Trail · SydneyThe Newtown Dog Friendly Pub Trail
Newtown might be the most dog friendly square kilometre in the country. King Street runs pubs almost door to door, and the remarkable thing is not that they allow dogs, it is how many wave them straight past the bar. Seven of the nine stops here take your dog inside. This is the run down King Street, north to south, from The Marly at the top to the Botany View at the St Peters end. Nobody expects you to do all nine in an afternoon, so pick three or four and make a Sunday of it.
Open the trail in Google Maps- 01
Start at the top of King Street. The Marly is a Newtown institution, a grand old art deco pub with a big beer garden out the back, and the first sign of how this suburb treats dogs: as a given, not an exception.
Inside the bar and out in the beer garden, though not on the low seating. Water bowls provided.
- 02
A short walk on, and one of the most dog obsessed pubs in Sydney. The Newtown Hotel runs a Dog of the Month program, which is not something a venue does unless it genuinely means it.
Welcome everywhere: front bar, upstairs bar and balcony, and the back courtyard. Staff are known to hand out treats and pats.
- 03
A natural wine and wild ferment pub that takes its food as seriously as its dogs. The one room your dog does not get is the table service restaurant, which still leaves most of the place open.
Inside throughout, bar the table service restaurant area. Stick to the bar and other spaces and you are fine.
- 04
Just off King on Australia Street, the Courty is the beating heart of the crawl and about as dog friendly as a Sydney pub gets. A big sunny courtyard, and dogs treated as regulars rather than guests.
Welcome throughout the entire venue, courtyard and bar, with water bowls inside. Dogs are actively encouraged, not just tolerated.
- 05
Around the corner and worth the few extra steps. 212 Blu spreads over a front bar, an upstairs bar and balcony, and a courtyard out back, and your dog is allowed in every one of them.
Welcome throughout: front bar, upstairs bar and balcony, and the courtyard out back. Water bowls provided.
- 06
The landmark on the corner, and the first stop where the dog stays outside. No great hardship, since the Garden Bar out the back is one of the better beer gardens on the strip.
Outdoor Beer Garden and Garden Bar only, until 10pm. Assistance animals are welcome throughout.
- 07
A break from the pubs for the brewery's Newtown taproom. Dogs are welcome inside, though the room is small, so this is one to hit before the after work crowd fills it up.
Dogs welcome inside, but space is limited. Arrive early, or head to the outdoor area when it gets busy.
- 08
You could not design a better stop for this walk if you tried. Dogge is a small, easy bar toward the St Peters end, named for exactly the reason you would hope.
Inside and out, front bar and beer garden. Water bowls and dog treats provided.
- 09
Finish at the far south end. The Botany View keeps dogs to the upstairs deck, which on a clear afternoon is the best seat on the whole walk to rest the legs and watch King Street go by.
Outdoor area only. Head up to the upstairs deck.
Dog owner FAQs
Which Newtown pubs let dogs inside?
Seven of the nine on this trail. The Marlborough, The Newtown Hotel, Odd Culture, the Courthouse, 212 Blu, Mountain Goat and Dogge all take dogs indoors, with the Courthouse and Newtown Hotel about as welcoming as Sydney pubs get. The Bank Hotel and the Botany View are beer garden and deck only.
Can I walk the whole Newtown pub trail with my dog?
Yes. Every stop sits on or just off King Street, running roughly north to south over about a kilometre and a half. Use the "Open the trail in Google Maps" button above to load the walking route with every pub as a waypoint.
Which is the most dog friendly pub in Newtown?
The Courthouse Hotel and The Newtown Hotel are the two that go furthest. The Courty welcomes dogs through the whole venue with water bowls at the bar, and the Newtown Hotel runs a Dog of the Month program and keeps treats behind the bar. At both, a dog reads as a regular rather than an exception.
Do the Newtown pubs have water bowls and treats?
Most of them. The Marly, the Courthouse, 212 Blu, The Newtown Hotel and Dogge all put water bowls out, and the Newtown Hotel and Dogge keep treats at the bar as well. Carry your own water too, since the walk from top to bottom adds up on a warm day.