Airbnbs are a popular way to travel, especially when you are planning on traveling with a group, and you may want to bring your emotional support animal (ESA) with you when you visit your next Airbnb.
However, it is not always possible to bring your companion animal on your trip, and it is important to understand Airbnb ESA policy when traveling so you don’t run into any unexpected surprises.
What Is an ESA?
An emotional support animal is any animal that provides comfort and companionship to individuals with mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, and chronic stress, among many other conditions. ESAs are not trained to perform tasks related to their human’s condition, though they do provide a lot of relief and comfort with their presence.
Emotional support animals must be prescribed by a therapist or another licensed mental healthcare professional, and an ESA letter must be obtained if you wish for your ESA to be valid.
Do ESAs Have the Same Protections as Service Animals?
Emotional support animals do not have the same protections as service animals. ESAs are not trained to perform disability-related tasks, and they are only granted housing accommodations. Comparatively, service animals are granted much wider-reaching public access protections.
Airbnb ESA Policy: Can I Bring My ESA With Me?
In most locations, Airbnb hosts can deny your ESA. This is because emotional support animals are only granted federal protections when it comes to the housing they live in with you; when traveling, your ESA can, and most likely will, be treated like a pet and subject to all applicable pet fees and restrictions.
That being said, hosts in California and New York may be required to accept your emotional support animal, as local and state laws offer wider protections for emotional support animals that allow owners to bring their companion animals with them to Airbnbs.
You will need to check directly with Airbnb hosts about bringing your ESA to your stay with you, but expect to be denied or subject to pet rules and restrictions in most cases.
Do Airbnbs Accept Service Dogs?
Service dogs are fully protected by Airbnb policy, and service dogs have both federal and state access protection. If you have a service dog, you will need to inform the host that you will be bringing them with you, and you will need to ensure that your service dog remains well-behaved; service dogs that are not properly trained or are out of control may be subject to removal from an Airbnb based on their behavior.
What Documents Do I Need for My ESA?
Documentation is an essential part of identifying your emotional support animal and making sure that your ESA can take advantage of housing accommodations as needed. When you are requesting accommodations from an Airbnb, hotel, or your landlord, you should make sure to present your ESA letter, something that is written for you by your licensed mental healthcare provider.
Only your landlord is required to accept this documentation and provide housing accommodations as requested, as long as they are not unreasonable requests. Hotels and Airbnbs are not required to accept these documents, and you may find that your ESA is treated much like a pet even with your ESA letter in these spaces.
After obtaining an ESA letter, you can register your ESA if you’d like to get additional benefits like having extra documents, free legal support, and the ability to have your animal’s registration status online. All of which can help you exercise your ESA rights much more confidently, even though they aren’t legally required.
Understanding Airbnb ESA Policy and Keeping Your ESA at Your Side
Keeping your emotional support animal at your side is something that many individuals find comforting, though this may not always be possible. ESAs are granted protected housing accommodations only, and you may not be able to take your companion animal with you to an Airbnb that does not allow animals; if an Airbnb does allow animals, you can expect your ESA to be treated much like a regular pet.
If you find that you need more support when traveling, you may want to talk to your therapist or doctor about adding a trained service animal to your treatment plan instead.
