For the new year, I decided it would be fun to take recently retired mom Duchess on a trip up North! Sedona is known for how dog-friendly they are, and since I have been there several times myself, I knew it would be the perfect first trip for her. Keep reading for a bunch of dog-friendly restaurants and activities in Sedona (as well as some super cute pictures!)
THE CAR RIDE
First thing’s first, you absolutely must make sure your dog is safe and secure in your car before going on any type of trip, but especially one that will be lengthy and potentially dangerous – you do drive through the mountains!
I purchased Duchess a seat belt, which can be found on our Amazon shop, and it did a great job keeping her secure in the back seat! I also have a smaller dog that I use a basket for, which can also be found on our Amazon shop. I highly recommend both of these products and I felt 100% confident that both of my girls were safe for the entirety of our trip, plus I know that they were also comfortable and not jostling around the entire time!
RESTAURANTS
Something that I love about Sedona is the abundance of pet-friendly restaurants! I had no issue finding somewhere great to eat that would allow both me and my dogs to sit on the patio and enjoy a meal. Each place I went to also offered them a bowl of water, which was a really nice touch!
The very first restaurant we went to was this cute pizza place called Pisa Lisa. Now, I will warn you, they don’t have heaters out on their patio! So, if you’re going when it’s cold out like we did, make sure to bring a thick jacket to stay warm. While they didn’t have any heaters outside, their food was absolutely delicious and I would definitely go back again.
Duchess was so tired after our hike that she slept all through dinner 😴
The next day, we had dinner at The Hideaway House. This restaurant, out of the few we went to, was my favorite! Their patio was both heated and had a curtain surrounding it to keep the warm air in. What I also loved about their patio was that the cloth they used to insulate the patio was also see-through, meaning you could still see the gorgeous view that sitting outside has to offer. The staff here were all so friendly to both myself and my dogs, and I would highly recommend stopping here for a great meal.
The final restaurant we went to was Creekside Sedona. This place was super fun because they have a pet menu that has some very high quality meals on it! The food here was absolutely fantastic and, like The Hideaway House, the patio was heated and insulated with some type of cloth surrounding the perimeter. I really enjoyed the fact that they had a menu that my dogs could order from, and it was so cute seeing them eat a delicious meal alongside me.
Activities
Sedona is amazing because they have so many activities to do. They have a ton of hiking trails, some of which are more advanced than others, but there are many easier trails that even dogs like my sweet Duchess can do with ease! Something I love is that even on the simpler hikes, you still get an incredible view of the gorgeous red rocks.
The main hike that we went on was the Bell Rock trail. While this hike becomes advanced towards the end to where you can actually climb Bell Rock to reach the top, most of the hike leading up to that is very easy and enjoyable. Duchess had an absolute blast walking through this trail and loved all the new sights and smells.
Something else we did while in town was visit Downtown Sedona which is where all of the fun shops are. While dogs aren’t allowed inside the stores, it’s still a ton of fun to do some window shopping or look at some of the murals and paintings that exist on the outside of some buildings.
Where did you stay?
We stayed at the Sedona Village Lodge and I would highly recommend it! For somewhere that is pet-friendly, it is extremely well-priced and is perfect if you are planning on spending most of your day outside of your hotel room exploring. They have a designated outside area for dogs to go to the bathroom as well!