The dog doesn’t stay at home anymore. Poles want to spend their holidays with their dogs and cats
more and more often they treat their own as This is also changing. More and more people plan their holidays to take their pets with them, and owners of accommodation facilities notice this trend.
– The period before the pandemic was different, after the pandemic it changed. Many people in the industry have become more dog-friendly, following the needs of customers – notes Jakub Rutkiewicz, owner of Pałac pod Bociani Gniazdem in Runowo, in an interview with Interia.
The change is visible not only in but also in the way the offer is designed. Places are being created and some facilities are preparing special ones for them
At the same time, the development of the market has brought a new reality: more and more often, many tourists traveling with dogs ask the question – what are we actually paying for?
Many dog owners have no problem with it, but they want to know what’s behind it.
dog trainer and author of an educational profile on Instagram nazwapsa.pl, has been traveling with her animals around Poland and Europe for years.
– These are rented apartments, where the fee for a dog’s stay is between PLN 50 and 80 for the entire stay, and I think this is an adequate amount because it also covers the additional work of the person who cleans up after us and prepares the place for subsequent guests.
As he emphasizes, in most such places he does not receive any additional accessories for the dog.
– I treat this fee simply as the cost of subsequent, more thorough cleaning of the apartment. Of course, I always check several times to make sure I have left everything tidy, but it is still known that sometimes you can miss a ball of hair or the smell of the dog will simply remain in the room – adds Agnieszka.
A similar position is expressed by Kasia, the guardian of two Labradors, Cukier and Baton.
– I have no problem with surcharges, although I am not sure what exactly I am paying for, since none of these facilities have special facilities for dogs. Maybe for higher water consumption, ozonation in connection with possible cleaning or airing after the dog?
Her experience also shows that food prepared by them does not always meet the animal’s needs.
– Once it happened that a dog bowl and a small gift – a tug – were waiting for us in the room. But both of these things were sized for a small poodle, and I have a Labrador.
Pet friendly or just pet friendly in name?
For many, it is not the fee itself that is the problem. What turns out to be much more important is how the object actually looks
Iza, the caretaker of the miniature poodle Azi, points out the discrepancy between…
– What surprises me and slightly irritates me is that the hotel calls itself pet-friendly, but on arrival it turns out that the dog cannot enter the restaurant, cannot stay in some parts of the hotel, only in the room, and sometimes the regulations stipulate that the dog cannot be left alone in the room – says Iza, slightly saddened, in an interview with Interia.
As she adds, situations when the law around the facility seems particularly absurd
Recently we were in a hotel where walking dogs was prohibited on the lawns around the facility. So what kind of pet-friendly facility is this?
At the same time, he emphasizes that responsibility should work both ways.
– At the same time, I have the utmost respect for respecting the common space. I clean up after my dog, I always have a blanket for him so that he doesn’t stain the seat or carpet, and I collect hair if he leaves it.
Agnieszka Samolej has similar observations.
– This approach shows that the facility is actually prepared to welcome guests with their pets, and not only formally allows dogs to stay.
Behaviorist: holidays with a dog also involve responsibilities
According to Agnieszka Samolej, who looks at such events not only from the perspective of an animal caretaker, but also
advises you to carefully check the local rules before booking. It also reminds you of the basics.
– Don’t let your dog jump on the bed without a blanket or bite the furniture – it’s not only inelegant, but may result in an additional fee.
In her opinion, increasingly common limits on the number of dogs or rules regarding animal behavior are not a manifestation of reluctance towards pets.
– Reasonable rules, fees and limits can work to the benefit of everyone – guests, property owners and the dogs themselves.
What does the law say? The hotel may charge a fee, but there are conditions
He dispels doubts about additional fees in a conversation with Interia
As he explains, it does not regulate the amount of fees for pets.
Such fees are legal and their admissibility results from the principle of freedom of contract.
Interestingly, this also applies to assistance dogs, and as the lawyer emphasizes in an interview with us, “the status of an assistance dog does not give any direct privileges in terms of payment for accommodation in private accommodation facilities.”
In practice, this means that the owner of a hotel, guesthouse or cottage can independently determine the amount of the surcharge. The lawyer also emphasizes that as long as the fees are transparent and known before concluding the contract, the amount of such a fee will not, in principle, violate the law.
However, transparency is key as the fee must be communicated to the customer before booking. There is no room for surprises after arriving at the reservation location.
– Pursuant to art. 10 section 1 of the Act of 30 May 2014 on consumer rights, no later than when the consumer expresses his will to be bound by the contract, the entrepreneur is obliged to obtain the consumer’s express consent to any additional payment exceeding the agreed remuneration for the entrepreneur’s main contractual obligations. Pursuant to Art. 12 section 1 point 5 of the above-mentioned Act on Consumer Rights, at the latest when the consumer expresses his will to be bound by a distance or off-premises contract, the entrepreneur is obliged to inform the consumer in a clear and understandable way about: the total price for the service – quotes and explains the obligations arising from the law Monika Podleśna.
As the lawyer emphasizes, the entrepreneur is obliged to inform the client about all costs no later than at the time of concluding the contract. Importantly, the lack of such information may have consequences.
– If the entrepreneur has not fulfilled the information obligations regarding additional fees or other costs, the consumer does not bear these fees and costs – says Monika Podleśna.
This means that a surcharge for a dog cannot appear suddenly during check-in.
Places that don’t charge fees. Animal lovers stand behind them
Although they are becoming a standard, there are still facilities that consciously abandon them.
One of them is
– From the very beginning of the establishment of the facility, there have always been dogs, which have also become part of our lives – says the owner, Jakub Rutkiewicz.
Even though the presence of animals generates additional staff work, the facility treats it as a natural part of its operations.
– This is an increased cost of cleaning. The staff must try harder, there must be more specific actions. But this is included in the out-of-pocket costs.
Guests arriving with dogs receive, among others, bowls, beds and waste bags. The owner emphasizes that this approach is primarily based on personal experience.
I cannot imagine that there would be no place for our smaller brothers in a tourist facility that is supposed to serve everyone.
It is also an example of a place that is trying to develop its offer addressed to
When you have to pay extra for a dog. The arguments vary
Although more and more places advertise themselves as “”, the vast majority of accommodation facilities in Poland charge – it all depends on the standard of the facility and its internal rules.
Several owners of guesthouses and cottages with whom we tried to talk did not want to officially comment on their pricing policy, fearing criticism. However, they unofficially admit that the additional charges are not an attempt to make money from pet owners, but a way to cover the real costs of preparing a room for subsequent guests.
– I introduced dog fees after several visits from people with dogs who left the house in a sorry state. Once the sofa upholstery needed to be washed by a specialist, and once the bedding set had to be thrown away and not even washable anymore – says Mrs. Bożena, who rents summer houses in the Pomeranian Voivodeship.
The entrepreneur adds that it is primarily about . After the dog’s stay, it is often necessary to thoroughly vacuum upholstered furniture, remove hair from carpets and curtains, wash bedspreads or ozonate the rooms. For many facilities, comfort is also important, which is why the standard of cleaning after animals is much higher than after a regular stay.
Travelers themselves also understand such arguments, emphasizing that they are aware of the necessity
As Jakub Rutkiewicz notes, even dogs sometimes destroy the room.
– It happened that the dog scratched the door or something, but people always say and do not hide that something happened – he talks about his experiences.
Increasingly, the additional fee is also associated with specific amenities: preparation, information about the nearest veterinarian or indication of walking routes and beaches for dogs.
However, the limit of acceptance appears when there is no added value for the additional fee. Many dog owners point out that since they pay several dozen zlotys more, they would expect at least a prepared bowl, bed, waste bags or information about nearby walking routes. Meanwhile, it sometimes happens that the only change compared to a regular reservation is a higher price.
This is when most critical opinions appear. They are not about the fee itself, but about the lack of transparency and the feeling that the customer is paying for something he cannot see.
On the other hand, they point out that not all guardians leave the same order after themselves, and dogs are left for long hours in a room or house. It is experiences like these that make some facilities decide to introduce a fixed fee for all guests traveling with dogs.
As accommodation operators admit, after introducing clear rules, the customer profile often changes. Reservations are more often made by aware guardians who accept the regulations, inform in advance about arriving with a dog and approach the shared space with greater responsibility. This, in turn, means that there are fewer and fewer conflict situations.
The animal guest is no longer an exception
Until recently, this had to be negotiated in advance with the owner of the facility. Today, for many people, the possibility of coming here is one of the basic criteria for choosing a holiday destination.
From the conversations conducted for this article, a picture of the market emerges. Dog guardians increasingly understand that the presence of an animal may generate additional costs. Facility owners are increasingly trying to create conditions that go beyond the slogan “we accept dogs”.
However, the most important thing seems to be mutual responsibility. As the experiences of both hoteliers and travelers show, a well-prepared caregiver and a facility that honestly communicates the rules can create conditions in which holidays are comfortable for everyone –