Dog Friendly City Guide: Philadelphia, USA

Philadelphia is a row-house city with a wild green secret, and the dog gets the best of both. Downtown keeps a corner bar and a beer garden on every block, the cheesesteak is a religion, and a few minutes north the Wissahickon gorge opens into one of the great urban wildernesses in America. It is walkable, unpretentious and genuinely fond of dogs, two of its best-loved spots named for them.

Everything below comes from our own verified data, not the booking-site badges that pass for research elsewhere. Each place 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 great walk is the Wissahickon, a wooded gorge where the gravel of Forbidden Drive follows the creek for miles under the trees, closed to cars and made for a dog. The Orange and Yellow trails climb the slopes above it, and Hermit's Cave and the Andorra Meadow add the quieter corners. It is hard to believe you are still in the city.

The Bars and Beer Gardens

Two of Philadelphia's favourite spots are named for the dog: the Good Dog Bar in Midtown Village and the White Dog Cafe in University City. Around them, Monk's Cafe is the legendary Belgian beer bar, Village Whiskey and the Lloyd Whiskey Bar cover the brown spirits, and Pub & Kitchen and the Bishop's Collar do the gastropub.

When the sun is out, Bok Bar takes it to a school rooftop and the Uptown and Old City beer gardens spread out, with Yards and Love City brewing on site.

Cheesesteaks and the Table

You cannot skip the cheesesteak, and the dog need not. Chubby's and Ishkabibble's keep the classic going, P'unk Burger does the South Philly burger, and for a sit-down Parc brings the Rittenhouse brasserie while Pizzeria Stella and Pizzeria Vetri handle the proper pie.

Where to Stay

Which leaves the bed, and Philadelphia delivers. Two certified hotels earn an A: the Kimpton Hotel Palomar and the grand Rittenhouse Hotel on the square. The Kimpton Hotel Monaco, overlooking Independence Hall, follows on a B, each rated and reviewed so you know what the welcome is worth before you book.

The full list of certified dog friendly hotels in Philadelphia 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.