Travelling With Your Emotional Support Animal | ESARA

With Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World and hundreds of other attractions, it’s no wonder that the city welcomes 50 million tourists a year [source: Orlando Convention & Visitors’ Bureau]. Many local accommodations and attractions also welcome their two-legged guests’ four-legged companions.

Colorado’s second largest city combines quaint, small-town charm with big-city culture and incredible scenery. The city’s ample outdoor space is one of the reasons Colorado Springs consistently tops the lists of America’s most pet-friendly cities. There are more than 10,000 acres (40 square kilometers) of public parks, including seven dedicated dog parks [source: Forbes].

With its year-round warm climate and 70 miles (112 kilometers) of white-sand beaches, San Diego is an ideal spot to get outdoors with your pet. Many of the beaches allow animals, and at least two will even let your dog roam without a leash — perfect if you want to play a gam­e of Frisbee. Just a few yards away from the appropriately named Dog Beach is one of the area’s pet-friendliest hotels — Ocean Villa Inn. Many of the rooms have private patios that open out to a communal yard across from the beach.

How could New York not make our list? There are almost as many activities for pets as there are for humans in this city that never sleeps. However, if you do want to sleep at some point during your stay, you’ll find no shortage of pet-friendly hotels. One hotel even offers rental pets. The Soho Grand Hotel will provide a complimentary goldfish to keep you company if you’ve left your own best friend at home. The Muse Hotel in the theater district offers a Pampered Pooch Package for smaller dogs. The hotel is home to what it claims is the only doggy playground in New York.

Money magazine proclaimed Portland to be North America’s “Best Big City” [source: Travel Portland]. Portland could easily be termed one of the continent’s “best pet cities” because of its many beautiful parks and outdoor areas where pets are free to roam. About 20 of the city’s parks are off-leash, and some of them are fenced.