If it feels like everyone you know is loading the dog into the car this summer, the numbers back you up. Tripadvisor's 2026 Trendcast — built from more than a billion reviews and booking signals — found that pet-friendly travel bookings surged 260% year over year, the single biggest jump of any trend the platform tracked. Tripadvisor even coined a name for it: "VIP (Very Important Pet) Tourism," declaring that "the days of leaving pets at home are over."
And when KAYAK ranked which U.S. cities actually roll out the welcome mat for dogs, the No. 1 spot didn't go to Denver, Austin, or Portland. It went to Topeka, Kansas, where 64% of hotels welcome pets — a higher share than any major metro in the country. If you're still planning an August getaway, here's what the boom means and where the data says your dog is genuinely wanted.
The 260% boom is real — and it's dogs driving it
Tripadvisor's finding didn't come out of nowhere. Across the travel industry, the same signal keeps showing up: people are refusing to board the dog and are building trips around the pup instead. KAYAK reports that searches for pet-friendly hotels climbed 20% over the previous year, and that roughly 78% of travelers now bring a pet along on trips at some point during the year.
Hotels have noticed the money. The global pet-friendly hotel market is valued at nearly $31 billion in 2026 and projected to reach about $53.8 billion by 2033, an 8.2% compound annual growth rate — and dogs, unsurprisingly, drive the bulk of that demand. That's why "pet-friendly" increasingly means more than a $50 cleaning fee and a patch of grass out back. Chains are competing with custom dog beds, welcome kits, gourmet bowls, in-room pet menus, and on-call pet-sitting so you can still make dinner reservations.
Why Topeka — and not a big city — took the crown
The surprise at the top of KAYAK's list comes down to how the ranking was built. Instead of counting how many dog-friendly hotels a city has (which naturally favors huge metros), KAYAK measured the percentage of a city's hotels that welcome pets. Rank cities by share rather than raw count, and the map flips: mid-size and outdoorsy towns leap ahead of the coastal giants.
The 2026 leaders read like a road-trip playlist:
- Topeka, Kansas — 64% of hotels welcome pets, the highest share in the nation
- Amarillo, Texas — 61%, a natural stop on any I-40 or Route 66 run
- Yakima, Washington — 56%, wine country with wide-open trails
- Klamath Falls, Oregon — 55%, lakes and high-desert hikes
- Florida favorites — Ocala, Titusville, and Boca Raton all earned spots
- Also ranked — Madison, Wisconsin; Springfield, Missouri; and Long Beach, Washington
The through-line is space. As KAYAK's travel team put it, these destinations offer "wide-open spaces, hiking trails, parks, lakes, beaches, and a growing number of businesses that recognize pets as valued guests." For a lot of dogs, that beats a crowded downtown hotel lobby any day. If your travels take you near a big-box errand instead of a trailhead, it's worth knowing which national retailers actually allow dogs inside before you leave the car running in the heat.
Beyond the hotel: renting a private dog park on the road
One reason "VIP Pet Tourism" has legs is that the infrastructure around it has exploded. If your rental cabin has no fenced yard and the local dog park is a chaotic free-for-all, apps like Sniffspot now let you book a private, fully fenced space by the hour in more than 3,600 cities — the "Airbnb of dog parks." It's a genuinely useful trick for reactive dogs, recovering athletes, or any pup who just needs to sprint off-leash without a crowd.
The same instinct applies to how you exercise your dog on a trip. A new city is a firehose of smells, and letting your dog actually investigate them is one of the cheapest forms of enrichment there is. A slow, sniff-led stroll — what trainers now call a "sniffari" decompression walk — can do more to settle an overstimulated traveler than another lap around the parking lot.
How to travel smart with your dog this summer
The boom is exciting, but August heat makes the fine print matter more than usual. A few things worth locking down before you go:
Confirm the pet policy in writing
"Pet-friendly" is not a standard — it's a marketing phrase. Weight limits, breed restrictions, per-night fees, the number of pets allowed, and whether your dog can be left alone in the room all vary wildly. Call or email and get the specifics; don't trust a filter checkbox that could cost you a booking (and a scramble) at check-in.
Treat the car like the danger it is
Interior temperatures climb fast even on a mild day, and a cracked window barely helps. Never leave your dog in a parked car during summer, plan fuel and food stops where the dog comes inside or into the shade, and pack more water than you think you'll need. For quick cool-downs, a few ice cubes are perfectly safe despite the old myth — here's what the science actually says about dogs and ice.
Pack the paperwork and the comforts
Bring vaccination records and your vet's number, a familiar bed or blanket, enough of your dog's regular food to avoid a mid-trip diet switch, and any medications in their original bottles. Familiar smells help an anxious dog settle into a strange room faster.
Book early, and book honest
With searches up 20% year over year, the genuinely dog-welcoming rooms in popular towns sell out first. Reserve ahead, and be upfront about your dog's size and number — showing up with an undisclosed 80-pound shepherd is how a "pet-friendly" stay turns into a parking-lot problem.
The bigger picture
The 260% surge isn't a fluke of one summer — it's the travel industry catching up to something dog owners have known for years: the dog is family, and family comes along. The upside is real. More hotels, more fenced fields, more patios, and more small cities like Topeka competing for your booking means your options have never been better. The catch is that "pet-friendly" still means whatever each business decides it means, so the burden of doing the homework falls on you.
Do that homework, respect the heat, and there's never been a better August to hit the road with your best friend riding shotgun. For more dog-friendly getaway ideas, packing checklists, and city guides, keep it locked to Sidewalk Dog — we sniff out the good stuff so you don't have to.
