Short answer: yes, dogs are welcome at Chalet de la Poirie. The pet fee is 25 € per stay, not per night, and all you need to do is tell us when you book. You rent the whole chalet, for up to 10 people, with no other guests on site.
Plenty of listings say "pets allowed" and then bury the conditions in the small print, or say nothing about what actually matters when you travel with a dog: where to walk it on the first evening, what the fee adds to the bill, and what is off-limits nearby. Here is what we know, what we checked with the local tourist offices, and what is best asked directly. For the house itself, see the chalet and our practical information.
What "pets welcome" means at the chalet
Three things are stated plainly in our rates and in our FAQ: pets are welcome, you need to let us know when booking, and the fee is 25 € per stay. No nightly charge and no fee that climbs with the length of your stay: a weekend or a full week, the amount is the same.
Letting us know serves one simple purpose: preparing the house before you arrive. The chalet is a family home, with bed linen provided for every bed, two floors and an 80 m² terrace. We would rather know in advance that a dog is coming than find out on the day.
What our website does not spell out, we will not make up here. The easiest route is to put your questions in the "Message" field of the enquiry form: we reply within 24 hours. These are the questions worth asking before booking any holiday home with a dog, with the answers we can already give.
- Are dogs genuinely accepted? Here: yes, simply let us know when booking.
- Is the pet fee per night or per stay? Here: 25 € per stay, however long you stay.
- How many pets? Our rates list 25 € per stay for a pet. If you are bringing two dogs, say so in your message and we will confirm the terms before anything is booked.
- Your dog's size, age and habits? Include them in your enquiry: it helps us prepare for your arrival.
- Which rooms can the dog use, and what about the spa terrace? These house rules are not on the website, so ask before booking rather than on arrival.
- Is the outside area fenced? Our website does not say. Ask if your dog is used to staying outside on its own.
- Where is the first walk? Here: on the voie verte, 30 metres from the chalet.
What a stay with a dog costs: three worked examples
The price is per night for the whole chalet, with the same rate for 2 to 4 people. On top of that come 30 € per night for each guest from the 5th to the 8th, a 100 € cleaning fee per stay, the local tourist tax of 1.60 € per person per night, and the 25 € pet fee. Here are three cases worked out from the rates published on our practical information page.
- 4 people and a dog, 2 weeknights in low season (January, March or November outside school holidays, 110 € per night): 220 € for the nights + 100 € cleaning + 12.80 € tourist tax + 25 € for the dog = 357.80 €, about 89 € per person.
- 6 people and a dog, a 2-night weekend in October (Friday and Saturday, 165 € per night): 330 € for the nights + 120 € for the 5th and 6th guests + 100 € cleaning + 19.20 € tax + 25 € for the dog = 594.20 €, about 99 € per person.
- 8 people and a dog, 3 nights from Sunday to Wednesday in July or August (160 € per weeknight, 3-night minimum): 480 € for the nights + 360 € for the 5th to 8th guests + 100 € cleaning + 38.40 € tax + 25 € for the dog = 1,003.40 €, about 125 € per person.
In these three cases the dog accounts for between 2.5% and 7% of the bill, and its share shrinks as the stay gets longer. A 300 € deposit applies on top, refunded after your stay. For 9 or 10 people, no rate is published: ask for a quote through the enquiry form. For more weekend budgets, read our article a chalet weekend with a spa: the real prices.
The voie verte trail
A whole house, for up to 10 people
Where to walk your dog around the chalet
The best news for dog owners is 30 metres from the house: the Hautes-Vosges voie verte, a traffic-free trail. According to the Vosges department's tourism website, it follows 55 kilometres of former railway line, towards Bussang in the Moselle valley and towards Cornimont in the Moselotte valley, and pets are accepted on it. The French greenways association (AF3V) describes a smooth tarmac surface 3 metres wide, and places the fork between the two branches at Dommartin-lès-Remiremont.
Two habits are worth keeping, though. The trail is shared with bikes, rollerbladers, scooters and, in winter, cross-country skiers: the AF3V asks dog owners to keep their dog on a lead and not to block the way with it. A short lead works better than a retractable one stretched across the path. And because the route is flat, it also suits puppies and older dogs that are not up to mountain trails.
Two kilometres away, the lake at Remiremont (the plan d'eau) is the classic summer trap: the Remiremont tourist office states that animals are banned from the entire site in July and August, during the lifeguarded swimming season. In summer, keep the voie verte for the dog and the lake for the humans.
Further afield, Lake Gérardmer, about 25 kilometres from the chalet, can be walked all the way round on a waymarked 5.5-kilometre footpath. The Gérardmer tourist office specifies that dogs may only swim outside the designated bathing areas, so no dogs on the supervised beaches.
In the forests and on the heights, the Ballons des Vosges Regional Nature Park points out two rules. From 15 April to 30 June, the wildlife breeding season, it is forbidden to walk a dog off the lead in the forest away from the paths. All year round, a dog off the lead must stay within earshot and less than 100 metres from its owner. Some protected natural areas ban dogs even on a lead: the rule varies from site to site, so read the sign at the entrance before setting off.
- Hautes-Vosges voie verte, 30 m away: pets accepted, dog on a lead, all year round.
- Remiremont lake, 2 km away: animals banned from the entire site in July and August.
- Lake Gérardmer, about 25 km away: 5.5 km waymarked footpath; dogs may swim only outside the bathing areas.
- Forests of the massif: lead required away from paths from 15 April to 30 June; some protected areas closed to dogs, even on a lead.
Arriving and settling in with a dog
Check-in is from 5 pm and self-guided: entry instructions are sent to you once your booking is confirmed, and check-out is by 11 am. The private, secure 5-space car park on site means you can unload the car without holding the dog at the roadside. If you come by train, Remiremont station is 3 kilometres away; the local taxi service, Taxi Chol, covers the area, so mention your dog when you book the ride.
The chalet is a family home and the neighbours deserve some quiet, especially in the evening. If your dog struggles to stay alone in an unfamiliar place, plan your days around it: a day skiing at Gérardmer or La Bresse, both under 30 kilometres away, is easier to organise once you know who stays with the dog.
Bed linen is provided for every bed; for the dog, bring its own things. Here is the list we suggest packing in the boot:
- Its usual blanket or bed, so it has a spot of its own from the first evening
- Bowls and food (supermarkets are 2 kilometres away to top up)
- A short lead for the voie verte, which is shared with cyclists
- An old towel for muddy, wet or snowy paws
- Plenty of poo bags
- Its vaccination record and your vet's phone number
- A toy or a chew for the moments when the group is in the spa
A whole chalet when a big group travels with a dog
Several families travelling together with a dog often hit the same wall: a cottage that takes pets but is too small for the group, or a large house that refuses animals. Chalet de la Poirie sleeps up to 10 people, never more, across two floors that are always let together: 115 m² of living space, two double bedrooms, two fitted kitchens, two bathrooms and a heated 80 m² terrace.
The wellness area, with the heated outdoor hot tub, sauna, steam shower and whirlpool bath, is reserved for your group alone, with no time slots: see the spa and wellness page. If you are comparing large rentals, our article a Vosges chalet for 10 people sets out how the beds are arranged.
Booking with a dog, step by step
Start with the availability calendar on the booking page: dates already taken are shown in red. Then fill in the form: arrival and departure dates, number of travellers (1 to 4, 5 to 8 or 9 to 10) and, in the message, a line about your dog, for example "one medium-sized dog, 6 years old, used to holiday homes". We reply within 24 hours, and an enquiry commits you to nothing.
As for terms, cancellation is free up to 14 days before arrival, 50% is refunded between 14 and 5 days before, and nothing is refunded less than 5 days before arrival. Worth knowing if the trip also depends on an older dog's health. To plan your days out, see the area.
