Dog Friendly City Guide: Windsor, England

Windsor is a small town with a very large back garden. The castle sits on its hill above the Thames, the streets below it are lined with pubs and cafés, and the moment you walk out of the town to the south you are in Windsor Great Park, a royal landscape of avenues, woods, lakes and open grass where well-behaved dogs are welcome. Eton is a short walk across the bridge, Runnymede and Dorney Lake are a few miles up and down the river, and the village pubs of Old Windsor sit right on the edge of the park. For a dog it is one of the best short breaks near London: a long walk every morning and a pub at the end of it.

Getting There With a Dog

Arriving from abroad, your dog has to meet the Great Britain rules set out on the government's bringing your pet to Great Britain pages. It must be microchipped before, or at the same time as, its rabies vaccination, and you must wait at least 21 full days after the first vaccination before travelling. Your vet issues the right pet travel document for the country you are coming from, and a vet must give your dog a tapeworm treatment no less than 24 hours and no more than five days before you arrive. Pets must come in on an approved route, and getting any of this wrong can mean up to four months in quarantine.

Once you are in the country, the train is the easiest way to arrive. Windsor has two stations, Windsor & Eton Central and Windsor & Eton Riverside, both a few minutes on foot from the castle. Under the National Rail Conditions of Travel you may take up to two dogs with you free of charge. They must stay on a lead for the whole journey, station included, and they are not allowed on the seats.

Where to Stay

De Vere Beaumont Estate holds a B on rochdog.com and is the most generous welcome among the dog friendly hotels in Windsor. It sits on 42 acres near Windsor, most of its rooms take dogs, up to two dogs share a room, and there is no weight limit, so a big dog is as welcome as a small one. Your dog can join you in the bar, the lounge, on the terrace and across the gardens and grounds, and the room comes with a dog bed, bowls, a treat and toys. The team will suggest walks, and the fee is £30 a stay.

Christopher Hotel Eton also holds a B. Most of its rooms are dog friendly, dogs are welcome in the bar, the lounge, on the terrace and in the garden, and a dog bed, bowls and free treats are waiting in the room. It is a good base for a smaller dog and an owner who wants a comfortable room and a drink on the terrace at the end of the day.

Fairmont Windsor Park holds a D, but it does one thing the others do not: your dog can come to dinner. Dogs are welcome in the restaurant, on the terrace and patio and in the lounge, there is a dedicated dog space, and the room has a proper dog bed, real bowls and free treats. The team gives guidance on walking routes, and up to two dogs can share a room.

Eat and Drink

The George Inn in Eton is the pub to start with. It dates from around 1750 and faces the Thames and the castle, so the view from the garden is the one on the postcards. It serves craft beer and freshly cooked pub food, and its own answer to the dog question is plain: well-behaved pets are welcome inside and in the garden, on leads and off the furniture, with water bowls in the garden and treats behind the bar.

Megan's by the Crown is the newest arrival in town, a fairy-lit café and restaurant steps from the castle serving Eastern Mediterranean plates from brunch through to dinner. Its FAQ says every Megan's is completely dog friendly, inside and out, with beds, bowls and treats for the dog.

The Fox & Castle in Old Windsor is the village pub at its best. The black and white beamed building is thought to be around five hundred years old and sits a short walk from Windsor Great Park. There are log burners in winter and award winning gardens in summer, a menu of pub classics with fish from Brixham and Newlyn and vegetables from its own garden, and roasts on Sunday. The pub calls itself family and dog friendly.

The park looks after walkers too. The Windsor Farm Shop café welcomes well-behaved dogs on its terrace, and the park's dog walking page points dog owners to the terrace at the Savill Garden Visitor Centre and the dedicated dog terrace at the Virginia Water Pavilion. A few miles downstream, the National Trust's Magna Carta tea-room at Runnymede serves sandwiches, pasties, sausage rolls, cakes and scones, and welcomes well-behaved dogs on a short lead.

Walks and Parks

The Long Walk is the walk every visitor takes, and for good reason. Charles II created the tree-lined avenue in 1682 to 1685, and it runs almost two and a half miles between the castle and the Copper Horse, the statue of George III erected in 1831 at its highest point. On the way it passes through the Deer Park, home to around 500 red deer, where dogs must be on a short lead and under close control at all times. There are no bins in the Deer Park or along the Long Walk, so carry your bags until you reach one.

Virginia Water, at the southern end of the park, is the best long walk. The lake is two miles long, a full circuit is 5.25 miles, and the shorter stroll from the Pavilion takes you to the Cascade, a waterfall about 30 feet high completed in 1789, and the Leptis Magna ruins. It reached its full size in 1790 and, before the age of reservoirs, was the largest man-made lake in England. Across the park, dogs that come back at the first call may run off the lead in the marked areas.

Runnymede and Ankerwycke are the National Trust's riverside meadows where Magna Carta was sealed. Dogs are welcome in the countryside all year, off the lead where it is allowed as long as they are under close control, and on a short lead around the memorials as a sign of respect.

Dorney Lake, the rowing course across the river near Eton, opens its 400 acres of arboretum, meadows and nature reserve to walkers in season. A flat, tarmacked loop of about three miles runs round the 2,200 metre course. Dogs must be on a lead at all times, and walkers keep to the middle path because the paths by the water belong to coaches on bicycles. Check the grounds opening times on the lake's own page before you set out.

A Day Out

Start early at the castle end of the Long Walk while it is quiet, climb to the Copper Horse for the view back down the avenue, then walk back into town for a long lunch at Megan's. In the afternoon, cross the bridge into Eton and take a table in the garden at The George with the castle across the river. On a second day, drive or take a taxi to the southern end of the park, walk the full circuit of Virginia Water past the Cascade, and stop on the Pavilion's dog terrace, before finishing at the Fox & Castle in Old Windsor for dinner by the fire.

Good to Know

Windsor Great Park asks for no more than four dogs per walker, no groups of eight or more dogs, every dog in sight and wearing a collar with your contact details, and none on the horse tracks, which are marked with orange or red sand. Dogs go on the lead around the Savill Garden and Virginia Water visitor centres. They are not allowed inside the Savill Garden Visitor Centre, the Virginia Water Pavilion and Shop or the Windsor Farm Shop and Café, and the Savill Garden itself admits only assistance and emotional support dogs. Parts of the park can close for operational reasons, and the Deer Park may close during the rut, which runs from September to early November, so check the park's visitor updates before you go. At Runnymede, cattle graze the meadows, so dogs go on the lead in those fields. At Dorney Lake there is no swimming or paddling, and dogs should not drink the lake water because of occasional blue-green algae. At De Vere Beaumont Estate, dogs stay out of the restaurant and may not be left alone in the room. At Christopher Hotel Eton the fee is £20 a night and the weight limit is 25 lb, dogs stay out of the restaurant, and they may not be left alone in the room. At Fairmont Windsor Park, only some rooms take dogs, so book early. The fee there is £50 per dog per stay plus a refundable damage deposit, the weight limit is 35 lb, dogs stay out of the bar, and they may not be left alone in the room.