Best Dog-Friendly Hotels in Tyrol Valleys

Before you go

What happens when you get there

Muzzle and lead

Carry a muzzle that fits. VVT buses and trains across Tyrol carry dogs free on a lead and muzzled. On ÖBB trains a dog outside a carrier needs a muzzle, a lead and a ticket at 10 per cent of the full fare, minimum EUR 2. At Achensee both are required on the Regiobus and ski buses, the Rofan Seilbahn, the Karwendel-Bergbahn, every lake boat and the steam cog railway.

Cows on the Alm

Suckler cows on the summer pastures defend their calves against dogs. Keep your distance, stay calm, stay on marked paths and keep the dog on a short lead, but if an attack looks likely, let the dog off at once so it can escape and draw the cow away from you. Leave the pasture calmly at the first sign of unrest. This applies to most summer walks, roughly June to September.

Achensee rules and the dog beach

A lead or muzzle is required across Eben, Achenkirch, Steinberg and Wiesing, in parks and on lakeside lawns, and on and within five metres of footpaths and ski, cross-country and toboggan runs, with leads no longer than two metres. Dogs aren't allowed at three bathing lidos, Badestrand Achenkirch, Atoll Achensee in Maurach and Strandbad Pertisau, which is three sites on a 9 km lake, not the shoreline. The fenced public dog beach at Pertisau is about 800 square metres, with steps and a ramp into the water.

Dogs at dinner

Most hotel dining rooms are dog-free, and the pattern is a Stube, the bar or the terrace instead. Das Central in Sölden reserves a table in the Marend Stube, and Hotel Rita in Längenfeld and Naturhotel Waldklause lay a table in the bar area if you book ahead. Village inns are usually relaxed about a calm dog on a lead.

Lifts

Dogs ride the Sölden lifts, the Zillertal lifts and the Wilder Kaiser lifts, with a lead and muzzle expected on the Zillertal lifts. Take the muzzle up the mountain whichever valley you're in.

Sights and spas

The AQUA DOME thermal spa admits no dogs anywhere indoors, even for hotel guests. At Achensee, dogs are on a lead in the Achenseer Museumswelt and the Notburga Museum, and aren't allowed in the Tiroler Steinöl Vitalberg or the Sixenhof museum.

Seasonal closures

Many hotels close from after Easter to late May and from October or November to early December, and Obergurgl, Hochgurgl and Hintertux run mainly winter and summer seasons. Hotel Magdalena runs from mid-December to early November. Check dates before booking.

Vets

Jenbach, at the foot of the Achensee and the mouth of the Zillertal, has Tierarztpraxis Andrea Schwaiger, Huberstraße 29 (+43 664 4604687), and the Kleintierpraxis am Kasbach (+43 5244 93877), closed on public holidays. The nearest vet to Sölden is in Längenfeld, about 15 minutes' drive. We haven't found a 24-hour clinic in the valleys, so ask your hotel for the out-of-hours number.

Best walks

At Achensee, the fenced Pertisau dog beach sits on the lake promenade, the lakeshore path runs from Pertisau to the Gaisalm and on round the lake, the Falzthurntal valley walk starts at the edge of Pertisau, and in winter there's a 2 km dog cross-country trail. In the Ötztal, the Ötztaler Ache path runs the valley floor through Längenfeld and Sölden, the Windachtal walk leaves from Sölden, a trail from Umhausen reaches the Stuibenfall, Tyrol's biggest waterfall, and above Obergurgl the Gurgler Zirbenwald stone-pine forest and the Rotmoostal walk to the glacier moraine start from the village. In the Zillertal, the Ziller river path runs the valley, the Stillupklamm gorge is at the edge of Mayrhofen, the Zillergrund road, closed to most traffic, climbs gently towards the Bärenbad, and the Schleierwasserfall walk is up at Hintertux. In the Stubaital the Wilde Wasser Weg follows the Ruetz to the Grawa waterfall. In the Wilder Kaiser the paths run along the foot of the mountains from Ellmau, and from Scheffau there's a shore path round the Hintersteiner See. From Alpbach, paths lead up the valley to Inneralpbach and the Wiedersbergerhorn gondola.

When to go

June to September for the high pastures, the lakes and the Pertisau dog beach, and winter for snow, when Pertisau has a 2 km dog cross-country trail. These are high valleys, with Obergurgl and Hochgurgl around 1,900 to 2,150 metres, so summer stays cool for a dog. The honest warnings are the cows on the Alm through the summer, which means a short lead and a plan for grazing herds, and the closures. Many hotels shut from after Easter to late May and from October or November to early December, and the high-altitude resorts run mainly winter and summer seasons.