The Ultimate Pet-Friendly Hotel Groups

As for the major luxury brands, Four Seasons has a doggie door open in various dimensions at its top U.S. hotels, including its Biltmore Santa Barbara, which has a generous 50-pound weight restriction but a requirement that guests with pets stay in their Cottage Rooms (although those come in a wide variety of categories). In Los Angeles, where pet ownership is virtually a city mandate, the pet policy at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills isn't so generous -- there's a 15-pound weight restriction, since it's a high-rise hotel in an urban setting not conducive to larger dogs. At the Four Seasons Boston, however, they won't even charge you a pet fee or put you in pet-designated rooms, like even the most liberal pet-friendly brands, although they will require a pet waiver and insist that your companion be under 25 pounds.

Ritz-Carlton Hotels offers its Posh Pooch program at properties such as The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, where dogs of all sizes are welcomed with a hand-painted water dish, fluffy bed and chew toy of five-star caliber. But such luxuries come with a $50 boarding charge per night and hefty $150 one-time deep-cleaning fee for after pets vacate their select first-floor rooms. There's a $125 charge assessed at the Ritz-Carlton Dallas, which also maintains a 25-pound weight restriction, while the Ritz-Carlton Atlanta Peachtree requires its own $125 deep-cleaning fee, 40-pound weight restriction and that passage through common areas be kept to "an absolute minimum." It also insists that all guest rooms be inspected upon departure.

At The Peninsula Chicago, the welcome sign is only yay-high, but it's an impressive one -- a 25-pound weight restriction with no additional fee. Guests should advise the front desk of the arriving pooch, not merely to sign a waiver but to score the doggie amenities, which include a plush bed and bowl as well as a free bone and mat delivered to the room. At The Peninsula Beverly Hills, the hotel's newly upgraded suites offer private patios and no weight limit for dogs, but a $35 charge is assessed each night during a pet stay.