Driving to France in a Heatwave: Keeping Your Dog Cool

As we write this in late June 2026, Europe is in the grip of one of the most extreme early-summer heatwaves on record. France has just registered its hottest day ever measured, parts of the south-west passed 44°C, and Paris is forecast to touch 40°C for several days running. Authorities placed dozens of departments under red alert, the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre cut their opening hours, and Spain and the UK issued their own extreme-heat warnings.

If you are driving to France this summer with a dog, this changes how you need to plan. We travelled with our dog Dexter and the heat was the thing we worked hardest around. Here is exactly what we did to keep him safe and comfortable.

The one rule that matters most: never leave your dog in the car

Everything else on this page is about comfort. This one is about survival. A parked car turns into an oven astonishingly fast: the interior can rise 10 to 15°C above the outside temperature within minutes, even parked in shade with the windows cracked. On a 30°C afternoon, and France saw far hotter than that, the inside of a car becomes lethal in the time it takes to pay for fuel.

So the rule is simple and absolute: never leave your dog alone in the car during a heatwave, not even for two minutes. Plan your stops around this. If you need to go somewhere a dog cannot go, one person stays with the dog and the engine and air conditioning running, or you do not stop there.

Water, and lots of it

Dexter had access to water at every single stop, and we never let his bowl run dry. We carried:

• A few large bottles of water kept in the footwell out of direct sun
• A portable collapsible water bowl that folds flat, so it was easy to slip into a small rucksack or handbag and carry on walks
• A spare bottle just for wetting his cooling vest (more on that below)

Dogs cannot sweat the way we do; they lose heat mainly by panting, which dries them out quickly. In this kind of heat, offer water far more often than you think you need to. We stopped roughly every 90 minutes, found shade, and let him drink and cool down before moving on.

If you are in Paris itself, refilling is easy: the city has plenty of free public toilets with water outlets attached, which are perfect for topping up your bottles and giving the dog a quick drink. We used them as handy pitstops for Dexter throughout the day, so we never had to ration his water.

Boots for hot pavement

This is the one most people overlook. In a heatwave, tarmac, paving and even sand absorb enormous heat: surfaces can reach 50 to 60°C when the air is “only” 35°C. That is hot enough to burn a dog’s paw pads in seconds.

The quick test: press the back of your hand flat against the ground for seven seconds. If you cannot hold it there comfortably, it is too hot for paws. We bought Dexter a set of dog boots from Pets at Home and they were genuinely useful crossing car parks, service-station forecourts and town pavements in the middle of the day. When boots were not practical, we simply kept him on grass and walked him early in the morning and after sunset instead.

A cooling vest

The other thing that made a real difference was a cooling vest (a cool jacket), also from Pets at Home. It is a simple bit of kit: you soak it in water, wring it out so it is damp rather than dripping, and put it on the dog. As the water evaporates it pulls heat away from the body, the same principle as sweating. We re-wetted it whenever it dried out, using that spare bottle of water.

It is not a magic fix, and it does not replace shade and water, but on a warm walk or a rest stop it visibly helped Dexter settle and stop panting so hard.

Know the signs of heatstroke

Even with all of this, watch your dog closely. Get into shade, offer water, and cool them down (damp towels, the vest, airflow) at the first sign of:

• Heavy, frantic panting that does not settle
• Drooling more than usual, or thick saliva
• Bright red or very pale gums
• Wobbliness, confusion, or stumbling
• Vomiting or diarrhoea
• Collapse

Heatstroke is an emergency. If your dog does not cool down quickly, get to a vet. It is worth noting the nearest vet on your route before you set off, and most French vets we dealt with spoke good English.

Keeping yourself cool too

The dog comes first, but a tired, overheated driver is dangerous on unfamiliar roads. The same heatwave sense applies to you:

• Drive in the cool hours. We did the long stretches early morning and in the evening, and avoided roughly 11am to 6pm where we could.
• Hydrate constantly, and keep cold water within reach.
• Use the air conditioning, and sun-shades on the side windows for the back seats where the dog travels.
• Plan shaded stops. Aires and service areas with trees or covered areas are worth going slightly out of your way for.
• Do not over-schedule. In extreme heat, shorter driving days are safer for everyone in the car.

Don’t forget the car’s paperwork

Heat planning is the priority this summer, but the usual French driving admin still applies. Most French cities with a low-emission zone require a Crit’Air sticker, and enforcement has not paused for the weather. It is £7, lasts the life of the vehicle, and takes a few minutes to sort. Check your car’s Crit’Air category before you travel.

For the full pet rules (the Animal Health Certificate, the crossing, and the tapeworm treatment to get home), see our guides on driving to France with a dog and taking a dog to France.

Stay cool, keep the water topped up, and enjoy the trip.