Pet-friendly luxury hotels, and what to ask before you bring your dog

More travelers are bringing the dog, and the better hotels have noticed. The good ones no longer just tolerate a pet. They have a bed in the room before you arrive, bowls and treats waiting, a menu for room service, and someone who can take your dog out while you're at dinner.

"Pet-friendly" can still mean very different things from one hotel to the next, though. Here are a few that go well beyond a water bowl at check-in, and what I'd ask before booking any of them.

Hotels that treat your dog like a guest

Regent Santa Monica Beach runs its own pet program, Tides & Tails, and listings describe plush beds, bowls and bandanas set out for dogs. It's right on the sand, which makes early walks easy.

Up the coast in Montecito, Rosewood Miramar Beach offers daily dog walking and a custom pet menu, according to the resort's own fact sheet, and the stretch of Miramar Beach out front is a favorite for morning walks.

In St. Barths, Le Barthélemy Hotel & Spa welcomes dogs onto its beach, and travel writers have described dogs getting their own lounger in the sand. Its listed size limits vary from one booking site to the next, so this is one to confirm before you book.

In New York, The Mark has been known for its Spoiled Dog's Menu from the team at The Mark Restaurant by Jean-Georges, with dishes built on chicken, salmon and eggs, plus a kit with a leash and a travel bowl. Menus change, so ask whether it's still on offer when you book.

And in Chicago, the Kimpton Gray Hotel says it welcomes pets of any size, weight or breed with no extra fee and no limit on the number of pets.

What to ask before you book

Pet policies live in the fine print, and they change. These are the questions I ask a hotel before I book a guest with a dog:

• Size, breed and number limits. One listing for a hotel can say any size while another says 22 pounds, so get the current rule from the hotel itself.
• The fee, and how it's charged: per night, per stay or as a cleaning fee at the end.
• Whether your dog can stay alone in the room, and whether it needs to be crated when you're out.
• Where your dog is allowed: the lobby, a restaurant terrace, the beach, and at what hours.
• Dog walking, sitting or a daycare partner, if you'll want a few hours to yourself.

From the rooms side, one more tip: tell the hotel about your dog when you book, not when you check in. Many hotels set aside particular rooms for pets, and it's much easier for the front desk to plan around a dog it knows is coming.

If you're planning a trip you don't want to leave your dog behind for, tell me where you'd like to go and a little about your dog. I'll find a stay that spoils both of you, and there's no fee for my planning.