Pet Friendly Holidays UK: Bring Them or Book a Pet Hotel?

Planning a pet friendly holiday in the UK usually means one of two things: finding accommodation that welcomes your pet, or finding excellent care for your pet so you can holiday freely. Both are valid. Both take planning. And the right answer depends entirely on your pet, your destination, and what kind of break you actually want.

The Real Question Behind Pet Friendly Holidays

Search for 'pet friendly holidays' and you'll get two completely different types of searcher in the same results. One wants a dog-friendly cottage in the Lake District. The other wants to book a fortnight in Greece without worrying about who's looking after the cat.

The distinction matters more than it might seem, because the planning process, the costs and the right decision all look very different depending on which camp you're in. This guide covers both, honestly.

It's also worth saying clearly: bringing your pet on holiday is not always the kindest option. Some pets, particularly cats and anxious dogs, are far better served by a calm, familiar routine in a good pet hotel than by a week in an unfamiliar cottage.

Travelling With Your Pet vs Booking a Pet Hotel

Here's a straightforward comparison across the factors that matter most when you're making this decision.

Option A: Bringing Your Pet on Holiday

When It Works Well

Certain holidays are genuinely improved by having your dog along. Coastal walks in Cornwall, moorland hikes in the Peak District, or a long weekend in a dog-friendly National Trust property are obvious examples. Your dog gets exercise, stimulation and your company. You get a companion who's just as excited about the walk as you are. If you're weighing up destinations, our guide to the best dog holiday destinations in the UK is a good place to start.

It also makes sense for dogs who struggle badly with separation. If your dog has genuine separation anxiety and has never settled well away from home, a familiar face on holiday beats a distressing boarding experience. Similarly, if you have several pets and the logistics of boarding them all feel unmanageable, travelling with them may be more practical.

Short UK breaks generally work better than long trips. The less disruption to routine, the easier it tends to be for the animal.

What to Watch Out For

The phrase 'pet friendly' has no legal definition for holiday accommodation. A cottage can call itself pet friendly because it tolerates a single small dog in the utility room, or because it has a fully enclosed garden, wipe-down floors throughout and a dog washing station outside. You won't know which until you ask.

Before you book, get answers to these questions:

• Is there a fully enclosed outdoor space, or can your dog get out?
• Are there breed or weight restrictions? (These are common and not always displayed prominently.)
• What is the pet supplement per night, and is there a cap?
• Is your pet allowed in all rooms, or restricted to certain areas?
• Can you leave your pet unattended in the property? Many cottages prohibit this entirely.

That last point catches a lot of owners out. If you can't leave your dog alone in the cottage, you can't have a meal out, visit a museum, or do anything that isn't dog-friendly. For some people that's fine. For others it's the point at which a pet hotel starts to look very appealing.

Cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, birds and reptiles deserve a direct mention here, because almost every piece of 'pet friendly holiday' content online is really about dogs. The market for cat-friendly holiday accommodation barely exists, and the market for rabbit-friendly lodges is essentially non-existent. If your pet isn't a dog, a professional pet hotel is almost certainly your only realistic option. For cats specifically, it's worth reading up on how to travel with cats before you commit to bringing one along.

If you're considering taking your dog or cat to Europe, the rules have changed significantly since Brexit. Under UK Government guidance on pet travel (GOV.UK), your pet needs to be microchipped, vaccinated against rabies and issued with an Animal Health Certificate from an official vet no more than ten days before travel. The old EU pet passport issued in Great Britain is no longer valid for travel to EU countries. Our overview of the pet passport rules after Brexit walks through what changed. Research this well in advance: it isn't complicated once you know the steps, but it takes time.

Long car journeys in warm weather also warrant serious thought. Dogs can overheat quickly, particularly in stopped or slow traffic. Regular breaks, water and never leaving a pet in a parked car are basics, but worth stating, and the RSPCA regularly warns about the dangers of pets in hot vehicles. For a fuller rundown of the law and the kit, see our guide to dog car safety in the UK.

Costs to Budget For

Pet supplements vary widely. Some independent cottages charge nothing; others charge £25 or more per night, and that adds up over a week. Mid-market lodge providers typically fall somewhere in between, so it's always worth confirming the exact supplement before booking.

Beyond accommodation, factor in travel insurance that covers your pet (standard travel policies do not), any travel-specific kit (a portable crate, travel water bottle, boot liner or seat cover), and a refundable cleaning deposit if your accommodation requires one. Some properties also require a specific pet damage waiver.

Option B: Booking a Professional Pet Hotel

When It's the Better Choice

If you're travelling abroad, booking a city break that's incompatible with a dog, or heading anywhere your pet simply can't follow, a licensed pet hotel is the answer. It's also the right call if your pet is elderly, on daily medication, prone to anxiety in new environments, or belongs to a species that holiday accommodation doesn't cater for.

There's a less-discussed scenario worth naming too. Some owners love their pets dearly and still find that managing a pet's needs on holiday gets in the way of the break itself. There is nothing wrong with that. Knowing your pet is safe and well cared for by professionals can make for a better holiday all round.

What Makes a Pet Hotel Different from a Traditional Kennel

The distinction is more than marketing. Traditional boarding kennels are individual runs, often outdoors, with limited human interaction. Pet hotels, as the name suggests, aim for something closer to a home-like environment: smaller groups, more individual attention, enrichment activities, and sometimes home boarding arrangements where your pet stays in a private home rather than a commercial facility. If you're torn between the two set-ups, our comparison of home boarding vs kennels goes into more detail.

Both types, along with home boarding operations, require a licence under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, with Wales having similar requirements under separate legislation. The star rating system attached to that licence (one to five stars) reflects the quality of facilities and care, not just basic compliance. A five-star rated facility will have met higher standards across space, enrichment and welfare outcomes.

Licensed facilities are subject to regular inspections, with higher-rated providers sometimes inspected every two to three years and lower-rated ones more frequently. That inspection history matters when you're choosing.

How to Find and Vet a Pet Hotel

Start by verifying licensing status. In England, licences are issued by local councils, and you can ask any provider for their licence number. In Scotland, licensing requirements differ from England's 2018 framework. In Wales, similar licensing applies under separate legislation. If a provider can't show you a current licence, that's a serious concern. Our step-by-step guide to checking if a kennel is licensed covers exactly how to do this.

Questions worth asking before you book:

1. What is the staff-to-pet ratio during the day, and is there overnight supervision?
2. How much individual exercise or outdoor time does each pet get daily?
3. How do you handle a veterinary emergency? Which practice do you use?
4. Can my pet have a trial stay before the main booking?
5. How do you manage pets on daily medication?
6. What happens if my pet isn't settling well?

Red flags to watch for: no licence number displayed or available on request, reluctance to let you see the facilities before booking, no vaccination requirements (most reputable providers require kennel cough vaccination, with timing depending on the vaccine type), and no clear emergency vet protocol. Worth reading beforehand: what to know about kennel cough before boarding.

Reputable providers will let you visit and meet the staff before committing. That's good practice, not a legal requirement, but it tells you a great deal about how a place is run.

Based on listings in our directory, Tailstays covers 2,708 licensed pet hotels across the UK. The largest concentrations are in London (31 listings), Leeds (25), York (25), Nottingham (22) and Bristol (20), with strong coverage also in Southampton, Stoke-on-Trent, Swansea, Derby and Liverpool. If you're looking for options near you, searching on Tailstays lets you filter by location and see what's available.

Pros and Cons at a Glance

Travelling With Your Pet

Pros: Your pet stays with you, which suits social dogs and owners who'd miss them too much. Dog-friendly UK holidays are a well-developed market with good options in most regions. No settling-in period required.

Cons: Destination choice is significantly restricted. Accommodation quality under 'pet friendly' varies enormously. Car travel and new environments can be stressful for some animals. Leaving your pet alone in holiday accommodation is often prohibited.

Professional Pet Hotel

Pros: Full freedom to choose your destination. Licensed, inspected care with clear welfare standards. Suitable for dogs, cats and, in some cases, small animals and exotics. Specialist handling for elderly or medical-needs pets.

Cons: Upfront daily cost. Some pets need a trial stay or settling-in period. Popular pet hotels book up well in advance, particularly over summer and school holidays. It requires more forward planning than simply packing a pet bed in the car.

Understanding the Costs

Comparing costs directly is harder than it looks, because both options have visible costs and hidden ones.

For pet-friendly accommodation, supplements at independent holiday lets can range from nothing to £25 or more per pet per night, and a cleaning deposit on top of that is common. Over a seven-night stay with two pets, that's a meaningful additional outlay.

For pet hotels, UK daily boarding rates vary by location, facility type and the level of care involved. According to ManyPets, dog boarding in the UK typically costs between £25 and £75 per day depending on the type of provider and region. Home boarding, where your dog stays in a licensed carer's home, tends to sit towards the lower end of that range, while specialist or boutique pet hotels sit towards the higher end. For a closer look at what drives these figures, see how much dog sitters cost in the UK.

The hidden costs on the travel-with-your-pet side are easy to underestimate: travel insurance that covers your pet (often an add-on, not a standard inclusion), a boot liner or crate for the car, portable water and feeding equipment, and the cost of any activities or restaurants you can't access because your dog can't come. The hidden benefit on the pet hotel side is that your entire accommodation budget, activity budget and destination choice are unrestricted.

Neither option is categorically cheaper. It depends on where you're going, how long for, and what you're comparing against.

Which Option Is Right for You?

Bring your pet if: you have an active dog who genuinely enjoys new environments, you're staying in the UK at accommodation you've verified actually suits your pet, the trip is built around activities your dog can join, and you're happy to structure the holiday around your pet's needs.

Book a pet hotel if: you're travelling abroad, your pet is a cat or non-dog animal, your pet is elderly or on medication, you want to choose your destination without reference to your pet's logistics, or your pet is the type who genuinely thrives on a calm routine rather than novelty.

There's an honest point worth sitting with here. Some pets, particularly indoor cats and homebodied dogs, will be far less stressed in a well-run pet hotel with a consistent daily routine than in an unfamiliar holiday cottage full of strange smells, new sounds and owners distracted by being on holiday. That's not a reflection of how much you love your pet. It's a reflection of what your pet actually needs.

If you're still weighing it up, browse pet hotels near you on Tailstays to see what licensed options are available before you make a final call. Knowing what's out there often makes the decision easier.