Dog Friendly City Guide: Los Angeles, USA
A dog friendly guide to Los Angeles: the canyon hikes from Runyon Canyon to Griffith Park, the best dog friendly bars and dog-named coffee shops, and the city's certified dog friendly hotels.
Los Angeles is too big to do in a day and too good to rush, and a dog is the perfect excuse to slow down. This is a city of canyons and coastline as much as freeways, and its dogs are hikers, with half of LA seeming to climb Runyon Canyon before work.
Between the trails there are beaches, dog-mad coffee shops and patios open most of the year under that reliable sun. You will drive more than you walk to get between them, but once you arrive the welcome is real.
Each place below has been checked as genuinely dog friendly, and the hotels at the end are ranked against the Roch Dog Friendly Standard.
Where to Walk
The hike is the LA institution, and the dog is central to it. Runyon Canyon above Hollywood is the see-and-be-seen climb, off-leash in its upper reaches and busy with dogs from dawn. Griffith Park is the giant, miles of trail under the Observatory, with the Mount Hollywood loop and the path toward the Hollywood Sign folded in.
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Closer to downtown, Elysian Park gives you shade and city views, Kenneth Hahn does the same on the Westside, and out toward Pasadena the Eaton Canyon trail and the flat Rose Bowl loop round out a roster that would keep a dog busy for a week.
The Bars
When the sun drops, the patios fill. Beverly Bar and the Honor Bar keep the Westside watered, V Wine Room pours by the glass in West Hollywood, and the neighbourhood Local does what its name promises. For beer with the brewery attached, Golden Road Brewing and Santa Monica Brew Works both pull the dog into the yard.
Eating, and a Note on Hot Dogs
LA eats outdoors, which suits a dog fine. Joe's Pizza does the late slice, the legendary Oki Dog keeps the city's strangest hot dog alive, and LA Buns & Co and Cha Cha Chicken cover the casual end. For brunch, Bru's Wiffle in Santa Monica and the old-school Charlie's Coffee Shop are the dependable stops, with Outdoor Grill, OH LA LA and Crepes de Paris filling the gaps.
Coffee, Mostly Named for Dogs
LA's coffee scene has a soft spot for the dog, starting with the names. Dogtown Coffee in Santa Monica, Muddy Paw Coffee and the dog-cafe Collar & Foam all build the welcome in from the floor, with Found Coffee and Caffe Etc. rounding it out.
Where to Stay
Which leaves the bed, and here Los Angeles delivers. Two of its certified hotels earn an A: the Fairmont Miramar above the Santa Monica bluffs and the London West Beverly Hills. Just behind them on a B sit the storied Hotel Bel-Air, hidden in its canyon, and the Santa Monica Proper, with the Downtown Los Angeles Proper rounding out the certified list, each rated and reviewed so you know what the welcome is worth before you book.
The full list of certified dog friendly hotels in Los Angeles shows how every one was ranked, and what that ranking buys you and your dog.
This guide was first published on 1 June 2023 and updated on 8 June 2026.
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