Best of Spot Cool Stuff 2009: Animal Travel

Spot Cool Stuff loves the nexus between travel and animals, whether it is traveling to see animals or traveling with animals or traveling to hop into a bath next to an animal. We are such fans that we’ve created an entire animal travel category for our posts.

So what were our favorite animal travel articles of 2009?

Two of our most popular animal travel posts over the last year took us to Japan:

Bathing With Monkeys – Near Nagano, Japan there’s a traditional inn and hot springs. While bathing in those hot springs you may be joined by some very nontraditional companions. (See photo, above)

The Cat Cafes of Tokyo – The Japanese capital has several establishments offering a purrrrrfect cuppa. We reviewed our three favorite.

Spot Cool Stuff also posted practical advice on traveling with your pets:

Pet Airways: The Airline Designed Specifically For Pets is about world’s first—and thus far only—airline that flies dogs and cats (but not people!) in the main cabin. Pet Airways launched in 2009 and has an eye on expanding their route coverage in 2010.

We also reviewed the Best Websites For Finding Pet-Friendly Accommodations. And, while you are staying with your dog in one of those hotels, carry on a conversation with your Rover using this dog-to-human language translator.

But our favorite animal travel post of 2009 was . . . drumroll please. . .

Take one look at our photos from the fun lodge in the suburbs of Nairobi, Kenya and you’ll see why we were so taken with this place.

Coming in 2010

Early in the new year look for the second half of our two-part series about South Africa’s best safari lodges. In 2009 we reviewed 7 Amazing & Luxurious South Africa Safari Lodges. Next up: our review of inexpensive, high value South African safari accommodations. (Sneak peak: we will be cheating and include one amazing discount lodge in neighboring Swaziland).

In 2010 we’ll also visit a restaurant where the waiters are monkeys. (Really! Literally monkeys! Insert a bad joke about going bananas here). We’ll also delve into an unusual scuba diving opportunity, stay in another odd hotel with an animal theme and visit a temple that’s populated by an unordinant number of animals that are, shall we say, among the last creatures you’d want scurrying around your place of worship.

To stay updated on all our travel posts, animal-themed and otherwise, follow us on Twitter, subscribe to our RSS feed, sign up to receive our posts by email (in the light blue box at the top right of every SCS travel page) or simply return back to our travel blog often.

Have an idea for cool animal-themed travel you’d like us to cover? Claw your way down to our comments section