Everything you need to know about finding and booking dog-friendly accommodation options!
Before we embarked on our year long trip with our dog, I had no clue what the best process was for finding accommodation suitable for those of us with dogs, let alone if pet-friendly accommodation even existed!
I spent a lot – and I mean A LOT – of time scouring the internet for dog-friendly lodging options and made sure I could find a handful of options in every single destination we planned on visiting (all 80-something of them), because I did not want to be stuck sleeping in the car (even though this did end up happening once, oops!).
Thankfully, because of all of that research and a year of travelling with my dog, I now consider myself an aficionado of pet-friendly accommodation and am sharing all of my wisdom so you don’t have to sleep in your car (unless you want to, in which case there’s no shame here!).
Finding accommodation for you and fido can sometimes be a tad ruff if you don’t know where to begin, which is why I’m going to show you exactly where to find dog-friendly accommodation options, what to look out for when examining your lodging options, and how to make sure you and your pooch have the most comfortable and enjoyable experience possible.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links which means we may earn a small commission if you make a purchase (at no extra cost to you). Thanks for the support!
Where & How To Find Pet-Friendly Accommodation
With more and more people starting to bring their furry companion on their vacations, the number of pet-friendly accommodation options is (thankfully) on the rise!
While some locations definitely have a slimmer offering of pet-friendly accommodation, we’ve never been met with zero results – at least not when we’ve been organised and booked in advance.
That leads me to my first point – try to book your accommodation as early as possible! When travelling with a dog, your pickings of hotels, motels and guesthouses are going to be much slimmer than if it were just you humans, and sometimes accommodation providers may only have a few pet-friendly rooms which might get snatched up quickly. For this reason, it’s really important to try and book your accommodation well in advance. The only times I’ve struggled to find somewhere to stay with our dog is when I’ve left it at the last minute or when we’re staying in a certain location during their peak period.
The second thing to keep in mind is that not all destinations are equally dog-friendly, and the amount of lodging options for you and your pet will be dependent on the general culture and attitudes towards pets in that country. In Rome, Italy, you’ll find upwards of 30% of hotels allow dogs, whereas in Bali, Indonesia only around 10% do. Keep this in mind when starting your hunt for a place to stay!
Travel Marketplaces
These days, basically every online travel marketplace gives you the option to filter your search results for ‘pets allowed’ lodging. Typically you can select this in the ‘Filter by’ section under ‘facilities’ or ‘amenities’.
We love to use Expedia, Hotels.com and Booking.com as they tend to have a higher ratio of dog-friendly lodging options than some of their competitors, and they each run their own rewards programs which help you save cashola the more you stay.
If you are struggling to find a variety of accommodation options that allow dogs, or you’re staying somewhere that’s off the beaten track, I’ve found it can be helpful to use Google’s Hotel marketplace. Because Google is an almighty and all-knowing beast, it can sometimes find those more obscure places that aren’t listed on the big booking platforms.
Homestays
Most popular homestay sites like Airbnb, VRBO or Stayz also offer the option to filter by ‘pets allowed’, and sometimes you’re even able to add your pet under the ‘number of guests’ search filter. By adding your pet as a guest to your booking, the price will automatically adjust to include any extra costs associated with bringing your dog.
If you do happen to find a place on one of these platforms that you like that doesn’t meet the ‘pets allowed’ criteria, it can still be worth reaching out to the host directly to see if they’ll make an exception.
We’ve stayed at many beautiful homes that weren’t listed as pet-friendly, simply because we asked if they’d make an exception to their rule for a ‘small, well-behaved and toilet-trained miniature dachshund named Huey’ (if you can, send a picture of your dog with your message, don’t underestimate the power of a cute fluffy face). Sometimes hosts may accept your request without hesitance, other times you may have to guarantee that you won’t be leaving your pet home alone, your dog won’t destroy anything, and they’re toilet-trained.
Camping & Cabins
For the adventure pups who don’t mind roughing it, camping can be a great alternative (especially because you’re guaranteed to have a ‘room’ conveniently located for when nature calls your dog). When searching for campsites, you can use platforms like Hipcamp to filter your results based on their pet policy.
When visiting national parks, areas of outstanding natural beauty and nature preserves, booking a campsite or cabin is not only a great way to extend your time at the park, but it’s often the best way to find somewhere to sleep that’s in close proximity to your point of interest. For places like this, you’ll need to book your site directly through the park authority’s website (such as www.nps.gov or reservation.pc.gc.ca).
Long-term Stays
After our year of travelling, we’ve learnt that for stays longer than a few nights we prefer a vacation rental/guesthouse/homestay as you get the comfort and facilities of a home, sometimes at almost the same price as a hotel/motel room. Not only is it more convenient to have your own kitchen or living area, but the extra space will make the stay more comfortable for your dog too. We personally love finding places with patios or backyards so that Huey can enjoy laying in the sun or freely wandering out to do his business.
Things To Keep In Mind When Booking Your Dog-Friendly Accommodation
Additional Fee Consideration
Keep in mind, some accommodation providers will charge an additional ‘pet fee’ at either the time of booking or during check-in to cover the extra cleaning or potential damages during your stay. In some instances, these can be calculated daily and can quickly increase your overall expense, so double check the pet policy before booking.
We found that almost all of our lodging in North America charged a nightly pet fee, with one of the budget motels we stayed in charging AUD$40 per night (the pet fee was almost the same price as our room!). These extra charges were definitely less prevalent throughout Europe and the UK.
Always Notify Accommodation ABOUT Your Dog
At the time of booking your accommodation, always make sure to leave a note letting the hosts know that you are bringing your dog. In hotels and motels, there are often certain rooms allocated for people staying with pets which may be prepared differently (with bowls or dog beds sometimes provided) or they may be located somewhere that is more convenient for taking your dog outside to do their business (like on the ground floor or with closer garden access).
Notifying the staff of your dog before arrival also removes any chance of the dog being refused entry when you check-in. While it’d be nice to think that all listings marked as ‘pets allowed’ online are actually pet-friendly, we had one incident in Ireland that proved this is not the case.
As was our normal process, we booked the hotel because all of the platforms listed it as ‘dogs allowed’, but for whatever reason, this one time I had forgotten to send a note saying we were bringing our little sausage dog. We checked-in (our dog in clear view with us) and stayed one of our planned four nights. On the second morning we heard a knock on the door. The manager was abruptly accusing us of ‘sneaking our dog in’ to their ‘no dogs allowed’ hotel. I explained that we were doing no such thing and that we were under the impression that this was a dog-friendly hotel, proceeding to load up and show her the multiple websites that detailed the hotel as ‘dogs allowed’. Her anger quickly subsided when she realised she was wrongly accusing us, but because their policy was still very strict on ‘no dogs’, we were asked to check-out of our room immediately!
Thankfully we found a cute little cottage nearby on Booking.com that was available for the next 3 nights, so we snatched it up as soon as we found it and included a note explaining our situation and apologising for the late notice. The host, Charlie, was beyond kind, and I received a phone call from him within minutes of booking. He assured us that our dog was more than welcome at their place, and we were checking-in within the hour! When we arrived we were so glad we got kicked out of that other hotel because this place was far superior! Huey had his own backyard to sniff around, plus we had three bedrooms to pick from, a laundry to do our washing in, a kitchen with complimentary goodies, and a big-screen TV for unwinding with.
Pet-Friendly ACCOMMODATION vs ‘Pets Allowed‘
It’s worth mentioning that not all locations that are classified as ’pets allowed’ are ‘pet friendly’. They may allow pets to stay at the accommodation, but they might not have pet-centric provisions such as enclosed fence areas, pet relief areas, communal areas where pets are allowed to enter, or policies that allow pets on the furniture.
During our travels through the Arizona desert, our ‘pets-allowed’ motel had nowhere for Huey to do his business (it was surrounded by hot concrete and gravel) so we ended up having to drive 4 minutes down the road to the nearest public park every time nature called! We now stalk any potential motels/hotels on Google Maps prior to booking to see where the closest grass is (the things we do for our fur babies).
Be Responsible & Considerate
While your dog is obviously a beloved member of your family, sadly not everyone shares the same sentiment. Be mindful of other guests by keeping your pet well-behaved and leashed in common areas.
Make sure to respect the environment, and always clean up after your pet, whether in your accommodation or out on walks. Leaving a positive impression ensures that other pet lovers will be welcomed in the future!
