beginner’s guide
dOG fRIENDLY tRAVEL tips
Welcome to the beginner’s guide to dog friendly travel!
Here you will find all the dog friendly travel tips and advice to get started.
TRAVEL TIPS
BEFORE YOU go
IS your dog ready for travel?
Traveling with your dog is definitely more work than having someone watch them while you go off on adventures. Make sure to assess your dog’s travel capabilities by asking yourself these questions:
1. Does my dog enjoy being around other people or dogs?
2. Does my dog listen to me?
3. Can I get them under control if a situation occurs?
4. Does my dog have anxiety in unfamiliar environments?
plan, plan, plan!
To truly enjoy a vacation with your dog, it needs to be well-planned. That way once you are there, you aren’t worried about where you will eat with your dog or what you can do.
travel tips
travel introduction
Start local
The best way to find out if your dog will travel well is to start local. Take your dog out to eat with you at a dog friendly restaurant nearby, do a staycation in your own city and stay at a hotel for one night.
What really helped us at the beginning with our dog, was going to a city we had vacationed to many times. For example, I grew up visiting Traverse City, MI in the summers and I know that city so well that taking Kirby there for his first vacation did not come with the added stress of an unknown location.
work your way up
After starting local and assessing how your dog has done, slowly work your way up and troubleshoot. For example, if your dog doesn’t do well in a hotel, try camping. Do a weekend getaway to a fun city nearby before you jump right into a longer road trip.
where to go
Top DOG FRIENDLY destinations in the USA
traverse city
Michigan
bar harbor
Maine
Chicago
Illinois
bend
Oregon
asheville
North Carolina
Sanibel Island
Florida
Sedona
Arizona
Austin
Texas
What to do
dog Friendly activities
Explore the outdoors:
Obviously if your dog is going with you on vacation you will be spending most of your time outdoors. However, you don’t have to limit yourself to only hiking or dog parks.
Make sure to check out if there are dog friendly beaches in the city you are visiting, dog friendly boat tours, walking tours, and any outdoor landmarks that are unique to the city.
Dog friendly events:
Bring your dog with you on vacation is becoming increasingly popular. Make sure to check for dog friendly events and perhaps plan your trip around that!
You’ll find it much easier to plan a trip if the city is literally catering to dogs for a weekend. Don’t believe dog friendly events exist? Check out the Dog Bowl in Frankenmuth, MI, Puptopia Festival in Texas (Dallas, Austin, and Houston) or the Dog Day Festival in Nashville, TN.
DIY winery or brewery tour:
You’ll find that a lot of wineries/vineyards and breweries are dog friendly. Not all are, so make sure to double-check.
If you are going to a destination that is known for its wine or beer, you’ll be able to make your own DIY Winery or Brewery Tour and bring your pup along with you!
WHAT TO bring
dog travel packing lists
You can’t go on vacation with your dog and not pack up their gear! Check out these packing lists to help you make sure you are well-equipped for a dog friendly vacation.
Packing Guide: Hiking
Whether you decide to walk on an easy trail through a forest or up a mountain, your dog will need to be outfitted with their own dog hiking gear.
Packing Guide: Beach
In this packing list, I’m breaking down the 8 essential items to bring in your dog beach bag! Make spending a day at the beach a breeze for you and your pup.
Packing Guide: Camping
Buying camping gear in itself is a lot of fun, but it is even better when you are buying dog camping gear. To make camping with your dog easier, there are a handful of things you need.
helpful tips
DOG FRIENDLY TRAVEL TIPS
Every vacation will require you to either stay in a hotel. camp with your dog, eat out at a restaurant, and so on. If you’ve never done any of these things before, you’ll find the below posts super helpful to get you started. These dog friendly travel tips will hopefully help make your vacation with your dog a little easier!
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