Hitting the open road for a caravanning and camping adventure with your family and your dog is as good as it gets right? We are about to hit the road again in our new Jayco Starcraft and this time we will be taking our fur baby, Wilkie along for the ride.
As travelling with a dog is all new to us, we have sought out some expert advice from some of our Vanlife mates who are currently travelling with their pets in tow. Let’s jump in…
Caravan of Conservation
Meet Theresa, Ben, Noah, Harper, Willow and Solly otherwise known as @caravanofconservation.
They have been travelling in their Jayco caravan full time for 3 years and 6 months ago ‘Sunny’ a Kelpie x Australian Shepherd joined their family and exciting travels. Sunny sleeps inside with the family, on his bed or curled up under the dining table.
What are your main tips for travelling with a dog?
Make sure you exercise and stimulate their brain whenever you can. Sunny is absolutely full of energy and exercise is so important for him. It doesn’t have to be a huge run every time, trick training or throwing the ball followed by lots of love and cuddles is great too. They need to feel safe and secure and happy in their new environment. Also make sure to keep up with the latest advice for tick treatments. Different areas around Australia have different types of ticks and diseases so be sure to check in with the local vets to ensure your dog is protected.
Where’s your top 3 dog friendly camp spots?
- Winderabandi Point, Ningaloo Western Australia – We have taken the caravan out there many times and Sunny just loves it! He jumps in the kayak with us and off we sail watching the fish, rays and turtles below! It’s magic.
- The Big Red Bash, Simpson Desert, Birdsville Outback QLD – Now this is a pretty special event as the worlds most remote music festival! It’s a very dog friendly event. There is a designated camping area, exercise area and an area to even bring your pets down to watch the music. There is also a “best dressed dog” competition. Sunny took the crown for “Most Energetic Dog” last year! It’s an absolute hoot, or should we say – Woof!
- Gold Coast BIG 4, Queensland – This is a huge park with lots of activities for the kids, amazing pool, waterslides and games room but what’s great is that it has a huge off leash exercise areas for dogs. It actually has 2 separate exercise areas, 1 x large dogs and 1 x small dogs which is perfect. There is also lots of bushland to explore and take your dog on long walks.
Any tips on how to keep your van clean from messy paw prints/wet dog?
We have actually taught Sunny to ’shake’ before he comes in the caravan! It helps so much to get those rogue hairs and grass off before he comes inside. If its wet outside, we always have a mat at the door to dry off his paws.
How do you keep Sunny contained around your campsite?
When Sunny is outside, he is on a long lead. He normally potters around under the caravan and gets himself tangled regularly! He’s so tolerant though, its all he’s ever known so he’s even learnt how to back himself out of the tangles. We always bring him in for a few hours during the day to give him a rest from the lead.
Have you had to travel without Sunny to a National Park for the day or for a longer stint?
We have most of our adventures with Sunny in tow but when is comes to National Parks and places or tours that aren’t dog friendly, we have to call upon dog sitters. Our first point of call is the caravan park office to ask if they have any local recommendations of sitters. If that fails we ring the local vets, information centres or check the community facebook page to try and find the most fitting sitter for Sunny. We have never missed out on anything yet and have always had beautiful sitters, always returning to a happy and full of energy Sunny.
Most caravan parks do not let you leave your dog in your caravan if unattended, have you ever done a sneaky and left them alone?
Yes we have definitely left Sunny alone in the caravan, he copes beautifully as to him, it’s just leaving him “home” as you would in a house. There are always exceptions to this as we would never leave him for long periods of time and certainly not on hot days. Some caravan parks are very firm on no dogs being left alone but if they do allow it, Sunny is very content until we return. We leave multiple bowls of water, treats and toys and excercise him well before we head off.
Downside to travelling with your dog?
Some caravan parks don’t allow dogs so that definitely can be frustrating! It’s much better than it used to be but still can be annoying!
Up-side to travelling with a dog?
Sharing the adventures with your pets, letting them swim in the waves alongside your children and being just another member of the family! Its great for the kids, taking turns with feeding, walking and cleaning up after Sunny is all part of that incidental learning to teach responsibility. Its also a great way to keep fit and do lots of walking with your dog! We walk at least 5km together every morning and its the best way to start the day!
Any advice to us Blondies and other first time dog travellers?
Take your dogs collar off before you go to bed because you can be sure that the collar shake and tinkle of tags will be there first thing to wake the kids up of a morning.
Theresa and her family also run a Travelling Eco Store that is full of wonderful goodies including our favourite sun shirts for the kids. These gorgeous long sleeve shirts are UPF 50+ Sun Protection, made from about 7 plastic bottles and 5% of sales are donated to Wildlife Warriors. You can check them out at their store via www.caravanofconservation.com.au
You can also follow their adventures via @caravanofconservation on Instagram and Facebook.
4 Boys and a caravan
Meet Tom, Aimee, Tyler, Lincoln, Jett and Chase, also known as @4boysinacaravan.
They have been travelling in their Leader 25ft Quad bunk family van for 4.5 years and just 6 months ago gorgeous ‘Teddy’ joined the family. He is a very happy and energetic Border Collie. Teddy sleeps in his bed beside the main bed at night but is also known to snuggle on the coach or the caravan floor.
What are your main tips for travelling with a dog?
As a puppy we have exposed Teddy to so many different scenarios to get him accustomed to life on the road. He has a new backyard almost every week so we try to take him everywhere to prevent him being overwhelmed. Our main tip is planning. We try to research as much as we can about the area we are going to next to find out which places are pet friendly.
What are your top 3 dog friendly camp spots ?
There are so many amazing places to stay with your fur babies. We have only had Teddy for 6 months now and have mainly stayed in caravan parks recently. However, the best place in Australia in our opinion where you can take dogs is Ningaloo Station.
Other tops spots we love are:
- Cairns Coconut Resort, Queensland – this place has a little play park for dogs and Teddy loved meeting other dogs here.
- Discovery Parks Coolwaters, Yeppoon, QLD – It’s such a spacious park with the beach directly across the road where dogs can go crazy.
- Gold Coast Big4, Queensland – As it has a large fenced dog area too and is perfect for dogs to socialise and burn off some energy.
Any tips on how to keep your van clean from messy paw prints/wet dog?
We have three Muk Mats at the entry to our van and it really helps a lot. When he is crazy wet we also put some towels on the floor to help him dry.
How do you keep Teddy contained around your campsite?
Teddy is really good and will most of the time sit around with us without being on a lead. On some occasions he is just tied up on a lead attached to the van to prevent him from wandering. When we leave the van and don’t take him he stays inside the van. That is his happy and restful place.
Have you had to travel without Teddy to a National Park for the day or for a longer stint?
So far the longest time we have left Teddy is about 5 hrs and he was happy being in the van. We have a camera set up so we can watch him and talk to him if needed. Another option is an app called Mad Paws. This is a pet sitting app which lets you find a pet sitter in your area.
Most caravan parks do not let you leave your dog in your caravan if unattended, have you ever done a sneaky and left them alone?
We have luckily not stayed in a park that has had this rule. We have trained our dog to be content and happy in the van and know that he is safe. I can understand that if you have a dog that barks a lot and is a disturbance to other guests that it is a big nuisance. Luckily for us Teddy is not a barker and just loves people watching.
Downside to travelling with your dog?
The only downside is that there are some restrictions but having a dog along for the travels is such an incredible journey.
Up-side to travelling with a dog?
The joy and happiness that your pet can bring is worth every effort to having them on your travels. They are family and we couldn’t imagine not having Teddy with us as we explore.
Any advice to us Blondies and other first time dog travellers?
Being fairly new to travelling with a dog we feel the key is planning. Know where you can go and what you can do when you arrive in a region. It will save you time and stress. Most importantly though is to enjoy your special time with your fury friend. They will love it just as much as you do.
You can see more of @4Boysandacaravan adventures via their Website – www.4boysandacaravan.com as well as on the socials via Instagram, Facebook and Youtube.
Don’t wanna go home
Meet Joanna, Oliver, Jameson and Evelyn, know as @_dontwannagohome_ . They have been travelling full time in their Jayco Expanda for over 3 years with their dog ‘Pip’ AND their cat ‘Petey’. Pip sleeps outside in her bed and Petey sleeps inside with the family.
What are your main tips for travelling with a dog?
Being flexible is probably the biggest thing. You may have to give up on that National Park camp, but you’ll find a better one trust us! Keep up to date with different risks associated with pets – ie, current tick borne diseases, sea hares washing up on the coast, where 1080 bait is laid. There is nothing worse than an emergency trip to the vets to ruin your big lap.
Where’s your top 3 dog friendly camp spots?
- Inskip, Fraser Coast, Queensland – Located about 250km north of Brisbane and 9km north of the town of Rainbow Beach.
- Membinup Beach, Western Australia – Located 70kms east of Esperance, Membinup Beach is a low-key camping area with minimal facilities.
- Nug Nug Reserve in Victoria High Country – Surrounded by picturesque Mount Buffalo National Park. Nug Nug Reserve is located in North East Victoria approximately 13km South of Myrtleford on the Buffalo River Rd.
Any tips on how to keep your van clean from messy paw prints/wet dog?
Sure, don’t let your dog in your van, haha! In all seriousness we don’t have this issue as our Pip doesn’t like being inside, in the car we just don’t really care, we have protective water proof coverings on the seats so she can be her messy self without us freaking out.
How do you keep Pip contained around your campsite?
We have a long lead that we attach to the wheel of our caravan, that way she can sit out under the awning or snuggle away underneath the van.
Have you had to travel without Pip to a National Park for the day or for a longer stint?
In 3.5 years travel we’ve only had Pip pet sat once when went into Cape Range National Park. In hindsight this was a waste because we had more fun on Ningaloo Station (dog friendly!) than we did in the national park!
Most caravan parks do not let you leave your dog in your caravan if unattended, have you ever done a sneaky and left them alone?
Yeah we just ignore that. It’s a pet hate, especially when it’s clear you are staying there to explore a National Park or other non dog friendly area, like what are you supposed to do?? Pip is a very quiet and calm dog so we can get away with this very easily.
Downside to travelling with your dog?
We don’t really see ‘down sides’ because they are our fur babies, the only thing that’s mildly irritating is the added expense of pet food and the odd vet check up!
Up-side to travelling with a dog?
You find way better camps, off the beaten path. They keep you warm on cold nights, they love you and welcome you home after a day exploring. It’s a great opportunity for the kids to have responsibilities – take the dog for a stroll, make their dinner, empty the cat litter etc. They just give us so much joy, they really make our van feel like a home!
Any advice to us Blondies and other first time dog travellers?
Just embrace it, don’t look at where you ‘could’ be staying or how you ‘could’ be travelling without a pet, embrace what they bring to the table and how they enrich your experience! Good luck!
You can follow their adventures via @_dontwannagohome_ on Instagram and check out their blog here.
Our whittle adventure
Meet Mark, Clem and Liam also known as @ourwhittleadventure. They have been travelling in their 21 ft, New Age Road Owl, Semi Off-road caravan for over 1.5 years with 10 year old Kelpes Kosta (Black/Tan) and Curi (Red). The dogs travel in the rear of the wagon on driving days and they sleep on the floor in the caravan under the table or at the foot of the main bed.
What are your main tips for travelling with a dog?
Remember that this is a big change for them too and they can’t necessarily tell you, be patient with them and give them a safe space to be when they are anxious. Try to keep a routine for them eg. get up, have breakfast, go for a walk with them or a play, this is so important.
We use the mobile app “Wikicamps” to research our desired locations, you can filter by “dogs allowed” which can make planning ahead a bit easier. We tend to avoid places that are too busy or not overly dog friendly.
If you have more than one dog, remember to separate them regularly, it can be a bit much going from a backyard to being within a leads distance of each other all the time (we do 1 on 1 time with ours, where one person will walk one dog then the other will walk the other).
Snap hooks/carabiners on the end of their lead can make it a lot easier to clip them to a fence/pole/caravan etc. if you need a free hand. Never go out without a dog poo bag haha!
We have high energy dogs and need to exercise them everyday, so we find fun things to do as a family, like going to the beach or park, where everyone can have fun.
Where’s your top 3 dog friendly camp spots?
- Perlubie Beach, Eyre Peninsula South Australia – very famous beach camp and beyond the “gazeebos” the beach becomes “dog friendly”. This is a low cost camp.
- Membinup Beach Camp, Western Australia – Located an hour from Esperance in WA, incredible white sand and turquoise blue water and it’s a free camp.
- Wave Rock, Western Australia – Surprisingly this whole area is dog friendly except on top of Wave Rock itself, so a great bucket list location to visit with your fur baby.
Any tips on how to keep your van clean from messy paw prints/wet dog?
To be honest, the dogs are cleaner then our toddler haha. We always rinse our dogs after the beach and we have designated “dog towels” that we wipe their paws and lay over their beds if required.
A turf mat at the steps and an awning mat goes a long way to keeping muck out of the caravan, for awning mat we have a combo of C-Gear and Recycled Mat. We have a shammie type towel that absorbs so much water when drying off the dogs.
How do you keep Kosta and Curi contained around your campsite?
This really depends on where we are and what we are allowed to do, caravan parks are obviously a lot more “tight” and strict so not a lot of play happens at the caravan, so we opt to go find a dog beach or a dog park and ours play fetch. If we are staying at a farm stay or free camp etc. where the rules are a little more relaxed we will set them up a long line from a 15m length of rope or sometimes we can even play fetch at our campsite depending on the situation.
We also have a lightweight annex that we set up in caravan parks to give them more room to move around rather then being on a lead.
Have you had to travel without the dogs to a National Park for the day or for a longer stint?
Yes, again this depends on the situation. Our two are 10 years old and not new to travelling with us so we can leave them unattended for short periods of time, so if we are allowed to (a lot of Caravan Parks do not allow this) we will leave them in the van while we go for a swim or our for lunch etc. this means windows open or aircon on, depending on the weather.
For some of the National Parks we have visited we have opted to take it in turns so someone stays with the dogs, other times we have booked them into a kennel, or fortunately enough we have been with other travelers also with dogs so we take it in turns dog minding.
Most caravan parks do not let you leave your dog in your caravan if unattended, have you ever done a sneaky and left them alone?
Only if we are staying within the park grounds and can still hear them, if somewhere has a policy about not leaving them unattended then we try to respect this. We are set up to be self sufficient so we don’t actually stay at a lot of Caravan Parks for this to be much a problem for us.
Downside to travelling with your dog?
A lot of places become unavailable to us, and it does require more planning. That’s about it though!
Up-side to travelling with a dog?
We have always said, the companionship, fun, routine and security that they bring have always far outweighed any downsides. They keep us grounded and make anywhere that we are feel like home.
Any advice to us Blondies and other first time dog travellers?
Just to enjoy the company and remember that whilst it will slow you down in some places, enjoy that extra walk on the beach or finding that “lesser known” spot. We love the me time we get when we are out walking the dogs one-on-one. Oh and if your dogs are into playing fetch, a tennis ball held on top of the camera can make for some beautiful photos.
You can catch more of @Ourwhittleadventure via their pages on Instagram, Facebook and Youtube.
……………….
Well guys, that’s certainly some awesome information and insights into van life with a dog. Thanks for your input and bring on the adVANtures!!! Do you have more tips to add? Please share in the comment section below.
Cheers Legends, we’ll see you out there.
Want to know more?
We asked Dr Tania, travelling veterinarian from Vet in a van for her advice on all things ‘dog travel’ and what we need to consider while travelling with our dogs, read it here:
Travelling with your dog – tips from a travelling vet
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Great article and you share some fantastic tips. Look forward to exploring more of Australia when my puppy is a bit older.