CSI competition horse transport — a logistics playbook
Planning transport to CSI, CDI and CCI competitions across Europe — how far in advance to book, what paperwork competition vets need, arrival timing for show-fitness.
Booking windows
CSI transport falls into three booking windows by distance. Short — under 400 km, same region: book 5-7 days ahead. Medium — 400 to 1,200 km, cross-border: book 10-14 days ahead. Long — over 1,200 km, multi-day routes: book 21-30 days ahead to lock in driver availability and ensure the paperwork cycle completes.
Spring CSI season (March-June) is the busiest booking window of the year. Germany, Belgium and France dominate the calendar. If you're shipping to a 5* or World Cup Qualifier, add a week to the booking lead time — carriers with clean records at big venues fill up early.
What FEI venues verify at arrival
Every CSI/CDI/CCI venue runs a standardised horse-arrival check: FEI passport + microchip scan, vaccination record (equine influenza within 6 months, rabies as required), food chain status, and on competitions 3* and above — a visual soundness check by the vet before stabling assignment. The FEI stewards also verify the transporter insurance and driver documentation, which your carrier provides.
Our drivers bring a laminated FEI-approved document pack at every delivery. Passport, TRACES printout, health certificate, insurance proof, driver identification — everything the venue vet needs in one folder.
Arrival timing for show fitness
The common mistake is shipping too close to the first class. A horse that arrives Monday for a Wednesday class has three days to rehydrate, settle, and recover muscle tone — that's the sweet spot for 3* classes. For 5* and championship level, professionals ship 5-7 days ahead and use the venue's training arenas to gradually reintroduce intensity.
Return transport is usually easier to plan than outbound — most riders know their class slot hours in advance. Book the return as a separate leg rather than a round-trip if your departure time is genuinely uncertain; waiting fees at competition venues rack up fast.
Multi-horse stable transport to a circuit
Stables running a 3-4 horse circuit through Italy, Spain or the Netherlands typically commit to one transporter for the full loop instead of rebooking at each venue. The economics work out — you get a flat rate for the loop plus stabling at overnight stops, and the horses stay in the same cabin with the same driver, which reduces load/unload stress.
We run these circuit-mode bookings as a single invoice with the full itinerary locked at booking time. Last-minute venue changes are billable only for the added km, not the whole trip.