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More and more, travel is a dog's world
Topic Started: Jun 4 2006, 11:10 PM (58 Views)
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More and more, travel is a dog's world
By Bruce Smith
The Associated Press

http://www.recordonline.com/archive/2006/0...over-06-04.html

Charleston, S.C. - Many travelers will tell you it can be doggone hard to make arrangements when you have a pet in tow - worrying about everything from finding dog-friendly hotels to activities for canines while on the go.

From plush hotels to, well, "ruffing it" at campgrounds, the travel industry has more options available for people traveling with their four-legged friends.

Now from the French Alps to New York's Catskills, companies are offering tours where dogs are welcome and arrangements for man and beast are all made ahead of time.

Linda Lombardi of Silver Spring, Md., a zookeeper at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., always travels with Lilly, her pug. Generally, that means vacationing with her husband and Lilly at the Delaware shore, where the dog has been welcomed in the past.

"We go to Rehoboth Beach because there is a hotel there that takes dogs," she said, adding dog owners quickly learn not only where they are welcome, but where they are not.

"We know beaches where you can't even carry your dog in your arms on the boardwalk," she said. "I don't know if they have roving bands of people throwing their Chihuahuas at people or what."

"A lot of times, people travel with their dogs because they don't see the dog often enough during the time they are working," said Tara Kain.

She and her husband, Len, operate DogFriendly.com and publish a guidebook of hotels and attractions in North America that welcome dogs.

In the eight years the couple has operated the Web site, more hotels have started accepting dogs, she said. Some even cater to pampered pooches.

According to the Travel Industry Association of America, more than 29 million Americans took trips of more than 50 miles with their pets during the past three years.

Almost 80 percent of those travelers took dogs. About 15 percent took cats, while the rest took birds, ferrets, rabbits or that quietest traveler of all, fish.

Breakaway Adventures in Mount Pleasant, S.C., offers 210 tours in various parts of the world, including four dog walking tours through France. The options include a high Alps tour, recommended for hardier hounds.

The company has been operating for almost a decade and decided to include dogs because of numerous requests.

"France is very dog-friendly," said Carol Keskitalo, who with her husband, Michael Carson, runs Breakaway. "All our trips are to undiscovered Europe - small hotels with lots of family rooms. When you go to France, you'll see a couple of dogs in every lobby, just lounging around."

Owners, however, need to provide food for their pets, usually purchased when they arrive.

At the upscale Charleston Place Hotel in Charleston, visiting pooches are pampered with special dog dishes, snacks and pet sitters. They sleep in designer pet beds that cost more than $350, and there are signs for the rooms reading VIP - Very Important Pet - in residence.

Nearby, well-behaved pets are welcome to wander along with their owners on walking tours offered by Tour Charleston LLC.

Doug Gelbert, who operates hikewithyourdog.com, offers outings for people and their dogs from the Catskills to Virginia, visiting everything from beaches to historic sites. Overnight trips include campground accommodations.

"Any dog can be a trail dog," said Gelbert, author of "The Canine Hiker's Bible."

If you go ...

Breakaway Adventures: www.breakaway-adventures.com or 800-567-6286. Offers four walking tours of France where dogs are welcome, $1,653-$1,851 per person, double-occupancy, with an additional flat fee for a dog of $32-$84. Dogs from abroad are permitted in France as long as they are at least 3 months old, identified with a microchip and vaccinated against rabies. You must also provide a health certificate from a veterinarian.

Charleston Area Convention And Visitors Bureau: www.charlestoncvb.com.

Charleston Place Hotel: 205 Meeting St., Charleston, S.C.; www.charlestonplace.com or 843-722-4900. Rates range from $249-$738, depending on date and room. Pets are an additional $75 per night, and may not exceed 75 pounds.

Dogfriendly: www.DogFriendly.com. Web site listing dog-friendly accommodations, tours, parks and other travel services.

Hike With Your Dog: www.hikewithyourdog.com or 610-917-1066. Day trips, $69, and overnight trips, $159, including stays at dog-friendly campgrounds, in Delaware, New York, Maryland and other locations. Web site offers advice on dog-friendly parks, trails and beaches around the country.
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Kiwi
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I always used to take my dog with me on holiday. Like US we have a guide book to hotels, farms, guest houses etc that accept pets. I think its a fabulous idea, you are not worrying all the time that your dog is safe.
Ann
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agate
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About 15 percent took cats


This would be me :kitti: My 2 girls love to go camping. They where rather upset , as they did not get to come this past week end. Isis would not talk to me when I came home sunday night!!! :sad: :rolleyes:
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