The best UK days out for reactive dogs
low-stress getaways for nervous pups
No one knows the stress of going somewhere new and unknown quite like a reactive dog owner. The recent boom in dog friendly staycations has brought more and more opportunities for people to take their dogs on holiday, but with that, comes a significant increase in your chances of coming across other people on holiday with their dogs too. Not to mention, a lack of local knowledge means that you don’t know where the best dog walks are, or where to avoid due to popularity. But we’ve got you covered: we know the best places to go when all you want is a nice peaceful holiday with minimal people and dogs.
Exmoor National Park
One of the UK’s least visited national parks, Exmoor is truly one of Britain’s most underrated destinations. The majority of holiday makers continue straight down the motorway to the beaches of Devon and Cornwall, totally bypassing this beautiful and very much overlooked area.
Expect rolling carpets of heather moorland, ancient oak woodlands and merrily babbling brooks. Not forgetting the real stars of the show, the native Exmoor ponies, who can be found on many walks in and around the national park. Plus, Exmoor is the starting point of the South West Coast Path, with a number of dog friendly beaches where pups can stretch their legs and swim in the sea all year round. It doesn’t get much better than this.
So why is Exmoor so often forgotten about? We really couldn’t tell you, but with just 2 million visitor days per year (compared to 39 million in the South Downs), it’s one of the best places you could choose to take a reactive dog on holiday.
Top pick: Selworthy Beacon
The North Pennines
Spanning for hundreds of miles from the Peak District right up to the border with Scotland, the Pennine Hills are said to be the backbone of England. Made famous by Alfred Wainwright’s 268 mile Pennine Way, walking the whole thing is a serious undertaking, with many preferring to tick it off in shorter sections or to just enjoy the different areas explored by the route.
Generally speaking, the further north you travel, the quieter the Pennines become. Nowhere is this more true than in the regions of County Durham and Northumberland, where you can expect to walk for half a day or longer and come across no one other than a few sheep.
The charming villages of Allenheads, Blanchland and Stanhope offer picture perfect bases with none of the tourist crowds. Nearly all of the visitors in this part of the world are drawn to the sandy beaches of the Northumberland coast, but this far inland you’ll find that you can usually count the number of other people you see on a walk on one hand.
Top pick: Allenheads
Dumfries and Galloway
Scotland is all over social media, with the popularity of the NC500 and Scotland’s dreamy beaches tempting visitors from across the world: nearly all of whom head straight north for the highlands.
Tucked away in the south west, Dumfries and Galloway feels far too huge and beautiful to fall into the category of hidden gem – and yet, that’s exactly how it should be classified. Everything which people drive for hours further north for, Dumfries and Galloway has. Deserted sandy beaches? Check. Moody, unspoiled mountains? Check. Vast swathes of quiet forest walks? Check.
The cat might soon be out of the bag, with increasing awareness of the area following an (ultimately unsuccessful) bid to make the area Scotland’s next national park. But for now, Dumfries and Galloway continues to fly under the radar of most holiday makers, so get there before the secret’s out.
Top pick: Galloway Forest Park
North York Moors National Park
Everyone loves to be beside the seaside – and so visitors to the North York Moors National Park flock to the honeypot coastal towns of Scarborough (also known as ‘Scarbados’) and Whitby. But, we think they’re missing out on the best of the North York Moors.
The further you head inland, the fewer people you’ll come across. Open swathes of heather moorland stretch as far as the eye can see, and you’ll often find that your only company on your walk (other than your dog) are sheep and grouse. Visit in August to see the heather at its best.
The North York Moors are perfect for reactive dog owners with hundreds of quieter walks on offer. In particular, visitors rarely make it as far as the Hambleton Hills: we have no idea why, with chocolate box villages and views for miles. Base yourself in Kepwick, Hawnby or Helmsley for easy access the best walks in the heart of Hambleton and Ryedale.
Top pick: Boltby Forest
Ceredigion
One of the least visited areas in Wales, Ceredigion is for this reason perfect for a holiday with your reactive dog. Oh, and it’s stunningly beautiful, too.
Home of the Cambrian Mountains, where Owain Glyndwr successfully escaped from the English despite a generous bounty, Ceredigion is unashamedly wild. Away from the seaside villages on the coast, you’ll find that it’s not a place which is hugely geared up for tourists, and consequently you don’t find hordes of people here in the summer months.
While some of the sandy beaches in Ceredigion are subject to dog bans from May to September, visit out of season and you’ll find that not only can you take your dog on the beach, but you’ll be practically the only ones there. And if you can’t visit out of season, head for the hills and countryside and you’ll find no trace of a crowd.
Top pick: Bwlch Nant yr Arian Forest
Orkney
Island hopping around the Scottish Hebrides is very à la mode. Instagram is flooded with panoramas of deserted sandy beaches and stormy skies, but are they truly the deserted island havens they once were?
Better to go to Orkney, which has just as many island hopping opportunities with fewer camper vans and wild campers. Most people travelling to Orkney do so via a condensed short visit taking in Orkney’s UNESCO world heritage site, the Heart of Neolithic Orkney, and rarely do people take the time to venture further afield.
This is a crying shame, as Orkney is swamped with more fascinating historical sites than you can shake a stick at, with dozens on the Mainland alone before you even begin to nip around all of the islands. Like most historic sites, these places are usually dog friendly but require visitors to keep their dogs on a lead: perfect for reactive dog owners. And the beaches are all dog friendly year round, too.
Top pick: Waulkmill Bay
The Forest of Bowland
While an area high in dog restrictions is unlikely to be at the top of the list for most dog owners, for owners of reactive dogs, this is exactly why the Forest of Bowland is a great place to visit. Access land restrictions with dog bans are prevalent in this area, particularly in the north west, which means that often the only option for a walk is along a public right of way – where you’ll usually see plenty of signs asking dog owners to keep their pets on a lead.
With almost all walks featuring sheep or ground nesting birds, most walks in this area aren’t suitable for dogs to be off the lead – which is perfect if you live in fear of hearing someone shout ‘don’t worry, he’s friendly!’ as their off-lead dog charges towards you.
The Forest of Bowland itself is an ancient hunting forest rather than a wooded forest, with endless heather moorlands and some wonderfully quiet fell walks. It’s a stronghold for one of Britain’s rarest birds of prey, the hen harrier, which features on the logo of the National Landscape authority. Just make sure to check for access land restrictions before your walk if you aren’t relying on public rights of way.
Top pick: Langden Brook Valley
Cairngorms National Park
The popularity of the Cairngorms is something of a red herring. Visitors may gather here in their thousands, but the area is simply so vast, with so many options for a fantastic day out, that the number of people you’ll come across on any given walk is extremely diluted.
Avoid the Instagram hotspots around Aviemore (which are themselves much quieter than Instagram hotspots anywhere else) and you’ll find the walks in the Cairngorms to be delightfully quiet. While the national park is home to 55 of Scotland’s 282 Munros (mountains over 3,000 feet), you might be surprised by just how much of the area is forested.
The result is that many of the walks you’ll venture out on will feature woodland sections where dogs can explore off-lead, with mountain views scattered throughout. The sheer volume of trails available means that you’ll almost certainly find that most of your walks are largely free from other people, too.
Top pick: Uath Lochans
