Holidaying with your dog? Here’s the top 10 dog-friendly places to go in Australia

Here I am thinking how hard it is to work out where to stay and where to go when holidaying with kids – there’s just as much to think about when holidaying with your pets!

Pet Insurance Australia teamed up with award-winning pet photographer Kerry Martin to put together a list of places she’s been and would recommend to fellow dog owners.

Kerry says “We always try to include our dogs – whether it’s for a day or a holiday,” she says. “This became truly apparent when we headed overseas for my brother’s wedding in Thailand. While we arranged a great dog sitter to stay in our house and care for Keiko, we were always thinking about what he might be up to and checking our emails for updates so that we knew he was well and happy.”

While Kerry admits it’s hard to pick just ten – here’s her list of top places to take your dogs on holiday in Australia:

1. Dinner Plain, VIC – Snow with your dogs is the ultimate bucket list thing!
2. Coffs Harbour, NSW – beautiful beaches and incredible inland bush & rivers
3. Jervis Bay, NSW – the prettiest beaches in Australia which include many that are dog-friendly (both on and off lead).
4. Atherton Tablelands, QLD – This was a surprise to us but we really enjoyed the walks/hikes that we could do here and the water spots we could visit.
5. Coober Pedy, SA – Here we found was beautiful and iconic outback plus stayed underground.
6. Kangaroo Island, SA – Beautiful spot – incredible beaches, bush areas, and friendly dog-friendly cafes and small local businesses. And quieter than on the mainland.
7. Denmark, WA – Again a beautiful spot!  But this time the added extra was great dog-friendly wineries!
8. Beechworth, VIC – We love the walks that you can do around Beechworth and the history that’s to be uncovered here.
9. Bay of Fires, TAS – we free camped here. An incredible place to do not much more than walk along the beach, swim and relax.
10. Canberra, ACT – we really enjoy visiting here. Lots of places to walk, dine and head with your dogs.
11. (yep, that’s eleven!) Huon Valley, TAS – So pretty, so green and lots of beautiful vistas out over the water (whether than be ocean or river!).  There’s also some fabulous dog-friendly cidery’s that you can visit.
    

But of course, you can’t just assume anything when taking your Dog out with you – Nadia Crighton from Pet Insurance Australia says “It’s important to do your research before setting off to ensure where you are intending to visit will welcome your pet,”

“It’s also good to remember that most National Parks are off-limits for dogs, so it’s important to do your homework of where you can and can’t go.”

And if you are taking the dogs away, here’s a handy checklist of things to remember when packing for pooch!

DOG HOLIDAY CHECKLIST

• Spare collar & lead
• Microchip & registration information updated
• Updated pet tags
• Vaccinations up-to-date
• Tick prevention
• Flea & worm prevention
• Itinerary of events & places
• Food
• Treats
• Toys
• Bedding
• Portable water
• Medications
• Pet first aid kit