On vacation with our pets

The relationship between people and pets is getting closer and closer.

Pets in general and dogs in particular change the lives of the families they live with. They improve the well-being of people, especially children and the elderly, and become an important part of the family itself.

A growing population

In Spain, the number of families with dogs is growing. It is estimated that 25% of homes have a dog (close to 5 million families) and that some 7.5 million dogs live in Spanish homes.

This presence implies that they influence the planning of family vacations. Especially in the case of travel and as long as you do not go to a second residence, as they need special attention that not all travel destinations usually offer.

The needs of these travelers affect the destination and tourist accommodation. An example of this are the numerous web pages specialized in travel with pets. Also the use of social networks to assess destinations for their ease of traveling with pets.

For all these reasons, there is an increase in the number of pet-friendly hotels, and tourist destinations are increasingly defined as dog-friendly and they try to attract tourists who travel with their pets. They are destinations that try to respond to the needs of this type of tourist.

Traveling with pets influences the consumption of experiences in travel destinations. Increasingly, shopping centers offer the possibility of entering with them, dog parks are created and some museums allow them to enter their facilities.

guests and pets

The first decision in planning the trip is the search for accommodation. Thus, the family has to choose where and how they are going to stay with their dog.

For their part, tourist accommodation must decide whether or not to allow dogs into the establishment and thus serve a new market niche, focused on tourists with pets. A strategy dog-friendly It has positive aspects, because it attracts families with pets, but also negative aspects: certain tourists will not want to stay in places where there are dogs.

Hoteliers will have to analyze how the relations will be between these two groups of guests: travelers with pets and those without dogs. The creation of spaces for pets beyond the rooms will be essential for the development of this market.

bathing dogs

There is still a shortage of establishments where you can stay with dogs. This is one of the limitations for traveling with pets. However, this is also an opportunity for hotel accommodations to open new lines of business and for destinations to accommodate these travelers. One incentive is that establishments would increase revenue per room, since customers would have to pay an extra charge per pet that would serve to pay for the increased cost of cleaning the room.

A strategy in favor of pets by tourist destinations or hotel establishments can report an increase in their reputation on social networks. Of course, it will be essential that these destinations have complete and quality veterinary services.

Finally, the issue of whether pets can enter the beaches in summer periods should be discussed. While pet owners defend this position, other users oppose it. However, there could be a solution acceptable to the majority: the delimitation of places on the beaches for those people who travel with their dogs. In this way, society as a whole would win.

Tomás López-Guzmán, Tourism, University of Cordoba

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original.