Last year, vacationers brought roughly 9,000 dogs and cats to Hawaii. That was 3,000 more pets than in 2003, when Hawaii first loosened up its rules regarding out-of-state pets, according to this AP story. Under its new rules, the state allows visitors to bring their dogs and cats if they can document that their pets are free of rabies and if they pay a fee of $165 per pet. Pets had previously been quarantined for 120 days. Since Hawaii threw a bone to vacationers by changing its rules, more hotels have been setting aside rooms offering creature comforts.

Cat and dog owners traveling anywhere in the U.S.--not just Hawaii--can find a list of accommodations by turning to PetsOnTheGo.com and PetsWelcome.com. Dog owners, in particular, may learn some new tricks on how to travel with a pooch by reading this Budget Travel article.