Global - Technology - Review

April is National Pet Month and, to coincide with this, the leading cross-Solent operator Wightlink ( www.wightlink.co.uk) is launching Pawprint, a brand new 24-page illustrated booklet that is guaranteed to set tails wagging.  This is a guide with a difference, written by Isle of Wight dogs and their humans to spell out all the things that make the Island a great place for dogs to visit on holiday with their families.  With no requirement for a pet passport and free Wightlink ferry travel for dogs accompanied by their owners, it is an unbeatable holiday option for the canine community.

Pawprint includes the favourite haunts of a dozen Wight dogs and covers all four corners of the Island.  The dog reporters include Sherrie (left), an accomplished surfer dog, Daisy-May, the dog hotelier (above), and Breez, an experienced biker, who buzzes around West Wight in the sidecar of his owner's scooter or in a trailer on the back of his bike (below right).

Before emBARKing on the guide, Wightlink conducted a Pawprint Poll of over 100 dogs using its ferry terminals to find what holidaying hounds enjoy most.  The booklet provides information that covers all the key point made by dogs (and their owners) and recommends the best year-round beaches, woodland walks and cliff adventures - among them top-rated Appley Sands, Bembridge, The Duver, Parkhurst Forest and Tennyson Down.  Details of the most dog-friendly pubs and accommodation are also included.

Pawprint can be downloaded from the Isle of Wight Guide & Events section of the Wightlink website at www.wightlink.co.uk/pawprint and printed copies are available free by calling 0871 376 1000.

Take a Pawprint Break
A three-night weekend break in Tennyson Barn, one of seven luxurious self catering properties at Niton Barns in south coast Niton, costs from £217 per person (two sharing) and £30 per dog starting on either 13 or 27 April.  The one-bedroom barn is a great base from which to take downland walks and explore south coast beaches, where, if lucky, visitors might see Sherrie the surfer dog riding the waves on Compton Beach.  The Wightlink Green Getaways package includes return car ferry travel from Portsmouth or Lymington.

Alternatively, Yarborough Barn is available for three or seven nights from 27 April and sleeps four people.  The three-night Wightlink ferry inclusive Green Getaways package costs from £504 in total (four sharing) or £126 per person, plus £30 per dog, and a seven night holiday costs from £664 in total when four share or £166 per person.