Vacation Help Needed!!!
 

We are retired and rarely in our 47 years have had a vacation.

Enter Buddybear, now 17 months and hates being in a car about as much as I do. We did make a trip to Colorado when he was much younger. I packed more things for him than us, as I've never traveled with a dog before. We were considerate with him for potty and play breaks. We had reservations for a dog friendly hotel. No problems but we were visiting our son.

How do you decide where to go and what to do when you take your puppy with you? I can't leave him behind as we have no family and my only friends have large dogs. We are somewhat limited in what we can physically do so hiking trails is out. I'm not even considering a kennel. Going to amusement parks is out or anything where we would have to leave him for more than one hour.

My DH has wanted a trip of some sort for a long time.........please give me any suggestions. I feel braindead trying to figure this out. It was my idea to get this precious baby and I refuse to leave him home or leave him in anyone's care that I haven't known for 10 years, lol, yes I'm that protective.

We don't have a RV etc. Budget wise I've heard staying in a hotel is cheaper.

Am I asking for the impossible??????:confused:

Hi, I am the same way, there is NO way I am leaving mine behind with anybody when I go on vacation, the only person I would consider would be his breeder but that would only be an emergency case, such as my husband and me had to be in the hospital at the same time...I would never relax with my pups several hours away.

My husband and I along with the two pups left right after Christmas and went away for the week and had a blast! We went to Asheville, NC, stayed in pet friendly hotel and ate at pet friendly restaurants. I have their stroller and that is an invaluable investment for us. Just about everywhere we went they strolled with us :) I have their car seat and they are comfy in that traveling. We toured historical sites, went in antique stores, shopping, etc. I am not a hiker, stuff like that is just not my thing. We had wanted to rent a cabin however with it being the week of New Years there was none available. Do make sure you child proof the hotel room with light cords and the Heat/AC cords as they are always exposed in ANY room I have stayed in.

My experience is if they are in a stroller I can basically get them in about anywhere. I do not ask stores and malls if they are pet friendly, I have only been asked to take them out of one place. Everybody is typically very receptive to them in the stroller, I mean who can resist a cute Yorkie and poodle strolling :D

Below is a picture of them at the Biltmore House in Asheville...go and have a blast with BuddyBear!

We went on vacation this past summer. Oliver hates the car, but he did okay as long as he was in his crate. We went to Mackinac Island, MI. Had a great time! Stayed in a pet friendly hotel, and we had the stroller, which was wonderful! We also have a bag to carry him in when we go into museums, etc. Most stores, etc. there are very pet friendly.

We have taken Sophie with us on a few vacations now we rent pet friendly houses so she has the run of the place just like at home and we take her crate if we go out without her it's only for a bit. Works well if you have enough of her regular stuff so she feels at home. I work part time so she is use to being alone for four or five hours at home too

I am completely with you. When my husband and teenage son wanted a dog and I caved, I made them understand that I am all in on anything I do. That means my furbaby is not being boarded ANYWHERE -- not here in Mississippi and certainly not on a vacation. Last year, we went to Orange Beach, Alabama and met my sister and mother (they live in Alabama where we are originally from). I've found that in larger cities and tourist towns they are much more receptive to dogs than Columbus, Mississippi is. Zeusy did great, and we ate at restaurants that allow dogs or have patios (Hooter's has a covered patio with ceiling fans, for example). I bought a pet sling off Amazon that Zeusy loves. He hates being "imprisoned" in a crate or kennel. I crossbody the sling, and he is such a good boy (I guess being next to me is better than prison). I guess my point is that you will find "vacation spots" are much more receptive to our pets than we think. I hate the car, too. Zeusy and I both need anti-anxiety medication! I hope y'all have a great time.

Thanks for sharing your information!
Love the picture of the babies in the stroller.

I have a small crate, a sling carrier, and a bag with the hard bottom. I think a stroller might be next as I can't carry him for all day even though he's just barely 7#s.

This will be interesting where we decide to go as it's got to want all 3 of us.......decisions, I could go running down the street pulling my hair out!!!!

I leave mine with an in my home Petsitter. I've been doing it for over a decade. They never feel stressed being in their own homes and I have had good caring sitters during the years.

OMG!!!! That is an absolutely adorable pic!!! I love that pic of those babies in their stroller!!!

And I love all the ideas you offered to original poster....I think you can contact AAA travel club and they can send you for a little $$$, a book about 2 inches thick that lists every single motel in the country and if they accept pets. I know anytime I ever traveled, or crossed the country to buy my dogs, La Quinta accepts dogs....I always got the suite with the kitchenette.....have a ball on your adventure!

You will love having a stroller, even though the babies are light they do get heavy and hot, plus they are not all that comfy after awhile. Don't make the same mistake I did, my first stroller had plastic wheels, it was a rougher ride for the babies and I swear it was made for the height of a 4 year old, it would break my back by the end of the day, but I rolled that sucker until the wheels wobbled. When I got the one I did now I researched and took the advice from another YT member, rubber air filled tires are the way to go!

I hope you find the perfect location soon for your vacation!

Awe thanks! La Quinta is pet friendly and they do not charge per night per dog, a lot of places will charge a crazy amount! Some of the Choice hotels are pet friendly, some Hiltons, some Marriott but they all charge per pet per night. We stayed in the La Quinta in Charlotte and it was very nice, we got the King suite and I was very impressed.

Bringfido.com is a great resource too, it will show you hotels and restaurants in whatever town that is pet friendly, just keep in mind they do not list every one that's accepts dogs, but it does give you some options. Have fun!

Cindy_17, thanks for the tip about the wheels......never thought of that.

I'm going to do a lot of research. Great to know LaQuinta doesn't have an upcharge. We paid about $10 extra per night for Buddybear plus the stupid tax in Colorado, it was expensive.

I'll look into AAA, ARP, etc offers also.

You don't need to pay AAA for that book. Just look on BringFido.com like mentioned above or book La Quinta or Motel 6 which also doesn't charge a fee. There are some Motel 6's in select areas that are doing nicer ones that have inward facing hallways, not like the traditional motel style. Same with LQ's. You can tell on their site or on hotels.com or similar website by the pictures. We always stay at places with inward facing hallways if at all possible. There are a lot of places that will take dogs but most charge $15 per pet, some even per day!

Is it possible to rent an RV for a week and do a road trip?

Cindy, love that pic. It's so cute. The stroller looks like a regular baby stroller too.

I don't have the luxury of being a stay at home yorkie mom (someone's gotta pay the bills!) which is great for me since Kaji has learned that it's ok to be alone for a few hours. That makes outings that are short and that I absolutely cannot bring him tolerable. (of course... the next day I have an outing that's all about him so he's never left out)

For vacations, I've been super lucky to have found great friends on YT (Thank you forever P!!) that I trust Kaji with more than my own parents. But... we're talking trips where the babies can join. Lots of patio seating for meals. Kaji loves it, the waitstaff loves it, some don't even notice he's there, and Kaji gets to enjoy the trip too. After work, and on weekends Kaji goes with me everywhere possible, which made it easy for him to take long road trips (like LA to SF, or to the Grand Canyon) He is a bit of a nervous dog, so he'll cry and scream his head off sometimes, but once we're out of the car and in the store, outdoor patio of a restaurant, or whatever he's ok and super quiet. I think he came with us to see the Rockettes when we were in TN once. He had a long walk and vigorous play before the show. He napped the entire time in his carrier.

I would recommend researching the area you're going to to find dog friendly events you might be able to attend.

Cindy 17, how did you find pet friendly resturants? We live on the border of Fargo, ND and Moorhead, MN. My hubby and I work at the same place and Cooper comes to work with me. We take him everywhere we go, but have had to forego eating out. I don't know of any resturant that will accept a pet?

Most places that have outdoor seating will allow pets, even moreso if it is an order at the counter type place with side walk seating/informal outdoor area. Bringfido.com has a restaurant section too but it's not everything. I just checked for NV and it only has a tiny fraction of who allows dogs here (practically everywhere!)