Room at the Inn for a Dog, as Long as It’s the Lap Type

Note: Loews Coronado Bay Resort mentioned at the end of this article. THE Obama family’s long-anticipated choice of a first dog, a Portuguese water dog named Bo, may result in a surge of popularity of the breed, which last year the American Kennel Club ranked as only the 62nd most popular. But those who take their Bo look-alikes to hotels that market themselves as “pet friendly” may be surprised to be turned away. Since a grown male Portuguese water dog weighs 42 to 60 pounds, according to the kennel club, Bo would be barking up the wrong tree if he tried to check in at many hotels. In New York, for example, Bo will be too big for the Crowne Plaza Hotel Times Square, where there’s a 25-pound maximum, the Four Seasons (15 pounds), or Trump International Hotel and Tower (25 pounds). Even at the Helmsley Hotel Park Lane, whose late owner, Leona Helmsley, left her dog, Trouble, a $12 million trust fund (which a judge reduced to $2 million), the policy says no to Bo, with a 20-pound weight limit. A couple of decades ago only a few chains, including Motel 6 and Kimpton, accepted pets, but with dogs increasingly considered part of the family, many now do. The number may grow: hotels are expecting even more pets this summer, with car vacations sparing both airfare and kennel fees. Now, even hotels that restricted pets in the past want to market themselves as pet-friendly. To attract their share of animal lovers, some hotels are taking out ads on Web sites like Petswelcome.com, Dogfriendly.com, and Petfriendlytravel.com. Read the entire New York Times article here.