Dog and family friendly attractions

[Jinnybean]

Hi :) our beautiful girl comes home on Friday and Iv been looking at things we can do as a family for in the future. We do a lot of days out with national trust but looking for other things.

Like Iv just found out the Shrewsbury prison is dog friendly and also Blists Hill Victorian town.

Whenever I put into Google dog friendly attractions it’s a lot of walks etc.

Thank you!

Hi. I will add things as I remember them, but John Lewis is dog friendly!

You'll also find that lots of places where walking is a focus, e.g. the Lake District, then other attractions are dog friendly too. So unless it has changed recently, in the Lake District, the steam boats and steam trains are dog friendly. Lots of pubs, shops and cafes there are dog friendly too.

The NT places near us don’t allow dogs in the buildings just in some parts of the grounds.

Cotswold Wildlife Park is one of the few animal attractions that's dog-friendly.

It's one of the big ties of dog ownership - many places aren't dog friendly unfortunately.

As PP said it'll mostly be places based around walks and outdoor activities.

"Dog friendly" doesn't always mean what you hope it does either - like PP said about the National Trust. Yes, you can take your dog but they generally won't be allowed inside the cafes or inside the buildings.

Be prepared for one parent to do a lot of standing about with the dog while the other goes in with the kids!

Also worth remembering that many beaches etc. aren't dog friendly all year round either.

Lots of English Heritage's castles are dog friendly.

If you go to Cornwall, they have a map of dog friendly and not friendly beaches.

Later on, if you get the rabies vaccine and pet passport, France is very dog friendly. We took ours around Gardens and Chateaux in the Loire Valley. Lots of hotels and restaurants let you bring your dog. Brittany Ferries also has dog friendly cabins on the route to Spain. If you do use the ferry, Southsea near Portsmouth has lots of green space for your dog to have a good run, then Mozzarella Joe's is a dog friendly pizza restaurant overlooking the sea.

If you are in Shrewsbury, Sabrina Boat is dog friendly, as is Hawkstone Follies which is not far away.

Also depends on your dog, she may not like the attractions, noisy busy places.
Dogs do really like walks.
DS really likes watching Banger Racing, and you can take your dog there, but I never have as I think she would hate the noise, and is happier at home.

Thank you all! We live in Leicestershire but do go away abit. We go Cornwall on holiday every year, also Whitby.

Also to say that it very much depends on your dog. Ours is reactive so it's quite walks only for us.

eden camp is really truely dog friendly dogs are allowed in all the exhibits and in the cafe the only place they cant go is the kids play area

I don't have a dog but I have friends who do. Agree with pps that attractions which allow dogs generally don't allow them into cafés etc. Also when my friends do take dogs with us to places they spend most of their time keeping said dogs away from other dogs or intervening in interactions between their dogs and other dogs etc etc. There's a lot of barking, a lot of work and frankly it's not fun at all. Which I guess makes sense. Dogs are animals, not day trippers or tourists or paying customers ie they're not people. Not sure what your average dog gets out of visiting eg a stately home garden anyway. It all looks a bit crackers to me.

Crich tramway museum - a bit niche I know , but dog friendly (dogs were allowed to ride on trams and go inside the tramsheds when I went).

I don't know about the rest of Cornwall but Newquay and Perranporth are very dog friendly. In Newquay as far as I can tell all the pubs are dog friendly except the Wetherspoons ones, there are cafes that will provide a free sausage for a customers dog and we've even had a posh meal in the fish restaurant overlooking the harbour with our dog.
Airbnb have a dog friendly filter.

Drive-in cinema

If you holiday a lot (I assume in holiday cottages) then do remember you generally can't leave dogs unattended there.

I found Cornwall very dog friendly - I think they are geared up for people who holiday in the UK because they have a dog. A dog stake is a good idea if you are camping or caravanning so you can get on with things on site without having to hold onto a lead all the time. As a pp said, you won't normally be able to leave your dog unattended on site.

The Eden Project allows dogs in the outdoor parts only.

Hack Green Nuclear Bunker near Nantwich apparently.

Will keep checking 😂