Pet Getaways
Your pet is on vacation, too, and he or she deserves a little fun, relaxation and pampering.
Things to do
Asheville offers unique opportunities for your four-legged friend, whether you want to explore the city or the Blue Ridge Mountains, relax with a spa treatment or give your puppy the grooming of a lifetime.
The Blue Ridge Parkway has trails for every experience level, and pets are welcome as long as they are leashed and owners clean up after them. Remember to bring water if you venture out and plan accordingly.
Check out the Craggy Pinnacle trail at Craggy Gardens (Milepost 364.4 on the parkway), which ends at a 180-degree breathtaking view. Or take your pet to Graveyard Fields Loop (milepost 296.4), where he or she can enjoy splashing around in the cool creek or swimming below one of the two waterfalls.
And when it's time to kick back, let Dog Gone Gorgeous pamper your pet with a massage of its own. This full-service, holistic grooming salon uses only high-end shampoos and designer colognes and offers gourmet treats. Indulge your dog with an aromatherapy massage.
Places to Visit
Explore the city with your four-legged friend at the Urban Trail. The trail is marked by 30 stations decorated with plaques and sculptures, each describing an interesting fact about the city. Visitors may choose to walk the trail with a guide or rent an audio narration of the tour.
The trail is fully interactive and pets are welcome to ride the metallic pig, pose next to Thomas Wolfe or dance to the fiddle playing of the Appalachian dance troupe.
Leashed pets are also welcome at two of the area’s best-known attractions.
Biltmore Estate allows leashed animals on its grounds and owners can enjoy the trails at the North Carolina Arboretum, though only service animals are allowed in the buildings or garden areas. Please respect the pet policy at Biltmore Estate and the North Carolina Arboretum, pick up after your pet, and never ever keep your furry friend in your car.
Nearby Chimney Rock Park is a pet favorite, with miles of trails suitable for all levels. The Park borders the Rocky Broad River and is an excellent place to let the dog cool off from the summer heat. As long as they are leashed and accompanied at all times, pets are allowed on all of the trails.
Obviously, pets may not be left in vehicles, and they aren’t permitted in the elevator, restaurants or gift shops. (Service animals for the blind and disabled are allowed on the elevator.)
Bring your leashed pet to any of the Asheville parks, including Beaver Lake and Andrew Geyser. The French Broad River Park includes Asheville’s Dog Park, which has a fenced-in area so that you can let your pooch off the leash. Water and baggies are available on site.
Places to Eat
Many restaurants allow pets to tag along with their humans if they stay on their patios or decks. Check out the Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company, which serves one of the area’s best home-brewed stouts, or the gourmet Laughing Seed Café, where Fido can lounge on an outside patio.
Other area restaurants that allow pets on their outside decks, cafes or patios include the Café’ on the Square, The Jerusalem Garden Café and Mayfel's.
Shopping
Shop until you bark, er, I mean drop with an assortment of pet-friendly stores. Treasured Pets is an all-animal boutique, selling designer collars, pajamas, treats for dogs, cats, small animals and birds, and specialty foods. Check out their doggie strollers and animal umbrellas – for the pooch that has everything.
The Bone-A-Fide Bakery & Boutique in nearby Black Mountain offers a wife variety of homemade treats, toys and other goodies for dogs and cats, and even pet birthday cakes.
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