First and foremost, you’re looking at the size around the cottage. Your dog will need quite a lot of space to run and play, and you want to help enjoy that with him. Finding a cottage that carries enough space for both you and your dog can be a challenge, but if you focus and look efficiently, you can find the perfect spot for you and rex.

Immediately you can disqualify cottages that don’t allow pets. This is obvious, but it’s something you want to keep on the lookout for: if a place piques your interest, call the landlord or landlady and ask them if they allow pets. Don’t take things at face value when you see them on the internet, because in reality, many times a landlord or lady will change their mind between the time they made the posting and the time you make your booking.

That out of the way, we can focus on the topic at hand: we want somewhere, by the sea, where we can relax with our dog and enjoy our holiday.  From that, we can start to build a list of things we need in a cottage: adequate tea and coffee making facilities, plenty of room inside and out for both you and your better half. Space, then, becomes the big concern. From space, we’re back to making things simpler for ourselves.

Chiefly, you want to narrow your search: there’s quite a bit out there, and you can’t realistically look through every single listing and firm in Cornwall. Instead, you can immediately narrow down your search by eliminating all cottages that come with less than a 500 square feet  lawn for you and your dog: this is an arbitrary number, but it’s grounded in reality, since a dog wouldn’t be very happy with a lawn less than 500 square feet in size.

In doing this, you’ll limit the number of cottages you actually have to search through, much like interview questions in a job application. We know what we need, and we know it’s out there, but it’s impossible to find it without narrowing the field a bit. After you’ve cut it down from space concerns, you can start looking at location, and more typical things like facilities and access to major motorways.

Holidaying with your dog can be one of the best, most calming activities out there for you tod. But it can also be one of the most nerve wracking and frustrating: proper preparation and deductive reasoning will go far towards making that an impossibility. After all, everyone wants to just relax on the beach and play fetch with their best mate.

Depending on your budget and what your looking for the area has a plentiful collection of holiday cottages and B&B’s many of which take pets and there are also some hotels which offer the service (if your looking for a little more luxury than a B&B).

Choosing your New Forest doggy location

Within the boundaries of the new forest there are  a plentiful choice of villages and towns where to base yourself.  Check out the list of more popular villages below and then check out our list of hotels at the foot of the page.

• Lyndhurst – A great town in the heart of the New Forest – Nice High Street – great
• Brockenhurst – Hire your bikes and set off cycling to view what the Forest has to offer
• Ringwood – Quaint market town on the border of Hampshire and Dorset
• Lymington – Picturesque town with harbour side – smart chic high street featuring range of boutique shops – great range of pubs, resteraunts and café’s.
• Burley – Small village right in the forest with great history – range of walks

Dog Friendly Hotels, B&B’s, cottages and Caravan parks

Myrtle Cottage Guest House, Cadnam Bed and Breakfast
B&B near Lyndhurst in the New Forest  http://www.myrtlecottagebandb.co.uk/

Acorn Caravan Park – situated in Hoburne Bashley, in a 100 acre woodland park on the edge of the beautiful New Forest – http://www.holidaycaravansinthenewforest.co.uk/

Sykes cottages – range of cottages throughout the forest http://www.sykescottages.co.uk

The stables in Ibsley – http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk/rentals/new-forest/93816

York Lodge in Stockbridge http://www.york-lodge.co.uk/

Who says dogs can’t have their own doggy holidays? If you as a pet owner are looking forward to spending your holidays in a fancy hotel of your choice, your pet dog also stands to have as much fun doing much of the same things. This is all thanks to the fact that there are more and more dog friendly hotels popping up in locations all over the world. This wasn’t always the case. As recently as a few years ago, there were only a limited number of pet-friendly locations in certain cities. But now that the global pet industry is still thriving in spite of the fact that other industries are stalling, more and more services are rising up to deliver the goods.

When searching for nice dog friendly hotels, you surely want to make the most out of the time and money that you are going to have to spend. So first, find a suitable location that is both convenient for you and your pet dog. This means that you won’t be having a lot of problems in getting to and from your dog friendly hotel of choice. Also, the hotel that you end up choosing has to have the proper pet policies that will let you do whatever you need to do with your pet. The ideal spot would have proper amenities that can offer your pet dog not only safety but also a chance to relax and have fun.

Most hotels may impose certain restrictions that apply to certain kinds of dogs. Otherwise, pet policies are generally very lenient and you shouldn’t have c lot of problems in terms of accommodation. But there is one final thing that you have to consider: and that is the price. Pet friendly locations often charge extra fees because your pet is going to be given special treatment. If you love your pet, you will consider the fees worth it. But of course it’s up to you to decide whether or not something is actually worth paying for in dog friendly hotels. Hopefully, you will find these tips helpful in the future when you go out looking for dog friendly hotels during the holiday season.

First, it’s important to understand that when looking for dog friendly hotels, there are three very important keys that you need to remember. There’s the location of the hotel, the pet policy of the hotel, and finally the price you have to pay for the hotel and all of its accommodations. To find out more details about these three important factors, simply keep on reading the rest of the paragraphs in this article.

Location, location, location

The very first thing that you would have to consider when looking for dog friendly hotels or even just pet friendly hotels in general is of course the location. The location of the hotel matters the most because it will be the single biggest factor in determining what kinds of things you can do during your stay as well as how much you will actually have to pay in the end.

Ideally, you would want to choose a location that’s convenient not only for yourself but also for your pet dog in that you won’t have much trouble in terms of transportation. But of course, as long as you make the necessary arrangements, distance usually won’t be a problem for either you or your pet dog. In fact, the only thing that might stop you from going to a certain location is yourself.

Pet policies

Next up in your list of things to consider is the pet policy of the hotel that you choose to stay in. Of course, you can’t check in at a hotel with your pet dog if they have a pet policy that won’t allow it. So you want to find a hotel that will actually let you bring your dogs or any other pets you might have with you for the duration of your stay. There are many pet friendly hotels out there and it is up to you which one you pick and choose to stay in.

How much is that doggie in the dog friendly hotel window?

Finally, you also have to consider the fees that you have to pay as part of the pet policy in the dog friendly hotel you choose to stay in. The fees will vary according to the amenities that you are able to enjoy, such as pet concierge or dog walking services and so on. Here, it depends on how much you are willing to pay for the convenience in dog friendly hotels.

Doggy holidays get easier to come by each year. The tourist industry is realizing that people do like to travel with their pets, and are making more and more concessions towards dog friendly holidays. The number one issue for a dog owner is to find suitable accommodations. Fortunately, when travelling in the UK and across Europe as well, there are many websites and books devoted to helping you find pet friendly lodging.  These resources can help find everything from a small cottage rental to a farm house accommodating multiple dogs. There are bed and breakfasts, caravan parks, and self catering properties all willing to help your doggy have a fantastic holiday with you.

Whether taking a doggy friendly holiday within the UK or abroad, it is a good idea to check with DEFRA (The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs) to ensure you have the most up to date information on re-entry with your dog.

If you’re leaning towards a beach holiday, we have found a few of the better choices in the UK.  Calgary Bay, Isle of Mull, Scotland is easily one of the most beautiful beaches in Scotland and there are no restrictions for dogs, which makes for a great dog friendly holiday. Danes Dyke in Yorkshire is a smaller beach, which is designated as a local nature reserve. It is hidden at the end of a nature trail and offers an unspoiled, pet friendly area for your dog to run while on holiday.

Camber Sands Beach in East Sussex is a fantastic south coast beach destination for your doggy holiday. Dogs are limited to certain parts of the beach but there is still loads of room for them to roam.

No matter what your choice in accommodation or your destination, take the time to research and you are sure to find something to suit you and your dog on your dog friendly holiday.

The good news is that it is possible to stay in the luxury that boutique hotels offer AND take your pet. There are plenty of pet friendly boutique hotels with many offering exclusive faciliies for the pets in your life such as beds, menus, and toys and games.

Whilst it can be hard to find that chain hotels that are pet friendly – the positive side to boutique hotels is that they are not usually associated with a chain or group and therefore are often able to offer services (such as accepting pets) that larger chain hotels cant (or wont!).

Picking your pet friendly boutique hotel
As we stated defining what actually is a boutique hotel is a little difficult. Boutique hotels can be many different things (hip, romantic, historic etc). Many exploit their unique architecture or design or offer a theme. One thing you’ll find is that they are normally more expensive!

As with any hotel you’ll need to first draw up a list of what your looking for (for both you and your pet) – you might want spa facilities, an excellent resteraunt, plenty of gardens to exercise your pet – whatever your requirement use that for the basis of any search you might do.

Many boutique hotels accept pets (usually dogs) but many those that do differ in two respects –firstly some hotels accept pets straight away – others may require prior arrangement or levy a surcharge. Always advise the hotel when making your booking that you’ll be brining along a pet (and be sure to clarify that they do take animals) and ensure that if you have any special requirements the hotel are advised well in advance. Also be sure to check whether the hotel has designated rooms that accept pets – this is relevant especially if you have seen a particular room that you wish to book via a hotel website – just because the hotel states it accepts pets it doesn’t mean that they always accept pets in every room.

Hotel Rules

You may also find that the boutique hotel has special rules in place when guests are accompanied by pets – for example

• your animal may not be left unattended
• Certain areas of the hotel may be restricted
• There may be rules regarding the control of your pets (for example always keeping your dog on a leash)

Staying in a boutique hotel can be a really rewarding experience and a world away from your run-of-the-mill chain hotel – if you’re a pet owner this is good news – there’s plenty on offer and both you and your pet can have a relaxing and enjoyable time.