Camping with Dogs | Advice and Tips
June 10, 2021
Our Top Tips to enjoy Camping with your Dogs
Camping holidays offer the perfect getaway for dog owners to enjoy a break without having to leave your pet behind. Our dog-friendly campsite in Cheddar
is ideally located for you and your fur-babies to enjoy endless walking trails whilst immersing yourselves in the beautiful Somerset countryside.
Our peaceful adults-only campsite
can be found less than 3 miles from the magnificent Cheddar Gorge and Caves, which are steeped in 500,000 years of history! The 4-mile circular Gorge Walk offers stunning views, plus the opportunity to encounter some local wildlife, and there are plenty of lesser-known walking trails for you and your pup to tackle!
If you’re going camping with your dog for the first time, it’s good to be properly prepared, so here are a few tips to get you started;
1. Make sure your dog is wearing a collar with tags, and that your contact details are up to date.
Should he or she wander off, you want to make it as easy as possible for the two of you to be reunited!
2. Have a practice run at home before you arrive at the campsite so your pet can familiarise themself with the smells and sounds of your new tent.
Set up a pet bed so your dog can get used to being in the tent, and give them plenty of praise and reassurance for their good behaviour!
3. Consider the distance.
Can your dog cope with the journey to your selected campsite? Travelling with your pet can sometimes be stressful, so we’ve prepared our top tips to make travelling with your dog
that little bit easier.
4. Are there dog-friendly walks or activities nearby?
Check whether nearby parks and beaches allow pets. Our campsite is a just a short drive from the seaside town of Weston-super-Mare, and whilst restrictions apply to sections of the beach, our furry friends are welcome all year round in certain areas.
5. If you plan to eat out, check local pet friendly eateries.
The Rodney Stoke Inn is located in front of our campsite in Cheddar, with a large beer garden. And being a rural community, there are plenty of pet friendly venues to visit in and around Cheddar.
6. Check the park rules.
Do dogs need to stay on leads? Where can you dispose of your dog’s poo? Are there areas that your pet won’t be allowed? Pet friendly campsites are generally pretty reasonable about their expectations of pet owners, but make sure you understand the rules before your visit.
7. Just like cars, tents can heat up to dangerous temperatures in the warm weather.
Never leave your pet alone in the tent, and make sure that fresh drinking water is always available.
8. Make sure you have the details of a local vet.
Should your pet have an unexpected accident during your camping trip you won’t want to waste time getting your pet the treatment they require.
Camping with dogs – pack the essentials
- Doggy first aid kit and any medication. As discussed, make sure you have the contact details for a local vet.
- Pet food. If you don’t have space to bring bulky food packets, weigh enough food for the duration of your visit and pack it in an airtight container.
- Poo bags. You will be responsible for clearing up after your pet during your camping trip.
- Favourite toys. Your pet may need distracting whilst you’re setting up camp! Familiar items will help to keep them calm and relaxed.
- Water proof pet bed. If you’re out and about on the campsite, it’s inevitable that your pet will get dirty or wet! Water proof pet beds are easy to keep dry and clean.
- Towel. Your pet will get dirty or wet during your camping trip so make sure you pack a spare towel to keep them clean and dry!
- Pet blanket. It can get cold at night if you’re sleeping in the great outdoors! Make sure you have a blanket to keep your pet warm.
- Spare lead. Just in case!
- Tether. Consider packing a tether if you know that your dog is prone to getting over excited. If you tether your pet he or she will have enough room to explore without disappearing to the other side of the campsite!
- Water bowl. Your pet should always have access to fresh water during your travels.
We hope these tips make your next camping trip a little easier for both you and your pet.
Find out more about our dog-friendly campsite in Cheddar, Somerset.
Latest News
Following our annual Mystery Guest visits by a professional inspector this April, each park has been re-assessed under a set of quality standards agreed between the AA and the UK Tourist Authorities. The inspection included an assessment of each parks; Location and Access Sustainability/Green Credentials Customer Care Cleanliness/Maintenance across the park Toilets (quality, cleanliness and maintenance) Other Site Facilities Pitches Grounds All three parks scored an impressive 91% overall (an increase on last year) - with Coombes and Rose Farm both achieving full marks for 'customer care' and Riverside’s impressive facilities and cleanliness/maintenance across the park bagging them the top score. Additionally, each park was again awarded a Gold Award, placing them amongst the best sites in their star category. When visiting Four Star Parks, customers can expect an extremely high standard in all areas, with well-maintained facilities, very good customer care and additional facilites compared to lower rated establishments. David Tattersall, Group Manager of West Country Park Homes: "Consistency is so important in our industry and we're extremely proud to have achieved this level of award by such a high-brand Assessor for the second year running. It just confirms that we are continuing to meet the high standards that our visitors expect and deserve."
On another sunny morning this April, volunteers from Riverside Holiday Village, Edithmead Leisure and Park Homes, Fairways Holiday Park and New House Farm headed out on our third 2-mile 'litter pick' along Bridgwater Road in Weston-super-Mare. We managed to collect 14 sacks of litter, plus several broken road signs and a damaged car tyre! As usual, energy drink cans were by far the biggest offender, closely followed by discarded alcohol bottles and fast food takeaway wrappers. We even found a discarded wet floor sign! All waste was collected by our waste management partner, MJ Church. Now the biggest initiative of its kind in the UK, the Million Mile Clean is an annual event, mobilising 1,000,000 million volunteers to clean over 10,000,000 miles of UK landscape between 2021 - 2030. We would like to say a massive 'thank you' to all of our volunteers - we're planning another 'clean' this September - please keep a lookout for more updates about future events!
Last year, 13 volunteers collected 23 sacks of litter over 4 miles as we completed two Million Mile Cleans. And this April, we're doing it all over again!