Travelling with pets on SeaLink Ferry
Pets are welcome onboard and travel free of charge. Please advise our team member at the check-in desk that you are travelling with a pet.
Your pet may travel on our ferry by either:
- Remaining unaccompanied in your vehicle for the duration of the crossing; or
- On a secure lead; or
- An approved pet carrier on the top deck of the vessel (accessible by stairs only), which has indoor and outdoor seating areas.
Please keep this in mind when deciding to bring your pet with you.
Boarding with your pet
You will be asked to wait at a designated, sign posted area with your pet until directed by a crew member to board the ferry via the car loading ramp. One person is to be in charge of taking pets on to the ferry and must be aged 16 years or older. Once onboard, take the rear stairs to the top deck of the vessel. If your pet is unable to climb stairs, it will be required to remain in your vehicle unaccompanied.
Disembarking with your pet
At the conclusion of the crossing, please make your way down the rear stairs and await the crews’ direction to disembark the vessel. It is essential for safety reasons that you wait to be directed by our crew.
Assistance animals
Assistance animals that fall within the definition of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) and assistance animals in training are permitted on the Vessel. SeaLink reserves the right to request proof that the animal is an assistance animal in the form of an identity card, a medical certificate, stating the handler’s necessity of the assistance animal, or a training certificate from a veterinarian or a recognised training organisation.
Restricted areas
Pets are not permitted inside the ferry terminals and on the ferry’s main deck, due to café operations. This policy aligns with the Food Safety Practices outlined by Safe Food Australia, which is essential for maintaining high standards of food safety and hygiene. Consequently, pets cannot board the ferry through the passenger ramp accessible from the ferry terminal. However, we acknowledge the importance of assistance animals. Guide dogs, hearing dogs, assistance dogs, and service dogs, including those in training, are permitted throughout the terminals and vessels.
Pets on Kangaroo Island
Pets are NOT allowed at Seal Bay, Flinders Chase, or any other National or Conservation Park on Kangaroo Island - including car parks.
Information Update:
Cats visiting Kangaroo Island
Visitors bringing a cat to Kangaroo Island are still required to register the details of their animal with Council. If a visitor is bringing a dog, notifying the council is no longer required.
If your cat runs away or is picked up by a General Inspector, having these details allows us to quickly identify the animal and contact you.
The Council can access animal information via DACO (Dogs and Cats Online) for South Australian residents. Therefore, visitors from within South Australia do not need to register their cats with us, provided their DACO registration is current.
Visitors bringing a cat from interstate are asked to notify Council of the following details:
• Duration of stay, including dates
• Full name
• Contact number while visiting
• Breed
• Gender
• Desexing status
• Council at which the animal is registered
• Current registration tag number
• Microchip number
If you are bringing a cat, it is important to notify the Kangaroo Island Council prior to your visit on 08 8553 4500 or via email [email protected] and provide the following details – your full name, contact number while visiting, breed of cat(s), council registration details (Council name, current registration tag number and microchip number) and duration of your stay.
South Australian visitors
An animal's information is accessed through DACO (Dogs and Cats Online) if it’s from within South Australia. Thus, for visitors from within South Australia, we do not request their details.
Interstate visitors
All interstate visitors need to register the details of their cats with the Kangaroo Island Council. If a visitor is bringing a dog, you are no longer required to notify the council.
Visitors bringing a cat from interstate are asked to notify Council of the following details:
• Duration of stay, including dates
• Full name
• Contact number while visiting
• Breed
• Gender
• Desexing status
• Council at which the animal is registered
• Current registration tag number
• Microchip number
For more information, and full details on Kangaroo Island By-Laws can be found on their website.
Rabbits are strictly prohibited on Kangaroo Island due to biosecurity reasons. For more information, please see our Biosecurity page.
