Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Travels With Bentley


Here he is ~ my little sweet pea.  We have been on three short 
vacations in the past few months and he has been with us every
time.  We can't leave him behind because we love him and he 
would be sad and we would be too.  But bringing him with us 
always involves a bit of pre-travel research.  

There are several search engines on the internet that provide
information on pet friendly hotels, motels and inns.  Here are a few
to try:

Pet Friendly Hotels
Pets Welcome
Bring Fido

I think of these as a good jump off point especially if you
are traveling to an unfamiliar city.  Yet I have also found that
I needed to dig a bit deeper to find a place that both David and I
would enjoy as well as Bentley.  Here are three places we have
stayed in the past several months here in Texas that we have
really enjoyed and will look forward to visiting again.




Hotel Contessa on the Riverwalk in San Antonio, Texas.
We had a wonderful suite here over Easter weekend.  The
staff was very friendly and responsive to our needs and Bentley
felt very welcome after he received a goody bag filled with treats,
a toy and dog walk clean up bags.


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This is the river side of the hotel and the entrance we used to take
Bentley out for walkies along the Riverwalk.  What I liked about
the hotel's location on the river is that it is around the bend from
the really busy area and is not as crowded and noisy.  Our suite
overlooked the river and was just delightful.  There is outdoor
seating so you can have an evening cocktail or enjoy an evening
meal from the dining room patio.  Of course we were there in the
spring before the heatwave of summer.




There is a rooftop swimming pool as well.  It was packed while
we were there but still lots of fun.

Because this hotel is in the heart of the city, valet parking is the
way to go.  Add that cost on to the price of your room.  I am not
going to quote prices here because they change so often.  Let
me just say that this hotel is in the luxury range although there
are others that are pricier.  We did have a wonderful stay and
did not feel that we were overcharged.


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The Omni la Mansion del Rio is also pet friendly and we
considered staying here as well.  As it turned out, David stayed
here on a business trip shortly after our San Antonio vacation
and said that it was very nice as well.  They have balconies
that face the river and the hotel and it is a beautiful Spanish
colonial structure.




Our next recent trip was to Fredericksburg, Texas.  This trip
came up very quickly as David had business nearby and asked
me if I wanted to make a long weekend out of the trip.  Since
I said yes, I also had to scramble to find a place for us to stay
in this extremely popular town in the Texas Hill Country.

After much frustration and failure on the morning of the
afternoon we needed to get on the road to David's business
meeting I called Gastehaus Schmidt.  Not only were they able
to find a pet friendly cottage for me but they also found one that
could not have been sweeter.  Big front porch, a cozy living room
with a fireplace, a very comfortable bedroom and bath, a sweet
little kitchen with all necessities and a screened in porch.  The
cottage was located just a few blocks from Main Street which is
a plus because walking or riding a bike makes it so much
easier to get around in town.  The price did not break my
budget.



We were so comfy  I hated to leave.



There were even chickens in the yard next door.  Bentley felt
right at home because our neighbors in Idaho had chickens.
Y'all do remember Thelma don't you???  So if you ever want
to visit Fredericksburg, TX with or without your pet, contact
Gastehaus Schmidt to find a vacation cottage to suit your needs.


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Here is where we stayed this past weekend.  The Omni at
Barton Creek Golf Resort in Austin, Texas.  I really can't say
enough nice things about this resort.  It is beautiful, the setting
is spectacular and they are very pet and family friendly.  The
place was packed with guests yet the service was spot on and we
felt so pampered.


We drove to Austin from Monahans, Texas where David had 
his meeting.  Monahans is out in west Texas ~ an oil field
town with lots of sand and few trees.  It's a five plus hour trip 
from Monahans to Austin and the beautiful hills and trees of
Austin were oh so welcoming.  

This is the view from the balcony of our room.  When David
made the reservations he was told that the hotel was putting on a
fireworks display to celebrate the 4th and that we would have 
a great view of the show from our balcony.



The zoom on my camera provided a great view of the spectacular
homes surrounding the golf courses.  



Lovely!








We opted to have dinner in our room and room service brought
up the most delicious hamburgers and we were able to relax and
enjoy the fireworks from our balcony followed by this treat ....


freshly baked chocolate chip cookies and chocolate milk.
The perfect bedtime snack.

All three of these vacation spots are wonderful but were
even better because Bentley was there to enjoy it with us.
I must also say that these three trips so close together is not
our norm.  Before this we did not have a vacation for eight
years so we splurged a little bit.  For a budget friendly hotel,
there is La Quinta where pets are always welcome.  We'll be
giving La Quinta a try in the future and I will give you a
review.  In the meantime, the next time you travel, consider
bringing your little sweet pea along too.  Right Bentley?

What's It Wednesday

Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley

















10 comments:

  1. Very nice post!! and, so glad you enjoyed San Antonio and the other cities. So glad you were able to take little Bentley with you.

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  2. All of these places look quite lovely. I am so glad that you take Bentley with you. We wouldn't leave home without Chico. Alas, the only time he has a sitter, is when we must go to London to the Hospital. But then, we make it up to him by taking him camping. Chico loves camping. He goes crazy when you ask him whether he wants to go to the camper ;-)

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  3. I never travelled with a dog as when we owned dogs there were three so not so easy, plus none liked the car at all, they would cry.
    We now have cats and they just don't like to leave home so someone comes and fees them but we don't go travelling much these days.
    Merle....................

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  4. There are so many beautiful places to travel in TX. I love Fredericksburg.
    Brenda

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  5. Looks like Bentley has been having a really swell time. Good for you, Bentley!

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  6. Beautiful trip little Bentley
    Lily & Edward

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  7. These are great places to take note! My husband and I really want to take our little guy Jax with us and hate leaving him behind.
    Now if we can get him not so car sick. It makes me sad how miserable he looks when he rides.

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  8. Awesome post and photos ! Glad you were able to include Bentley one of the reasons Papa and I don't go on trips as not many places to take your pooch with you and I we cant leave our Miggs behind she is always with us . Glad you all had a nice trip . Love your header . Thanks for sharing , Have a good day !

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  9. Mr. Bentley is just so handsome! Who could leave that sweet little guy home?! We are like you, our babes go with us and we research dog friendly hotels and restaurants. Your trip looks like such fun! Cookies and hot chocolate? How decadent!!!!!!

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  10. Loved reading about your adventures! We have six furry babies in our house and one of them is actually ALL mine. The others are our children's besties. He loves our flea market and thrifting adventures! Happy travels!

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