Planning a Dog-Friendly Trip to Vashon Island
Embracing island time for a dog-friendly getaway from Seattle.
*Please note that this post was written prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. Please consult your state’s guidelines for safety and social distancing prior to traveling.
Something about winter always sends me into a vacation-planning frenzy.
Since we have a new baby in the house, a tropical getaway isn’t in the cards this year. But on a particularly gloomy Monday, I made a spontaneous decision to book us a weekend away on Vashon Island.
Vashon is a small-ish island in the Puget Sound that weighs in at less than 40 square miles. Vashon’s been on my radar for a few months now because I’ve been drooling over The Lodges on Vashon—a new tiny-house boutique hotel. And the best part? It’s dog-friendly!
I mean, how cute is this? 👇🏻
So, anyway, on a rainy Friday we loaded the dogs and the baby (and SO much baby stuff) into our car and boarded a ferry to Vashon. From our home in Seattle, it only took about an hour and a half to get to the island (including the ferry wait) but once we got there, it felt like we were worlds away.
It’s just a short drive to get from the Vashon Island ferry dock to The Lodges on Vashon is just a short drive from the ferry. We were emailed a code to our particular lodge and checked ourselves in using a keypad. The lodge was outfitted with everything we needed to get off the grid for the weekend—books, coffee, a kitchenette, a fireplace, an almost-outdoor shower, a walled private patio, and a handy guide to local shops and restaurants. Kudos to the management team, because in spite of being dog-friendly, it was sparkling clean.
Enjoying the swinging chair in our lodge
So many thoughtful details had gone into the design. I loved the locally-sourced coffee and the adorable hand soaps (below) that were crafted by an island artisan.
The shared facilities are gorgeous, too—there’s a big communal outdoor seating area with swings, fire pits, and snuggly blankets, as well as a shared kitchen and indoor seating area. Everything—inside and out—felt very new and modern.
Anyone who has traveled with dogs can tell you how challenging it is to navigate a new set of dog-friendly and non-dog-friendly spaces. So many hotels “allow” pets, but have rules against leaving them alone in the room for any amount of time, even in a crate. What that means is that you’re trapped finding only dog-friendly activities for the entire trip—basically you often end up eating takeout pizza in your hotel room every night. (Or is that just us?)
I really appreciated that there was no rule against leaving the crated dogs in the lodge. We enjoyed a dog-friendly breakfast at Cafe Luna in downtown Vashon (amazing muffins!) and a dog-friendly beach trip to see a local lighthouse. But since we could crate the dogs, we also ate a nice dinner at The Hardware Store and caught a live music performance at Vashon Brewing without them.
Dave’s favorite part of the trip was lying by the fire in our lodge
That said, I think the highlight of our trip was spending time on the dog-friendly beach at Point Robinson. We left Dave at our lodge (he hates beaches) and let Lizzie run off-leash for as long as she wanted. She chased seagulls and splashed in the water for a whole blissful afternoon and her joy was absolutely contagious.
Lizzie at the beach at Point Robinson. Her raincoat is from Ellie Dogwear.
The lighthouse at Point Robinson
The ferry to Vashon
Dave in our lodge
A guide to local restaurants and activities provided by The Lodges
The Lodges on Vashon
Misty island mornings
We really couldn’t have asked for a better pup-friendly getaway, and we’ll definitely be back. You can read more about The Lodges on Vashon at their website, or comment below with your questions.
