Going on a road trip in Italy with your dog: organization & preparations
How to organize a road trip to Italy with your dog? What are the dog regulations in Italy? How to travel in a camper van with your dog? Discover all this through the adventures of Anna and her dog!
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As you know, I love to present you beautiful adventures shared by the Wouafer's and their dogs around the world! After showing you a road trip in Croatia or even Lapland, I suggest you discover Italy with your dog. And in the most beautiful way: in road trip mode for a change! Musher and I have never tested the road trip formula so to tell you about it, I interviewed Nala and Anna, two inseparable people who share their fabulous adventure with our Italian neighbours!
In this article, they talk to us about regulations, transport by van, organization of their trip, route, tips… And “croquette” on the cake! Our duo gives you all their dog-friendly addresses and tips for going on a road trip in Italy with their dog... So, ready to discover their adventure?
Before leaving for Italy, I let Anna introduce you to her dog 🙂
Anna and her dog, love with a capital A!
My name is Anna, I am 31 years old, and I live with my partner in a small town north of Clermont-Ferrand in the Puy de Dome. I have worked for 11 years in the sales department for VVF VILLAGES. I like the simple things in life, what we call the little pleasures “happiness is immediate, it's fleeting, it's caught on the fly! ". I like to seize and savor the present moment. I enjoy receiving my loved ones and taking care of them, outings and trips with friends, family...
I have long dreamed of having a dog. Last year, my father-in-law had just adopted a young beauceron. A few days later we learned that there were still females available from this same litter. Neither one nor two, the same evening we were at the farm and we left with the shyest of the group!
We wanted a Beauceron because it is a breed that has been very present in our two families and we knew all its qualities. And the few flaws that are so minimal compared to the rest…
My dog's name is Nala. She will be 2 years old in mid-December and already weighs 37 kilos. She is a hyperactive and very playful female dog, an excellent guard dog. We haven't taught him anything though, it's genetics! She is also very affectionate and very intelligent! Well, she is sometimes stubborn and a little abrupt when it comes to partying (she makes everyone party, even the chimney sweep, the canvassers)… In short, Nala is a ray of sunshine, she I always look forward to coming home from work to find her and have the right to party! She is even-tempered and always on the go! She cheers up the troops when things are not going well… She knows me by heart and knows how to play with my feelings… it's crazy what she brings! Such zest for life and such loyalty to us, I didn't think a dog would bring us so much. Our dog, we take him as much as possible everywhere, and it's the same for the holidays!
Going on a road trip in Italy with your dog: organization and regulations
As we always go on vacation with our dog, Nala accompanied us throughout our road trip in Italy! 11 days in total.
How we landed in Italy with our dog? I was looking for a border country with a mild climate and, by chance, I wasn't doing too badly in Italian. At first I thought of visiting the west coast of Italy but I was afraid that there would still be too many people and that it would be too hot. So, I headed north, hoping to meet fewer people and find some freshness. In addition, this region of northern Italy has always attracted me with its wide open spaces, its mountains and its lakes. After several weeks of reflection, here is the route chosen for our road trip in Italy with our dog:
So we started from Clermont Ferrand, we did the first night at Mont Cenis lake for two reasons: to avoid the Fréjus toll and because this lake is splendid. Then we continued to the lac de garde, the dolomites, the Adriatic coast, then on the way back, the Como lake andMedium .
To can crossing the Italian border with his dog, there are a few rules to know and follow:
Your dog must be over 15 weeks old
Your dog must be identified (electronic chip or clearly legible tattoo). L'identification of the dog is mandatory, like in France.
Your dog must be up to date on his rabies vaccination. It must be after identification and is valid for 21 days after the first injection.
You must have your dog's European passport up to date and completed by a veterinarian
Our veterinarian also advised us to give him an anti-mosquito lotion 10 days before departure.
On the advice of some forums, we also brought a muzzle which can be requested in Italy. In the end, we didn't have to put her on this course, but be careful if you want to go to Venice and other nearby islands: the muzzle is compulsory on the vaporetto (boat) and in the islands.
Traveling in a converted van with your dog, a pure delight
It was the first time we went to road trip in a converted van with our dog ! And not the last… I find that this mode of travel brings together everything to spend REAL vacations that completely cut us off from everyday life… Already because we are totally free, no one is waiting for us anywhere for 11 days (no hotel or other hosts), we manage the time as we want, we can stay longer in one place or less elsewhere. And also because the comfort is different from that of home, personally I think it's a real plus!
We were traveling in a Jumpy which is my husband's electrician's truck. We only had room for a foam mattress on a homemade box spring. We have created storage below and on the sides. We had equipped ourselves with a solar shower and a shower tent, a gas cooker, storage boxes with one for food, one for the dog's kibble, one for the toilet/pharmacy, clothes. Also plan a mosquito net essential for sleeping near the lakes, and a first aid kit for your dog in case of a glitch!
Now that you have discovered all the organization necessary to go on a road trip with your dog, I invite you to discover behind the scenes of Nala and Anna's trip. And I can tell you that it was rich in twists and turns! In this second part of the series “Road trip in Italy with his dog”, discover all the stages of our duo, all their dog-friendly addresses and their favorite places in Italy. They also present their favorites in Italy, the unmissable ones and especially their crisp little travel anecdotes 😉
Do you want to discover the rest of their adventures? It's this way : Road trip in Italy with your dog, the unmissable things to discover.