Dog Friendly City Guide: Miami, USA

A dog fits easily into a Miami trip. Miami Beach sets aside three beaches where dogs can run off the lead, the bayfront parks downtown have dog parks beside the water, and Florida law lets cities open restaurant patios to dogs while keeping them off most dining room floors, so the outdoor table becomes your dog's seat for the whole trip.

Getting There With a Dog

Flying in from abroad, your dog has to meet the rules of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and they turn on where it has been in the six months before it lands. A dog that has been only in dog rabies-free or low-risk countries faces the simplest requirements. A dog that has spent any of that time in a high-risk country for dog rabies faces stricter ones, and one from a high-risk country that has not been vaccinated against rabies will not be allowed in at all, so work through the CDC's dog importation pages well before you book.

Miami International Airport sets aside places for dogs at both ends of the journey. Its animal relief areas page lists four indoor relief rooms beyond security, in the North Terminal near gate D34, on Concourse F near gate F7, on Concourse G near gate G11 and in the connector between Concourses H and J, plus outdoor areas across from the Level 1 arrivals doors, one of which is closed for construction.

Where to Stay

Our ranked dog friendly hotels in Miami Beach compares every hotel we have inspected on the beach, and two hotels in Miami hold our top grade.

InterContinental Miami holds an A+ and the highest dog friendly score in our directory. It is a five star hotel of 653 rooms on Chopin Plaza downtown, every room is open to dogs and there is no weight limit, for a fee of $100 a stay with no deposit and up to two dogs. Your dog can come with you to the bar, the lounge, the terrace and the garden, and there is a dog park right across the street. A bed and bowls are yours on request, treats wait at reception, and the hotel can arrange dog walking, sitting and grooming. A settled dog may be left in the room, and there is an in-room dog menu, with a chicken plate and a steak bowl. Every Wednesday evening the Bayside Terrace hosts Paws Patio, with pup cups, cooling fountains and local stalls.

Loews Miami Beach Hotel also holds an A+. It is a five star hotel of 790 rooms on Collins Avenue at 16th Street in South Beach, and charges $50 a stay with no deposit and no weight limit for up to two dogs. Dogs are welcome in the lounge and on the terraces, there is a dedicated dog space, and the room comes with a bed, bowls and a treat. The hotel sells dog food, hands out poo bags, runs a dog walking service and can arrange sitting, and a calm dog may stay in the room while you go out.

Two hold a B. The Betsy Hotel on Ocean Drive has 130 rooms, most of them open to dogs, and its own Golden Retrievers, Betsy and Rosa, may be the first to greet you. There is a bed, bowls and treats, dogs are welcome in the lounge and on the terrace, dog walking can be arranged and a dog may be left in the room; the fee is $150 a stay. Trump National Doral Miami, a 643 room resort in Doral, takes up to two dogs of up to 25 pounds for $125 a stay plus a $150 refundable deposit, with a bed, bowls, toys and treats in the room, the terrace and the lounge open to dogs, and dog walking on request.

Nobu Miami Beach holds a C and gives a dog the run of its public spaces: up to two dogs of up to 50 pounds are welcome in the bar, the lounge, the terrace and the garden, for $150 a stay, so pack bowls and a bed. Pelican Hotel, a D, is a 56 room house on Ocean Drive where one dog of up to 30 pounds can join you in the bar, the lounge and on the terrace, for a $100 cleaning fee plus $25 a night and a $300 refundable deposit.

Eat and Drink

The best dog table in Miami is at Glass & Vine, a garden restaurant inside Peacock Park in Coconut Grove that calls itself kid and dog friendly. You eat under the trees, and your dog orders from its own menu: meatballs in tomato broth, grilled salmon, or chicken breast with brown rice and red quinoa.

On Main Highway, The Taurus is a beer and whiskey house in the heart of Coconut Grove, and a relaxed stop with a dog. On Miami Beach, Front Porch Cafe on Ocean Drive is a breakfast and brunch spot, and Panther Coffee on Purdy Avenue is a coffee stop that welcomes a dog.

In Wynwood, Cielito Artisan Pops on NW 3rd Avenue makes its popsicles by hand in the back kitchen of its shop, with indoor and outdoor seating, and its own site says it is perfect for pet owners: the menu includes Doggy Pops, frozen dog treats of fresh fruit sweetened with honey. In the Bird Road Arts District, Lincoln's Beard Brewing Co. on SW 41st Street pours small batch beers and handcrafted cocktails, and your dog can come too.

Walks, Beaches and Parks

Miami Beach is the place to let a dog onto the sand. The city runs three Bark Beaches, at 21st Street in South Beach, 53rd Street in Mid Beach and 81st Street in North Beach, where dogs may come off the lead in the marked area every morning, from 7am to 9am between November and March and from 9am to 11am between April and October. The North Beach stretch also opens on Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Your dog needs a collar and a rabies tag, you must carry a lead, and the limit is two dogs per owner. The 21st Street beach is the closest of the three to the Loews and the Betsy.

The same city page lists eleven Bark Parks, all free. The best for a visitor is South Pointe Park at the tip of South Beach, where an unfenced grass area south and west of the Washington Avenue entrance is open to dogs off the lead from sunrise to 10am and from 4:30pm to 8pm. Flamingo Bark Park at 13th Street and Michigan Avenue is a large fenced park with two runs, one kept for dogs under 25 pounds.

North of Miami Beach, Haulover Park is run by Miami-Dade County and has a Bark Park with separate enclosures for dogs under and over 35 pounds, shade trees and water fountains for dogs, plus a stretch of beach where dogs are allowed every day from sunrise to sunset, between lifeguard towers 2 and 3. Dogs stay on a lead everywhere outside that area.

Downtown, Bayfront Park and Maurice A. Ferré Park, both run by the Bayfront Park Management Trust, each have a waterfront dog park where dogs can exercise, play and socialise beside the bay. In Coconut Grove, David T. Kennedy Park on South Bayshore Drive is a City of Miami park on the water with a dog park, and dogs are allowed on a lead through the rest of it from sunrise to sunset.

A Day Out

Start on Miami Beach as the sun comes up, with an hour off the lead at the 21st Street Bark Beach, then breakfast at Front Porch Cafe on Ocean Drive. When the heat builds, head to Coconut Grove for a run at David T. Kennedy Park and a long lunch under the trees at Glass & Vine, rest through the afternoon, then go to Wynwood for a Doggy Pop at Cielito as the day cools. If it is a Wednesday and you are staying at the InterContinental, finish at Paws Patio on the Bayside Terrace, with the dog park across the street for a last run before bed.

Good to Know

Florida keeps dogs out of restaurant dining rooms, but state law lets a city permit them in designated outdoor areas, so ask for a patio table and expect your dog to stay there. The sun is the thing to plan around, and the early Bark Beach hours are a good guide: walk at dawn and dusk and carry water. On the Bark Beaches dogs may not dig, dogs in season are not allowed, and dogs must be up to date with their vaccinations. Outside the marked areas, keep your dog on a lead on every Miami beach.