Planning a long road trip with your dogs? Here are the best dog-friendly hotels between Los Angeles, CA and Washington, DC!
Planning a long road trip with a dog or two can be a challenge. Trust me, I just did it! Dane and I traveled by car from Los Angeles, CA to Washington, DC with our two chocolate Labs, Judy and Bill. If you’re looking for dog friendly hotels along that route, today’s post is for you!
Best Dog-Friendly Hotels Driving From Los Angeles to Washington, DC
One of the first tasks we took on when we found out we were moving was figuring out how we were going to move the dogs. They’re our kids, so their health and safety was super important to us. Part of that was minimizing as much stress as we could for them, which meant reducing flights.
Because of this, we landed in Los Angeles and drove to our new home just outside Washington, DC. It meant we needed to plan ahead for hotel stays, because we have two big dogs (80 pound Labs if you’re new around here!). You can’t just pop into any hotel you want, which definitely makes it a bit more complicated and once we made our schedule, it was pretty set in stone.
One thing we learned about “dog-friendly” places was that the size of your dog is important. Many hotels are dog-friendly for up to 30 pounds, which wasn’t helped for us at all. The below are all places we stayed with two, 70-lb chocolate Labradors.
View this post on Instagram
Dog Friendly Hotels For Cross-Country Long Road Trip
Night 1 in Los Angeles, California: Ruskin Conference Center
Everything about this hotel was perfect for our first night of road tripping with the dogs. We checked in and were given doggy bags for Judy and Bill, which included a treat, water bowl, and some poop bags. The entire complex was so clean, spacious, and comfortable. It’s located right on the UCLA campus, so there are tons of places for dogs to get walked around, and there are a bunch of grassy patches. 5/5 for big dog owners!
Night 2 in Sedona, Arizona: Hilton Sedona at Bell Rock
This was the hotel I was most excited for, because 1. I had never been to Sedona before and 2. They market to pet owners. We arrived pretty late at night, so we didn’t initially see a ton of the views (what makes Sedona so popular!), but we were welcomed with more doggy bags, cheerful Christmas music, and fire pits. The staff was super friendly, and even gave us a menu of special dog food items. The rooms are BIG (with a nice living room are and kitchenette), and have a walk-out porch, which is great for pets. Judy and Bill loved running on the nearby grassy patches. Another 5/5 stop for big dog owners!
Night 3 in Amarillo, Texas: Drury Inn & Suites Amarillo
So our initial reservation was for the Country Inn Amarillo, which is right off I-40, and I’ll be honest and say that we got in there and realized there were bed bugs. We immediately left. It was midnight so we were a little panicked about where we could stay with the dogs. The Drury Inn + Suites had an empty room available, and we paid $40 per pet to stay for the night. It was clean, and we were able to get a good night’s rest. There isn’t really anywhere for dogs to go to the bathroom nearby, and not any grass. For us, it was a port in a storm and we are grateful, but not sure it’s ideal if there’s a choice. 3/5 for big dog owners.
Night 4 in Memphis, Tennessee: ARRIVE Memphis
Hands down our favorite stop of the trip and we would go back tomorrow. The aesthetic of the hotel was gorgeous (something we love when we travel), and even though this was a purely functional type of trip, it was still really nice to treat ourselves. The hotel specifically caters to dog owners, so there were spots to hang their leashes, and plenty of dogs in staying there, too. Across the street is an amazing grass area for the dogs to go to the bathroom and the rooms are spacious so they would get out all their pent-up wiggles before bed. Bill also really enjoyed looking out the big window in our room at downtown Memphis.
Night 5 in Knoxville, Tennessee: Hampton Inn + Suites
We had a short driving day between Memphis and Knoxville, but it somehow felt really long, which is due entirely to weather. We asked for double beds in this particular location, because we learned pretty quickly how much room the dogs take up in a king bed. There isn’t a ton of space to walk or run the dogs nearby, but there is some grassy space in the back and the hotel staff is very supportive of people traveling with dogs. Super friendly spot and affordable!
If you liked this post, you might also enjoy 6 Hacks To Get Dogs To Take Medicine or How To Get Rid Of Dog Smell In Your House
How To Spend 2 Days In Salem, Massachusetts
How To Take Better Photos When You Travel
How To Choose Your Next Vacation Destination