The Sunday Times April 10, 2022 11Travel Dog special
You and your pet pooch will
love these getaways by ferry
or train, writes Chris Haslam
JOIN THE PET SET
IN DEAUVILLE
The French term for taking the dog on
holiday is toutourisme, and if you’re
visiting Deauville in July you’d better
make sure your pooch is up to scratch.
Come les grandes vacances — beginning
this summer on July 8 — the rich and
impatient descend, bringing immaculate
pets with them. Surprising, then, that
dogs are banned on the town beach
between 10am and 7pm in high season, so
if yours fancies a dip go to Villers-sur-Mer,
15 minutes’ drive west. In town, though,
dogs are welcome at even the glitziest
restaurants, often serving as a fashion
accessory à la terrasse. They’re welcome
at the Bâtiment des Douanes, a gorgeous,
waterside neo-Norman building dating
from 1865 and now renamed the
Presqu’ile de la Touques, with 28 luxury
apartments — on offer at 20 per cent off —
outdoor and indoor pools and a spa.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering
in a one-bedroom apartment in May
from £779 (pierreetvacances.co.uk).
Eurotunnel crossings in May from
£235 (eurotunnel.com)CANINES ON THE
CANAL DU MIDI
The Penichette Classique is the Citroën
2CV of rivercraft: a self-drive boat
modelled on the traditional Midi barge,
with a 37 horsepower diesel engine,
bathroom, a kitchenette and cabins for
three. Easy to drive, it’s a perfect boat for
a low-cost trip down the Canal du Midi,
starting in Toulouse and sailing through
Baum to Carcassonne, and onwards, to
Narbonne and the Camargue. If you need
a bigger boat, Penichettes go up to seven
berths, and as for your dog, he won’t take
long to work out that the best place from
which to admire the scenery is the roof of
the main cabin, in front of the cockpit.
Details Seven nights’ self-catering
from £860, including navigation fees
and a sailing lesson (locaboat.com).
Eurotunnel returns from £228
(eurotunnel.com)SANDY PAWS ON
THE ATLANTIC COAST
The Plage de Messanges lies at the
southern end of a beach that runs
unbroken for 70 miles from Arcachon to
Biarritz. It’s a place where, in the words
of Bryan Adams, summer seems to last
for ever, and where surfers paddle out to
catch the last waves of the day as the sun
drops into the Atlantic. Back at Le Vieux
Port, the campsite in the pines at the back
of the dunes, tired dogs lick the salt from
their coats as corks pop and the smell
of barbecue drifts through the woods.
Like the beach, the site is dog-friendly,
with miles and miles of walks in the
vast Forêt de Messanges, while for
humans there’s a new waterpark
with surf pool, a spa and a packed
entertainment schedule.
Details Seven nights’
self-catering in a two-bedroom
classic mobile home arriving
on August 9 from £1,420
(eurocamp.co.uk). ReturnEveryone, including dogs, can enjoy life on the water,
whether it be a French canal, top, or pool. The beach at
Trouville, above, near DeauvilleTRAVELPIX LTD, ROSSHELEN, JENA ARDELL, DAMEDEESO/GETTY IMAGESEUROPE?
LEAD
THE
WAY
Dover-Calais ferry crossings for a car
with four people from £157 (dfds.co.uk)WONDERFUL WALKS
IN PORTUGAL
The Serra da Estrela — the Mountains of
the Stars — lie in Portugal’s gorgeous
Centro region, rising to 6,539ft above
the glacier-scoured Zezere Valley. It’s a
landscape for long walks and lunches in
village restaurants where the choice of
wine is often made before the food. There
are 233 miles of marked trails here, on
which you are likely to encounter the
Cao da Serra da Estrela — a mountain
dog charged with herding and
guarding the sheep from which comes
the region’s valuable Burel wool. The
national park is little known outside
Portugal, adding a real sense of
exploration to your walks, and if you
see the Serra da Estrela cheese on sale,snap it up. Stay at the dog-friendly
Pousada da Serra Estrela, where your
mutt will be plied with gifts.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from
£630 for two people and one dog
(petspyjamas.com). Return ferry
crossings from Portsmouth to
Santander and back from Bilbao from
£844 for a car, two passengers and
a dog in June (brittany-ferries.co.uk)RIDE THE RAILS
IN SWITZERLAND
The cockapoo owner and railway
enthusiast Beatrice Nicolae founded Paws
on Trains so dogs and their owners could
easily travel the Continent by rail. Most
nations in Europe allow dogs on trains,
sometimes free, sometimes ticketed, with
those under six kilos allowed to travel in
a carrier and bigger hounds requiring
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