Are Dogs Allowed at Disney World? How We Made It Happen (Plus Service Dog Rules).

For many people, a trip isn’t complete unless it involves the whole family — including the dog. If you don’t want to leave your pup behind during your vacation, Walt Disney World offers dog-friendly resorts and on-site boarding.

I recently visited Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando with my elderly pet dog, a medium-sized 12-year-old shepherd mix. She’s usually calm and happy to be along for the ride, and this trip was no exception. While we stayed at a pet-friendly resort, we boarded her for convenience and peace of mind.

This guide covers the rules for bringing a dog to Disney World, what to expect at a pet-friendly resort, what it’s like to board your dog at Disney’s on-site pet hotel, and how service animals are accommodated at the parks.

Disney World Pet Policy FAQs

Before we get into the details, here’s a quick look at Disney World’s pet policies.

Pets aren’t allowed at Disney World theme parks or Disney Springs. However, service dogs (and miniature horses) are allowed, and the Disney World pet policy allows you to bring a pet dog if you stay at a dog-friendly resort or board your dog during your visit.

• What animals are allowed at Disney World parks?
  • Only trained service animals (dogs or miniature horses) are allowed in the parks and Disney Springs. Service animals are welcome in most public areas, including resorts, transportation, queues, and some attractions. Some attractions may require using rider switch or placing service animals in a kennel.
• Which rides can service dogs go on at Disney World?
  • Service animals are allowed on many, but not all, attractions. Some rides can accommodate service dogs in the ride vehicle. For others, you’ll be asked to use rider switch or a kennel. You can ask a cast member at the entrance of each ride for guidance.
• What counts as a service animal at Disney World?
  • Service animals must be individually trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability. Emotional support animals do not qualify.
• What Disney World hotels and resorts allow animals?
  • There are 4 on-site Disney World resorts that are dog-friendly: Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Port Orleans Resort — Riverside, The Cabins and Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort, and Disney’s Yacht Club Resort. Service animals are allowed at any Disney World resort.
• Can I leave my dog alone in a Disney World resort room?
  • You can leave your dog crated or confined for up to 7 hours.
• What animals are allowed at Disney World hotels?
  • Only dogs are allowed at select Disney World resorts, with a maximum of 2 dogs per room. Service animals are allowed without limits.
• Where can I board my dog at Disney World?
  • Best Friends Pet Hotel is the only on-site boarding facility at Disney World. It offers daytime and overnight care for dogs, with grooming, playtime, and transportation options from dog-friendly Disney World resorts.

Disney World Dog-Friendly Resorts

Most Disney World resorts don’t accept dogs, but a few do. Dogs are the only pets allowed at select Disney World resorts.

The 4 dog-friendly Disney World resorts are:

• Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• Disney’s Port Orleans Resort — Riverside
• Disney’s Yacht Club Resort
• The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort

Dogs are the only pets allowed at Disney World resorts, and there is a maximum of 2 dogs per room. The dog fee is $50 per night plus tax at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Port Orleans Resort — Riverside, and Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. The fee is $75 per night plus tax at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort.

The Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort also offer dog-friendly campsites, and the fee is only $5 per night. However, pets aren’t allowed in pop-up trailers or tents.

The per-night fee isn’t capped at Disney World resorts like some hotels. For example, you might pay a $75 fee for up to 4 nights at a Hilton hotel, but you’d pay $200 to $300 in dog fees for 4 nights at a Disney World resort.

You must sign a pet agreement when checking into a resort with your dog. Dogs at Disney World resorts must be:

• Well-behaved
• Leashed or in a carrier in public areas
• Up to date on vaccination and treatment for fleas and ticks, with records available upon request
• Appropriately trained and not allowed on furniture

Dogs are not allowed in resort common areas, such as restaurants, pools, and recreational spaces, and cannot be left unattended in a room for more than 7 hours.

You can’t bring dogs on resort transportation, including most buses, the monorail, boats, and the Disney Skyliner. However, they are allowed on internal buses at Disney World’s Fort Wilderness Resort and Disney’s Port Orleans Resort. You can also use Disney World’s Minnie Van service with a pet carrier.

Disney World resorts have designated dog-friendly rooms near pet relief areas. At Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, the dog-friendly rooms are near the Admiral Pool, and there’s a walkway with a dog relief area and dog waste bags nearby.

At check-in, guests with dogs get Pluto’s Welcome Kit, which includes dog-friendly goodies such as a feeding mat, bowls, and a collar tag. The kit has a resort map designating dog relief areas and a Pluto room hanger to alert cast members that dogs are in the room.

Housekeeping is only available when dogs aren’t in the room. You can schedule a cleaning time when you can remove your dog from the room.

Dog-Friendly Non-Disney Resorts Near Disney World

Disney World resorts aren’t the only option when visiting the parks. There are pet-friendly Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott hotels near Disney World, including Walt Disney World Good Neighbor Hotels. These places could offer lower pet fees and are typically bookable with points.

Here are a few dog-friendly point hotel options near Disney World:

• Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace is a family-friendly Disney Springs area hotel with a lazy river that allows dogs up to 40 pounds with up to 2 dogs per room. There’s a fee of $75 for up to 2 nights or $125 per stay for 3 or more nights.
• Waldorf Astoria Orlando is a luxury resort in the Bonnet Creek area near Disney Springs. Up to 2 dogs with a total combined weight of 40 pounds are allowed in each room. You must pay a $125 pet fee for up to 5 nights, or a $250 fee for 6 or more nights. Pets are welcomed with a bandana and waste bag dispenser to take home, as well as a pet mat and bowl to use at the resort.
• Hyatt Place Orlando/Lake Buena Vista is a Good Neighbor Hotel in the Disney Springs area. It’s pet-friendly for dogs weighing up to 50 pounds — or 2 dogs with a combined 75-pound weight. The fee is $75 for the first 6 nights and another $75 plus an additional $100 cleaning fee for 7 to 30 nights. For more than 30 nights, a fee is assessed at the hotel’s discretion.
• JW Marriott Orlando Bonnet Creek Resort & Spa is a luxury resort in the Bonnet Creek area near Disney Springs. The resort welcomes dogs and cats with a 2-pet maximum and a 40-pound weight limit. The pet fee is $250 per stay.

Dog Boarding at Disney World

If you’re staying at a hotel that doesn’t allow dogs or if you’re planning a long park day and need doggie daycare, Best Friends Pet Hotel is available. This facility offers overnight and daytime boarding for dogs, cats, and small pets. An on-site grooming salon also offers shampoo and style cuts, flea treatment, pedicures, and skin treatments.

Best Friends Pet Hotel is in the Disney World bubble, so it’s convenient if you’re visiting the parks or staying on-site. The facility is on Bonnet Creek Parkway across from Disney’s Port Orleans Resort — Riverside and backs up to Bonnet Creek near EPCOT.

Dog boarding starts at $59 for a day rate or $67 per night for a standard indoor room with meal times and 2 potty walks. Club suites for dogs are $325 per night with an indoor and outdoor enclosure, a personal concierge, 2 potty walks, 2 playtimes, a bedtime story, a flat-screen TV, a webcam, premium bedding and bowls, a private turfed outdoor patio, pet updates, and a tote with seasonal gifts.

Add-on options include:

• Walk and explore ($12)
• Cuddle time ($12)
• Playtime ($12)
• Bedtime story ($12)
• Group play session ($26)
• Pet photo ($5)
• Premium bedding ($8 per day)
• Nightly news ($10 per day)

Grooming services are $50 to $130, depending on your dog’s size. Add-on options include teeth brushing and ear cleaning, or packages such as the aromatherapy dream for $30.

The pet hotel is open 1 hour before the first park opens and closes 1 hour after the last park closes, including special events. You can drop off at any time during operating hours, and overnight pickup is at 12 p.m. unless you have a grooming appointment.

Round-trip pickup and drop-off service is available for $25 at all dog-friendly Disney World resorts (Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Port Orleans Resort — Riverside, Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, and the Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort).

For daycare or overnight boarding, dogs must have rabies, distemper, and bordetella vaccinations, and you’re required to show proof of vaccination when checking in. The dog must also be at least 5 months old and spayed or neutered for group play. The canine influenza vaccine is recommended but not required.

Plan to bring your pet’s food and treats, up to 2 toys, and a T-shirt that smells like home. If you don’t bring food, the pet hotel can provide it for an additional fee. All bedding and bowls are provided, but suite guests can bring their own bedding. Dogs must be leashed or in a carrier at drop-off.

Visiting Best Friends Pet Care

On a recent stay at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, we boarded our elderly dog overnight at Best Friends Pet Hotel instead of bringing her to the resort. A cast member recommended the facility to me, as she drops her dog off for daycare when she has long work days.

Boarding at Best Friends Pet Hotel was slightly cheaper at $67 per night for a standard indoor accommodation than the $75 nightly pet fee at the resort. I paid with my Chase Freedom Unlimited^®, which earns 1.5% cash-back on general purchases like this.

Timing was the main reason we boarded for a night. We dropped her off before visiting Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon in the morning. At the resort, we would have had to wait until our room was available at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, which had a 3 p.m. check-in time and limited availability with dog-specific rooms. Also, it was nice knowing her needs were taken care of, so we didn’t have to juggle park visits with dog walks and meal times.

We had a good experience with Best Friends Pet Care. I made a reservation online ahead of our visit. Checking in took about 10 minutes as we confirmed her vaccination records, handed over food and treats, answered questions, and paid for the service.

Our dog enjoys visiting the pet hotel at home while we travel, and this experience was no exception. We picked her up the next morning, healthy, happy, and tired from the excitement of staying in a new place. She got to pick out a souvenir from the hotel’s gift shop: a new collar featuring famous Disney dogs.

Service Dogs at Disney World

Pets aren’t allowed at Disney World theme parks or Disney Springs, but service animals, which Disney’s definitions limit to dogs and miniature horses, are permitted. Service animals must be trained as service animals that perform tasks for a guest with a disability, and Disney guest relations or cast members may ask what the service animal is trained to perform. Disney requires service animals to be housebroken and behave appropriately by not barking, growling, jumping up, or lunging at guests or cast members.

Disney World does not allow emotional support animals, comfort animals, or pets at the parks or Disney Springs.

Service animals are allowed in all attraction queues and on some rides, where they can sit on the ride vehicle floor or in your lap. However, some rides, such as Peter Pan’s Flight, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Avatar Flight of Passage, and Rise of the Resistance, can’t accommodate service animals. If your service animal can’t get on a ride, you can use rider switch for someone else to hold your animal while you ride. Some rides have portable kennels where your service animal can wait while you ride so your entire party can ride together.

You can ask a cast member at the ride entrance whether your service animal can ride, if there is a kennel, or if you need to set up a rider switch.

There are relief areas within the parks.

Service dogs can stay at any Disney World resort, not just dog-friendly resorts. No dog fee is required. They are allowed in all areas, including all forms of Disney transportation. However, service dogs aren’t allowed on dining chairs or tables in dining areas. They can’t go in water such as water features or fountains, and can’t get closer than 4 feet to the water at pools or wet decks. For example, you can’t get in a resort pool with your service dog or walk through a splash pad together.

Final Thoughts

Disney World isn’t the most obvious dog-friendly vacation spot, but you can include your dog in the Disney magic with some planning. If you stay at one of Disney’s pet-friendly resorts or use the Best Friends Pet Hotel for boarding, your dog doesn’t have to be left out of the trip.

I found boarding most practical. Early drop-off times allowed us to visit the parks without worrying about where our dog could go or when she’d get walked or fed. She came back relaxed, well-cared-for, and with a fresh souvenir dog collar from the gift shop.

You have options if your dog is your travel buddy, but understand that Disney World draws a clear line between pets and service animals. Only service animals are allowed in the parks.