Dog Friendly Travel Made Easy With Travfurler
Dog Friendly Travel Made Easy
We’re passionate about worldwide travel with pets. Helping explorers of all species travel safely, happily and in style with a range of first-class travel products and a growing worldwide pet travel community.
The bulk of our experience comes from travelling across five countries with our dog, Francis. He’s a French Bulldog (@frenchiefrancisthefirst) with a passion for adventures and making new friends (of all species!)
Now we’re looking to share some of our experiences with you, to help you make your dog-friendly trips easier.
Before any trip, research always plays a big part. Here’s how we adapt trip research to suit travelling with a dog:
– First and foremost a location (and potential accommodation) needs to be selected. To do this we’d recommend using comparison sights and filtering on dog friendly. A key tip here is if there’s no dog-friendly filters, workaround it by using the in-built search functionality using “dog” as the keyword. To find somewhere that’s “dog-friendly” and not just “dogs-allowed” always sift through reviews.
– If you’re still unsure of the above, turn to social media. Using location tags and trending hashtags you can easily scope out dog-friendly hotspots. For example, for searches in Spain, we’d look for #dogfriendlyspain #spanishdogs, etc.
– These will often also aid in returning dog-friendly excursions and activities plus local dog accounts, whom you could contact for recommendations. Bonus!
– Next, you’ll need to consider travel requirements for the trip. If you’re moving between countries is a pet-passport/visa required, are there any medical requirements for your companion? Most requirements can be found online with some research however, it’s always best to double-check with your vet.
– If you’re still unsure of the above, turn to social media. Using location tags and trending hashtags you can easily scope out dog-friendly hotspots. For example, for searches in Spain, we’d look for #dogfriendlyspain #spanishdogs, etc.
– These will often also aid in returning dog-friendly excursions and activities plus local dog accounts, whom you could contact for recommendations. Bonus!
– Next, you’ll need to consider travel requirements for the trip. If you’re moving between countries is a pet-passport/visa required, are there any medical requirements for your companion? Most requirements can be found online with some research however, it’s always best to double-check with your vet.
Once you’ve carried out your research it’s time to get preparing. We’ve covered the main areas we always target:
– The biggest step is getting your dog as ready for what’s coming as possible. Has your dog ever stayed anywhere other than your home before? If not, could you test this at a family members? Or if you’re going on a long road trip, has your dog been acclimatised to a car yet? If not, get some practice in as early as possible to avoid stress on the big day. If you’re aware there could be issues look for options to help reduce the stress, for example, we’ll be stocking a great natural product to ease pets worries whilst travelling. With every new trip comes new surroundings and experiences for your dog, so it’s best to ease them into it with a few shorter, well-rewarded trips before jumping headfirst into a long trip. You will appreciate the ease of a trip once this step has been completed.
– Make sure you complete any pre-travel vet checks as per the travel requirements you researched earlier. Failing to complete this step could result in a very short end to your plans not to mention a stressed dog should things go south.
– Packing, just like with children, can be a minefield but it doesn’t have to be. There are some basics we’ve covered below, many of which we’ll be stocking to help with those decisions:
– Food (work on a trip day ratio +25% in case of any delays)
– Travel Paperwork
– Medicine (if required)
– Home comforts (toys/blanket/bed – these will help your dog settle whilst away and be useful during delays)
– Grooming (towels, cleaning products)
– Make sure you complete any pre-travel vet checks as per the travel requirements you researched earlier. Failing to complete this step could result in a very short end to your plans not to mention a stressed dog should things go south.
– Packing, just like with children, can be a minefield but it doesn’t have to be. There are some basics we’ve covered below, many of which we’ll be stocking to help with those decisions:
– Food (work on a trip day ratio +25% in case of any delays)
– Travel Paperwork
– Medicine (if required)
– Home comforts (toys/blanket/bed – these will help your dog settle whilst away and be useful during delays)
– Grooming (towels, cleaning products)
Anything outside of this is likely a personal choice. When having a pre-trip run through you can test out what you really need. Try laying everything out on the side for say a week and see what you actually use. You’ll quickly notice things you think you need, but likely won’t actually use.
Whilst on-the-go the most important step is to EMBRACE IT ALL – just like your dog will. A couple of tips we recommend whilst out and about, if travelling abroad ALWAYS
photocopy paperwork (trust us, it’s just as easy to lose a pet passport as it is a human one!), no matter the town or city you visit, always pop to the local pet store – it’s amazing the different things you’ll find and the staff will likely be happy to help with recommendations and you never know, maybe even a local freebie. Finally, you can never have enough wipes/towels, no matter the weather!
There may be challenges along the way but with our steps listed above, these should be easily minimised and managed. Carry-out research, prepare carefully, and finally, enjoy those magic moments seeing new places through your companion’s eyes.
Don’t forget to record those special moments and share, we’d love to see what you get up to.
Happy Travfurling!
The Travfurler Team
Don’t forget to record those special moments and share, we’d love to see what you get up to.
Happy Travfurling!
The Travfurler Team