Travelling with a dog: what you need to know
Travelling with a dog is easier than it looks if you plan it, and fairly disastrous if you improvise. These are the real rules for each mode of transport.
By car: the easy option
The best and most flexible way to travel with a dog. Regulations require the animal to be restrained so it can't interfere with driving: a carrier, an approved harness with seatbelt, or a barrier. On long trips, stop every two or three hours for water and a stretch, and never leave the dog alone in the car in summer: interior temperatures become lethal within minutes.
By train
Spanish operators allow small animals in a carrier, with weight and size limits worth checking before buying, as they vary by operator and service. Options for large dogs are far more limited. Book the animal's place at the same time as yours: it can't always be added later.
By plane: the complicated one
Small dogs can usually travel in the cabin inside a carrier under the seat, within a weight limit that includes the carrier. Large ones go in a pressurised hold compartment. Every airline has its own rules, prices and a limited quota of animals per flight, so notify them when booking. Some brachycephalic breeds, such as bulldogs and pugs, face restrictions or outright bans over breathing risk.
Paperwork
Within Spain, an up-to-date health record with rabies vaccination and a microchip. To leave the country you need the European pet passport, issued by your vet, with a valid rabies vaccination. Some countries require antiparasitic treatment within a specific window before entry: check ahead, because the timings are strict.
Finding accommodation
Always filter for pet-friendly, but don't trust the icon alone: message the property and ask about maximum weight, per-night surcharges and whether the dog can be left alone in the room. Many places claim to accept pets and then apply limits you only discover on arrival. Apartments and campsites tend to be more flexible than hotels.
What to pack
Their usual food, because switching diet mid-trip guarantees digestive trouble. Collapsible bowls, their blanket or bed from home (a familiar smell settles them), a spare lead, bags, a towel, and the number of a vet near your destination. And a recent photo on your phone, in case they go missing.
Destinations that work
Nature and mountain destinations are the easiest: space, shade and fewer rules. On the coast, check in advance which beaches allow dogs and in which months, because most ban them in high season. And small walkable towns work far better than big cities full of metros and museums they can't enter.
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