Coeur d’Alene is the largest city in North Idaho and is surrounded by dozens of lakes left behind by the glaciers from the ice age. There are more than 55 lakes within driving distance of Coeur d’Alene, but none more scenic and fuller of activities than Lake Coeur d’Alene itself.

While Coeur d’Alene isn’t the most dog friendly place we’ve ever visited (California still tops the list!), there are several activities that are dog friendly that can easily fill a weekend. Keep reading for things to know when visiting Coeur d’Alene with your dog and for a list of activities to help plan your itinerary.

THINGS TO KNOW FOR YOUR VISIT TO COEUR D’ALENE WITH YOUR DOG

How to say Coeur d’Alene and where the name came from

Coeur d'Alene is pronounced core-da-lane and is a term coined by French Canadian fur trappers that means “heart of an awl.” Not to be confused with an owl, an awl is a small pointed piercing tool. The fur trappers used it to describe the indigenous Schitsu'umsh people who called the area home before settlers arrived. The locals refer to Coeur d’Alene as CDA and Lake City, while it’s sister city Post Falls just next door is referred to as River City.

When to visit Coeur d’Alene

The busiest times of the year are June - August and December - March, which can make the town a bit more crowded for what is usually a pretty private and quiet place to visit. We heard that CDA reminds a lot of people of Tahoe. Even during busy season, the crowds weren’t like Tahoe, but we’d take Tahoe over CDA any day.

Where to stay

The popular Coeur d’Alene Resort is the premier hotel in the region and is dog friendly. There are also the usual hotel chains - some that are dog friendly - and home rentals through AirBnB and VRBO. We were planning to just stay in our AirBnB rental, but when fires in Oregon sped up our road trip, we landed at the Holiday Inn Express I-90 for the holiday weekend. The Holiday Inn isn’t our typical lodging choice, but this particular Holiday Inn did have an exterior entrance from our room that was a nice plus for a hotel stay.

Dining out in Coeur d’Alene

The food in Coeur d’Alene isn’t anything to rave about. You’ll find that everywhere basically serves American fare and if you’re used to eating relatively healthy or are vegetarian/vegan, you might struggle a bit with meals. In fact, our favorite meals were a to-go salad and pizza from Fire Pizza that we took to McEuen Park for a picnic one evening and an açaí bowl (better than the smoothies) from The Wellness Bar. As you plan your meals either plan to cook at a BnB or research the menus and confirm that the outdoor seating is dog friendly. Just because a restaurant has a patio in Coeur d’Alene does not mean its dog friendly. We ran into this our first day visiting and were pretty shocked, so we always called ahead for the rest of the trip. Places that were dog friendly that we ate at included: Terre Coffee & Bakery, The Vault, The Wellness Bar, Crafted Tap House + Kitchen, Collective Kitchen, Fire Pizza, and Sweet Lou’s.

Coeur d'Alene is just 15 miles from the border of Washington state and just 33 miles from Spokane

Coeur d’Alene definitely has some small-time vibes and if you’re looking to make a longer trip to the area, consider heading over to Spokane for a bigger city option.

Coeur d’Alene has small town vibes but is growing

Coeur d'Alene is the fastest growing metropolitan area in the fastest growing state in the country. Projected population growth for 2035 is 81,000. This can apparently be attributed to Californians fleeing the Golden State for the lower cost of living in Coeur d'Alene and the conservative politics. We heard the locals of CDA are not the biggest fans of people from CA, so we kept that a bit under wraps while we were visiting.

Only nature lovers should visit CDA

The main attractions in CDA involve the outdoors. The available outdoor activities will vary based on the season, of course, with hiking, mountain biking, and rafting being popular in the summer, and skiing, snowboarding, and snowshoeing rising to the forefront in the winter.

DOG FRIENDLY ITINERARY FOR COEUR D’ALENE

Because there is so much to do outside when visiting Coeur d’Alene, that means there’s a lot of things you can do with your dog. From walking around downtown to hitting the water for a scenic cruise or lazing in the several parks around the city and making your way around Tubbs Hill, you’ll find the perfect balance of adventure and relaxation.

This map was made with Wanderlog, a road trip planner app on iOS and Android

ENJOY ALL THE GREENSPACE

The green space around the city is abundant. You have the options of a dog park within the biggest park of the city, so much open grass you’ll want to eat all your meals picnic style and connected trails for hiking and biking.

McEuan Park

This 22.5-acre park is located at 504 East Front Avenue with parking available on 3rd Street (hourly rate applies 7-days a week 24-7). This park boasts the city’s largest playground, a splash pad, tennis/pickle ball court, basketball court, off-leash dog park, Avista Pavilion, the Rotary Harbor House (that is a waterfront concession stand/restroom facility), the sea wall overlook, grand plaza, Veterans Memorial, and 4-acre grassy area. This park also hosts a boat launch and a trail head for Tubbs Hill. The 60-mile Centennial Trail that begins at Nine Mile Falls, Washington and ends at Higgins Point on Coeur d'Alene Lake also runs right through the middle of McEuen Park.

We found ourselves keeping a blanket in the car at all times because we’d always end up back at this park lazing under a tree in the shade, enjoying the waterfront breeze and watching whatever sports game was happening on the lawn.

City Park

Coeur d'Alene City Park has a swim beach, basketball courts, picnic tables throughout the park, grills, drinking fountains, sand volleyball courts, restrooms, and off-street parking. Dogs are not allowed on this beach, but you can walk the sidewalk trail cutting through that will lead to some really cool houses to look at along Lakeshore Dr.

City Park connects to Independence Point which is where you’ll head to board the Scenic Cruise on Lake Coeur D’Alene, but more on that below.

HIKE TUBBS HILL

Tubbs Hill is a 2 mile heavily trafficked loop trail that’s good for all skill levels. The trail is primarily used for hiking, walking, running, and fishing and is best used from May until October. The trail is dog friendly and can be picked up from McEuen Park.

This popular path loops around Tubbs Hill just south of downtown Coeur d'Alene and offers amazing lake views with trails to secluded dog friendly beaches. Take in the views of Harrison Slough, and then loop back to where you started.

Although this trail is mostly flat for the first mile, the trail is narrow, dirt and has many obstacles such as rocks and roots.

TAKE A SCENIC LAKE RIDE ON THE LAKE COEUR D’ALENE CRUISES

The Lake Coeur d'Alene Cruise hits the water for 90-minutes and you can learn about the lake’s history, see wildlife, view secluded lake homes along the shore and cruise alongside the world’s only Floating Green along the way. Cruises depart daily from Independence Point all summer long for scenic tours, holiday specials, late morning brunch and evening sunset dinner cruises. Dogs are allowed on the daily cruises, but not the holiday/specialty cruises. Only your humans will need tickets and boarding is on a first come, first serve basis. Plan to board 30 minutes early to grab a good spot up top or on the below open decks. Us doggos are not allowed in the indoor seating area.

EXPLORE DOWNTOWN CDA

Downtown Coeur d'Alene is a tree-lined strip along Sherman Ave with shops, restaurants, galleries, and businesses for about a half of a mile. This where are the restaurants and coffee shops are and all the parks are located just a few blocks off Sherman.

Stop in The Labrador Store & More located in The Resort’s Plaza Shops. The shop is dedicated to dogs and is filled with dog collars, toys, apparel, and dog-themed housewares. It’s the perfect place to pick up a souvenir for your furry travel companion, although the selection of Doodle-related items are limited.

WALK THE LONGEST FLOATING BOARDWALK IN THE WORLD

Coeur d’Alene has the longest floating boardwalk in the world and its dog friendly. The boardwalk is part of The Coeur d’Alene Resort, but it is free and open to anyone, not just resort guests. The boardwalk starts on one side of the resort, loops in front of the resort and ends on the other side to make a U. You can walk the whole thing in 15 minutes.

To us, the boardwalk is more like a floating dock but a nice way to get closer to the water and check out some boats.

Everything is also very dense in CDA so you can walk from McEuen Park to the boardwalk and then to the City Park all within an hour.