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Best U.S. cities to travel to with your dog

Certain cities stand out for the number of dog-friendly hotels, restaurants, beaches, bars and vet offices in the area.
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Dog parents know the worst part of a vacation is leaving their pooch behind.

But some cities in the U.S. make it much easier than others to travel with your dog.

Based on certain factors — like dog-friendly hotels, bars, restaurants, beaches, and number of vet offices in the area — USA Today and Blueprint developed a ranking of the best places to visit with your dog.

It found that the top dog-friendly destination in the country is Flagstaff, Arizona.

Flagstaff had the highest concentration of dog-friendly accommodations among all cities in the rankings. The city offers 56 dog-friendly accommodations per 100,000 people.

For comparison, the second-best dog-friendly city, San Luis Obispo, California, offers 32 dog-friendly accommodations per 100,000 people.

A dog sits by the pool with sunglasses on.
A dog sitting poolside is ready to catch some rays with sunglasses and a beach bag in tow.

Flagstaff earned a perfect score in the rankings, with 132 dog-friendly trails, 382 vet offices, 39 dog-friendly restaurants, 12 dog-friendly beaches and six dog-friendly bars per 100,000 people.

The state with the most dog-friendly destinations was California.

Three California cities made the top 10 most dog-friendly destinations.

In addition to San Luis Obispo, that also includes Santa Barbara and San Diego.

But the city in the U.S. with the most dog-friendly restaurants can be found on the other side of the country.

Key West, Florida, had the most dog-friendly eateries of all cities analyzed in the rankings, with 122 per 100,000 residents.

Other cities that made the top 10 include Austin, Texas; Portland, Oregon; Naples, Florida; Nashville, Tennessee; and Denver.