Linus is part of the family, so when he comes on holiday, he’s part of the plan. This is how we choose where to stay, where to walk and what to pack when the dog comes too.
Linus, our dog, is the reason we look at some of our holidays a little differently. A day isn’t planned around a museum. It’s planned around a good walk, somewhere to stop for lunch where he’s welcome, and a place to stay where he can settle in the evening.
Travelling with a dog is the newest of our travel companions guides, and it works the same way as the others. Start with who’s coming and what they need, then plan the trip around them. With a dog, that means access and routine.
Linus even has his own post. He rated the places we went in Falmouth, and you’ll find his verdicts in the first card below.
In short: Choose dog friendly accommodation with open space nearby, check where dogs are allowed before you plan each day, keep your dog’s routine as close to home as you can, and pack for walks in any weather.
Our holidays with Linus have all been in the UK and Ireland. Falmouth in Cornwall and Whitstable in Kent are both trips we’ve taken with him, and there’s plenty more of the United Kingdom to explore with a dog than you’d ever fit into a lifetime of weekends.
There’s a practical side to it as well. A holiday close to home means a shorter journey for him, a car full of his things, and no paperwork to sort before you leave. Our trips abroad are planned without him.
If you’re thinking about taking your dog abroad, the rules are set by the government, they’ve changed more than once in recent years, and they can apply even on a ferry across the Irish Sea. Check the current pet travel guidance on GOV.UK, and speak to your vet well before you book anything. We don’t give pet travel rules on this site, because they change too often to keep up to date.
Planning holidays with dogs is mostly about doing the checking before you go, so you’re not standing outside a café in the rain wondering if he’s allowed in. This is the order I’d plan things in.
It’s the same principle we use for every companion type. Plan around the person, or the dog, whose needs are most specific, and the rest of the trip falls into place.
“Dog friendly” can mean anything from a welcome bowl and a blanket to “dogs allowed in one room, at an extra charge”. It’s worth asking the questions before you book, not when you arrive.
Self-catering often suits a dog best, because you have your own front door and your own routine. A cottage or apartment near open space is the setup that tends to work.
The best days out with a dog are the ones built around a walk. The coast is an obvious choice, with long stretches of path and plenty of places to stop, but rivers, canals and moorland work just as well when the beaches are busy.
In Cornwall, our Visit Falmouth guide covers the town and the coast around it, and Linus’s own ratings fill in the dog’s-eye view. In Kent, the shore circular walk from Whitstable is an easy, flat way to spend a morning. Closer to home in Yorkshire, our guide to the natural wonders of Yorkshire has walks from coastal cliffs to limestone dales.
A few things make walking days easier.
Packing for a dog is like packing for a small child. Everything they need, and a bit extra just in case.
Our packing checklists cover the rest of the family’s bags.
These are the posts on the site that work for a trip with a dog, starting with Linus’s own.
Cornwall
Dogs can use the town beaches outside the seasonal summer restrictions, there are great coast path walks and dog-friendly ferries, and plenty of cafés, pubs and restaurants welcome dogs.
Why Falmouth earns its “Falifornia” nickname, and how to plan a stay in this corner of south Cornwall.
How to plan a day trip across the water from Falmouth to St Mawes. Check the ferry’s dog policy before you go.
How to spend a day on the Lizard Peninsula in south Cornwall, home to mainland Britain’s most southerly point.
Kent
A day in Whitstable built around the oysters and an easy circular walk along the Kent coast.
Ideas for walks a little further afield from Whitstable, once you’ve done the shore.
Yorkshire
What Harrogate is like through the year, so you can choose the season that suits your trip.
The best walks along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal, with flat towpath miles and plenty to see.
A visitor guide to the Ribblehead Viaduct, with the walks around it and the trains that cross it.
How to explore Flamborough Head, Yorkshire’s coastal wonder, and its chalk cliffs.
On the water
How to sail on the Waverley, the world’s last sea-going paddle steamer. Check the dog policy when you book.
Start with dog friendly accommodation that has open space nearby, then check where dogs are allowed for each day out, including beaches, attractions and places to eat. Keep your dog's feeding and walking routine as close to home as you can, and mix long walking days with quieter ones.
Ask how many dogs are allowed and of what size, which rooms they can go in, whether they can be left alone, whether the garden is enclosed and whether there's an extra charge. Self-catering near a beach, park or footpath usually works best.
Many UK beaches welcome dogs all year, but plenty have restrictions for part of the year, usually over the summer. The local council sets the rules, so check its website for the beaches you plan to visit before you go.
Pack food for the whole trip, bowls, a spare lead, poo bags, their bed or blanket, old towels for muddy days, any medication, a copy of their vaccination record and an ID tag with your mobile number.
It's possible, but the rules are set by the government and change from time to time, and they can apply even on a ferry to Ireland. Check the current pet travel guidance on GOV.UK and talk to your vet well before you book.
A holiday with a dog is slower, muddier and full of more walks than you'd plan on your own. That's exactly why we like it. Linus makes us stop, look around and find the quieter corners of places we thought we knew.
Do the checking before you go, keep the routine, and let the walks shape the days. If you're heading to Cornwall, start with Linus's guide to dog friendly Falmouth.
Happy walking, from both of us and Linus.