# Moving to Boston - Vizsla transport



## Shivangi (Jan 19, 2010)

A very happy July 4 to folks in the US! 

My husband and I will be moving to Boston (from Baton Rouge, LA) sometime next month. Its going to be a very long drive if we decide to drive down to Boston and I'm not sure if we will be able to find pet friendly hotels every where we stop along the way.
I was hoping some of you might have some experience in traveling with pets over long distances. I am skeptical of using the airlines for transporting our V because of all the horror stories I've heard  

Any advise? Suggestions? Experiences to share with us? I'd love to hear what you guys think about this. 

- Scared mama


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## laurita (Jun 12, 2011)

hi! I understand your fear-- my boyfriend and I just returned from a road trip from houston to vriginia (we went through baton rouge). Our 6 month old did remarkably well. It really couldn't have gone better and we realized that what makes vizslas able to adapt so easily is having the owner around. You should be able to find places that allow dogs or arrange to stay in places that do by using the website: www.dogfriendly.com. There are more places than you'd think! The other thing we did is create a route and for instance, we knew that we would be driving through alabama so I googled the best dog parks in alabama and we found a great one along the way where he could swim. It was perfect. If you try to make sure your dog gets some exercise each day, he/she may sleep the entire way like ours did. Pack some toys for comfort in the hotel and some nice bones for the car ride. Also, we always seemed to find gas stations with nice stretches of land where we would let him sniff and run off leash. I'd be happy to provide more suggestions if needed. You'll be totally fine!!


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## jld640 (Sep 29, 2010)

Do as much internet planning as possible, but if you aren't on-line with a phone or GPS during your drive, AAA also publishes a book that lists dog friendly hotels. You can buy it at one of their offices - even if you are not a member. As laurita said, there are more places than you think!

I don't think you would be able to fly even if you wanted to. The airlines have heat restrictions and won't allow dogs if the weather prediction is over something like 85 degrees.

I hope your drive - and your move - go smoothly!


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## DixiesMom (Feb 5, 2009)

I would not plan on flying your redhead, I am pretty sure that the airlines will not fly pets in the hold after temps get above a certain level. Look at www.bringfido.com for some ideas. Most LaQuintas are very pet friendly and won't even charge a pet deposit. Also, when making reservations use the discount code AKC or PETPERKS for a 10%discount. Best of luck with your move.


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

I'm putting a link below that might be helpful to you. It can help you find lots of pet-friendly travel accomodations:

http://www.petswelcome.com

I haven't been doing much more than day trips just lately, but my sister and brother-in-law travel quite a bit with their cat and they use this web site all the time.


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## labar349 (Oct 14, 2010)

We traveled with our female Vizsla, Sophie beginning of June (and she was 9 months) from Arizona to Maine and she did amazing. A wonderful traveler. We gave her the whole backseat and found parks along the way for her to play, walk, run (on leash) some. I used AAA's site where you can filter hotels that are pet friendly. We stayed at LaQuinta, Sheraton Suites, and a Marriott Courtyard outside of Boston. The Marriott was the only one that charged. The motels were so nice and friendly with Sophie. It really was no big deal. The longest travel day was 820 miles but it is best to keep the days a bit shorter. Before we left in the am and when we arrived in the pm there was a big walk. Sophie has always been a great traveler and we did 3300 miles (with a 4 day break in between to visit family) and she was the best!! Good luck on your trip


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## barretts87 (Apr 24, 2011)

We have traveled up to 8 hours away with our 4 month old Vizsla and she does great, just sleeps in the backseat the whole way unless she needs to stop and go potty. We've found that most LaQuinta's Comfort Inn's, and Motel 6's (they are remodeling a lot of them and making them pretty nice, not to mention they are only ~$55/night) are pet friendly (Comfort Inn was the only one that charged a pet fee of $15). Several other hotels are pet friendly but realize they can charge a non-refundable pet fee up to $100. I used the pet friendly search on Hotels.com to find hotels in the area we would need one that were pet friendly and then would call the hotel just to verify before I made any reservations. 

Also, most restaurants that have a patio, where you can sit outside and eat, are pet friendly to the patio. We stayed in Dallas and Abby was 3 months old and went with us to Joe's Crab Shack where we ate outside and just tied her leash to the table. She had a bone, food, and water and was in love with all the attention she got from the servers, managers, and other guests. She (and her Dad) also loved showing off all the tricks that she knew and it made for a nice break during the drive. The only thing I would caution is make sure you choose a restaurant where the patio isn't busy the first few times just to gauge your V's reaction to the totally new atmosphere and of course always ask the restaurant before you bring your V to the patio to eat.

I really think the trip will be easier than you think. I was really worried the first time we took Abby and had to stay in a hotel but she really did great the whole trip. And being exposed to so many new things did wonders to wear her out. We just make sure that whereever we stayed she always had her bed and a few of her favorite toys and that really helped her adjust when we moved to a different hotel or place so quickly. Good Luck!!!!


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## Linescreamer (Sep 28, 2010)

I would call it a drive UP to Boston.  Copper travels without incident. At times we have kept him crated in the car overnight if need be. Just make sure the location is safe, the sun is down, the window is open, the alarm is on and the room is close. A bed and breakfast in a rural location would work well.


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## sarahaf (Aug 17, 2009)

I was going to suggest Marriott Courtyard as well. I stayed in the marriott courtyard in Tarrytown, NY en route from the south to Boston, and although I didn't have a pet with me, I seem to recall that they allowed them. You could check.


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## Shivangi (Jan 19, 2010)

Just wanted to let y'all know that our journey from Baton Rouge to Boston was a success! Imli (Imlee) was such an angel. She hardly ever bothered us! The longest stretch of the journey was when we traveled for 8-9 hrs in one day but you couldn't tell that there was a 2-yr old vizsla in our car! 

She did seem a little bummed out with the hotel rooms at first, but got adjusted to the new schedule very quickly. Even skipped food for the first 2 days but then we substituted her cans for vet recommended Science Diet (which we were told would be easy on her stomach given all the travel and minimal exercise) and things were back to normal in Imli-land  

Our stay at Chase Suites (Baton Rouge, LA) and Drury Inn (Birmingham, AL) was by far, the most comfortable. While making our reservations over the phone, the lovely folks over at Drury said they understood that pets were like family to us and that they did not charge for kids and saw no reason why they should be charging for dogs! I thought that was a really nice touch. 

Three -four days into the journey Imli knew what early morning luggage packing meant! She would sit by the door and wait for us to take her to the car where she would get on the back seat (we installed a plush hammock for her) and sleep her way through the journey. 

I wanted to thank everyone here for their great suggestions and timely help. We were very lucky to get all the advise from this forum before making all the necessary arrangements for the long trip. We had a great time thanks to all of you!


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## Keneomac (Oct 12, 2010)

Hi Shivangi,

I just noticed this thread. We just moved from Boston to Boulder with our 1.5 month old V. If you want any advice on V friendly places please let me know! I would be happy to share our experiences there with you! 

Best of luck,

K


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