San Diego

The city's historic dog beach, at the foot of Voltaire Street, off-leash and legal since 1972. The city lists it as open 24 hours all year, with free parking, showers and public restrooms.

An entire island in Mission Bay Park designated leash-optional across all its shoreline and interior, with a 5.2-mile loop. The bay water is calm and shallow, the only genuinely safe swim for a dog in San Diego.

The great 1,200-acre cultural park left by the 1915 exposition, open to leashed dogs across all its outdoor grounds. It holds three off-leash dog parks: Nate's Point, Morley Field and Grape Street. The museums and the zoo admit service animals only.

Sixty-eight acres of carved cliffs on the Pacific edge of Point Loma, created in 1983, with arches and sea caves below. Leashed dogs are allowed on the blufftop paths; the edges are unfenced and crumbling, so keep the lead short.

The off-leash run at the north end of North Beach, at 200 Ocean Boulevard, with Coronado's famous pale sand and the Hotel del Coronado behind. Note that the ferry does not carry pets, so you must arrive by car or on MTS bus 901.

The federal monument at the tip of Point Loma, with a panoramic view over the bay and the city. Only one trail is open to dogs, the Coastal Trail, on a leash of no more than 6 feet; the lighthouse, the tidepools and the Bayside Trail are closed to them.