Pub on site, and the cruise terminals are about 8.3 road miles away by our routing, around 11 minutes on empty roads.
It's ninth, level on points with THE PIG, and ahead of it because Premier Inn prints its parking. You register the car at reception; Horizon Parking runs it.
Ask for a Premier Plus room if heat bothers you — only those have air conditioning. Breakfast is paid.
Book it if you're coming down the M20, and leave the car at the hotel only if reception says yes.
Book it if
- You want free parking and a pub supper on site at the Cookhouse & Pub
- You'll book a Premier Plus room, the kind with air conditioning
- You're arriving down the M20 by the Channel Tunnel
Look elsewhere if
- You want air conditioning in a standard room — only Premier Plus has it.
- You want to walk to the sea in the evening.
- You'd like breakfast included rather than paid.
Your night before, from here
From check-in to the gangway, using only what Premier Inn Folkestone publishes.
A Cookhouse & Pub on site for dinner and a drink.
Premier Inn names no transfer to Dover; it's a drive or a taxi east on the A20.
Breakfast is paid; kids eat free with an adult.
Premier Inn gives no Dover figure — only the Channel Tunnel, "less than a 10-minute drive away". Our routing puts CT1 and CT2 about 8.3 miles by road. By our routing the drive from Premier Inn Folkestone is about 11 minutes on empty roads — so leave room for real ones.
Parking is free on site, run by Horizon Parking — register your car at reception. Nothing on cruise parking.
Night-Before Score: 23 of 100
Scored only from what the hotel publishes. See how the Night-Before Score works.
Getting here, and on to the ship
From Heathrow it’s about 93.6 road miles to Premier Inn Folkestone, from Gatwick about 74.0, and from the hotel about 8.3 to the terminals — our routing, with no traffic. Question marks are rides you arrange.
Premier Inn doesn't mention airport transport — by our routing Gatwick is about 74 road miles away and Heathrow about 94.
Premier Inn names no transfer to Dover; it's a drive or a taxi east on the A20.
Premier Inn gives no Dover figure — only the Channel Tunnel, "less than a 10-minute drive away". Our routing puts CT1 and CT2 about 8.3 miles by road.
From LHR without a hotel shuttle
By our routing, Heathrow to Premier Inn Folkestone is about 93.6 road miles, roughly 107 minutes with no traffic; Gatwick is about 74.0 miles and 83 minutes. The train via St Pancras is the usual way, and fixed-fare taxis publish £146.60 to £275 (about US$195–365) a car. More: the airport page.
Premier Inn doesn't mention airport transport — from Gatwick our routing gives about 74 road miles, roughly 83 minutes with no traffic.
Premier Inn names no transfer to Dover; it's a drive or a taxi east on the A20.
Premier Inn gives no Dover figure — only the Channel Tunnel, "less than a 10-minute drive away". Our routing puts CT1 and CT2 about 8.3 miles by road.
From LGW without a hotel shuttle
By our routing, Heathrow to Premier Inn Folkestone is about 93.6 road miles, roughly 107 minutes with no traffic; Gatwick is about 74.0 miles and 83 minutes. The train via St Pancras is the usual way, and fixed-fare taxis publish £146.60 to £275 a car. More: the airport page.
Parking is free on site, run by Horizon Parking — register your car at reception. Nothing on cruise parking.
Parking for your stay: Free on site, Horizon Parking; register at reception.
Premier Inn names no transfer to Dover; it's a drive or a taxi east on the A20.
Premier Inn gives no Dover figure — only the Channel Tunnel, "less than a 10-minute drive away". Our routing puts CT1 and CT2 about 8.3 miles by road.
Landing on sail morning instead? Skip Premier Inn Folkestone and go straight to the terminals — the airport page covers Carnival’s transfer and the trains.
Which terminal
CT1 and CT2, Western DocksShips start their cruises at CT1 and CT2 on the Western Docks — about 8.3 road miles from Premier Inn Folkestone by our routing, measured to the terminals’ postcode point, so approximate. More in the Dover cruise guide.
Source: portofdover.comDistance
~8.3 mi, our routingPremier Inn gives no Dover figure — only the Channel Tunnel, "less than a 10-minute drive away". Our routing puts CT1 and CT2 about 8.3 miles by road.
Source: premierinn.comShuttle departures
No shuttle statedPremier Inn Folkestone runs no shuttle to the ship — book the taxi ahead, about 11 minutes to the terminals with no traffic, by our routing, not a rush-hour promise.
Source: premierinn.comParking while you sail
Cruise parking
Cruise parking unconfirmedParking is free on site, run by Horizon Parking — register your car at reception. Nothing on cruise parking.
Source: premierinn.comOff-site park-and-ride
£9 (about US$12) a day, per RelyonRelyon’s park-and-ride on Poulton Close is about 8.5 road miles from Premier Inn Folkestone by our routing: £9 a day with a £30 (about US$40) minimum, per Relyon, and a door-to-door shuttle to the terminal — a published rate, not a hotel deal, against free parking, registered at reception here.
Where the car goes while you sail · Dover cruise parking, compared.
Source: relyongroup.co.ukThe evening and the morning
The evening
Food or bar on siteA Cookhouse & Pub on site for dinner and a drink.
Breakfast
Not freeBreakfast is paid; kids eat free with an adult.
Address
Cherry Garden Lane, by the Channel TunnelCherry Garden Lane, Folkestone (Premier Inn prints no street address; map listing CT19 4AP)
Hotel website
The fine print, in one place
Times, fees, rooms and the small stuff, as Premier Inn Folkestone publishes it. The gaps here are check-in and check-out times and pets — a call to Premier Inn Folkestone settles both.
Check-in and check-out
Minimum age
Not stated by the hotel.
Extra fees
None stated
Wi-Fi
Free
Parking for your stay
Free on site, Horizon Parking; register at reception
Breakfast
Paid; kids eat free with an adult
Pool
No pool mentioned on the pages we read
Pets
The page we read doesn't mention pets.
Food and drink on site
- Cookhouse & PubOn site
Rooms
Family rooms are listed; Premier Plus rooms have air conditioning, standard rooms don’t.
Accessibility
Premier Inn Folkestone’s pages we read don’t detail accessible rooms, so call before you book one.
On site
- EV chargingNot stated
- Guest laundryNot stated
- GymNot stated
- Pets allowedNot stated
Nearby, by the hotel’s count
- Channel Tunnelunder 10 minutes by car
Distances as Premier Inn Folkestone or its brand lists them, on a square-root scale so short walks stay visible.
Also worth knowing
- Air conditioning in Premier Plus rooms only
Before you book
Worth knowing
- Free parking, Horizon Parking: register at reception.
- Air conditioning only in Premier Plus rooms.
- Family rooms are listed.
What we couldn’t confirm
- Check-in and check-out times
- Pets
- Whether a car can stay while you cruise
Every hotel fact here comes from Premier Inn Folkestone’s own pages, read October 3, 2026, unless we name another source — so before you book, confirm whether a car can stay while you cruise, and the room type you've booked.
Worth a look alongside it
Around Premier Inn Folkestone: the Dover cruise guide, Dover cruise parking and the splurge list.
Wake up by the Channel Tunnel, outside Folkestone.
Tell us your sail date and we’ll check Premier Inn Folkestone for the night before. No payment on the form.
Premier Inn Folkestone FAQ
Is parking free at Premier Inn Folkestone (Channel Tunnel)?
Yes — it's free on site, run by Horizon Parking, and you register your car at reception.
Do rooms at Premier Inn Folkestone have air conditioning?
Only the Premier Plus rooms, per Premier Inn. Standard rooms don't.
Is there a restaurant at Premier Inn Folkestone?
Yes, a Cookhouse & Pub on site.
How far is Premier Inn Folkestone from Dover's cruise terminals?
About 8.3 miles by road, roughly 11 minutes with no traffic, by our routing. Premier Inn only gives the Channel Tunnel, under a 10-minute drive.
Is breakfast included at Premier Inn Folkestone?
No, it's paid; kids eat free with an adult.
Booking the cruise too?
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