This post is part of a series on The Ultimate Pet Friendly Road Trip, our 10-month, 15,000-mile tour of the top pet friendly attraction in each of the lower 48 states.

Ohio’s Top Pet Friendly Attraction: Holden Arboretum

Spectacular gardens, tranquil wooded trails, a quiet haven that invites you to connect with nature and feeds your soul … that’s what we found at pet friendly Holden Arboretum. This magnificent collaboration between humans and Mother Nature encompasses 3,600 acres, making it one of the largest arboreta and botanical gardens in the country – and a fabulous place to explore with your pet.

A majority of the preserve is maintained in a natural state, providing a window into ecologically sensitive habitats, like streams, bogs, and ponds, and miles of trails through native forests to explore. In addition, about 600 acres have been devoted to Holden’s collections and gardens, including a butterfly garden, Rhododendron garden, and wildflower garden. The displays here are brilliant – every color of the rainbow is painted across the landscape, and the size of some of the flowers will leave you speechless.

Pets at Holden Arboretum

Pets on leash are very welcome at Holden Arboretum and will enjoy hiking the trails with you. There are a few areas where pets are not allowed, including the Canopy Walk, Emergent Tower, inside the buildings, or in the wildflower garden.

Pets at Holden Arboretum

• Leashed pet are welcome in most areas of Holden Arboretum
• Pets waste must be cleaned up and disposed of properly
• Pets are not allowed on the Canopy Walk, Emergent Tower, inside the buildings, or wildflower garden

There is also a picnic area and a few tables on the patio behind the visitor center where pets are welcome to join you. The visitor center has some pre-packaged sandwiches, beverages, and snacks – or you can pack a picnic and enjoy your lunch with an eye-popping view!

Buster was itching to hit the trails as soon as we got out of the car, so we headed down the 1.5 mile Woodland Trail, then circled back around to the gardens. The path is wide and covered in gravel, so it was easy to maneuver with Ty’s stroller. We found plenty of places to sit and watch the birds, listen to the gurgling stream, and enjoy the shady retreat of the surrounding woods.

Depending on how many of the trails you wanted to hike, you could spend anywhere between a half-day and several days exploring all Holden Arboretum has to offer – and we hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Thank You to our Sponsors

Visiting these attractions with Ty and Buster is a dream come true. We’ll be blogging about each one as we go along, so fasten your seatbelt and stay tuned!

The Ultimate Pet Friendly Road Trip wouldn’t be possible without the support of our wonderful sponsors: Winnebago, 2 Hounds Design, Alcott, goDog®, PetGuide.com, Red Roof Inns, Sleepypod, The Bark, PetHub, RVPetSafety.com, and The Honest Kitchen. Please be sure to visit their websites and social media pages and thank them for their participation!