Training while you travel
Holiday board and train in Houston: training while you travel
You are paying for boarding over the holidays anyway. The difference between a kennel and our home is that the dog comes back with a place command and a wait at the door instead of a cough and a habit of barking at the run next to him. Holiday board and train turns the trip you were already taking into the stretch that fixes the dog.
Last reviewed September 11, 2026 · by the Best Dog University Team
Who books over a holiday
Holiday board and train fits families who travel and families who host.
The family flying out. Thanksgiving in Dallas, Christmas with grandparents in Austin, spring break in Colorado. The dog needs somewhere to go for ten to fourteen days, and a Gold stay is the same length. Instead of paying for boarding and then paying for training separately in February, the two happen at once, and the go-home session lands when you are back.
The family hosting the holiday. If twenty relatives are coming to your house in Cinco Ranch on December 24, a dog who jumps, counter-surfs and bolts through the front door every time it opens is the thing that ruins it. A stay that ends a week before the guests arrive gives you a dog on place while the turkey is carved, and time to rehearse it.
The dog with a fireworks problem. New Year's Eve and July 4 are the two nights Houston dogs bolt, and a dog who panics at fireworks does better in a structured home with crate calm and a trainer than alone in a house with a sitter. Our trainers prepare for both nights inside the stay rather than hoping they pass.
- Travel over Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, spring break or July 4
- Hosting a houseful of guests and a dog who cannot cope
- Dogs who panic at fireworks and need structure on the loud nights
- Anyone who would otherwise be paying for boarding and training separately
Planning it backward from the flight
A holiday stay is planned from your travel dates, not from ours.
Drop-off is usually the day before you fly, at the Cypress home or with our $250 transport collecting the dog from your door while you pack. Holiday drop-offs are timed around traffic on 290 and 99, which is heavier the day before Thanksgiving than any other day of the year, and our team is available 6am to 9pm so an early handoff is not a problem.
The stay itself runs on the normal program, with two holiday specifics: guest rehearsal, where the dog holds place and a calm greeting while people come and go from the house, and fireworks preparation if the dates cross New Year's or July 4. The go-home session is booked for the day after you return, at the training home or at your house with transport, so the new rules are in place before the tree comes down.
Two to three months out: the free phone consultation and the $250 deposit, because holiday weeks are the first on the calendar to fill.
One month out: confirm the exact drop-off and return dates against your flights; add transport if you would rather not drive to Cypress on a travel day.
Drop-off day: the dog arrives with his food and records the day before you leave; the first day is crate, walk and rest.
The stay: Gold or Platinum on the standard curriculum, plus guest rehearsal at the front door and, on loud nights, crate calm with the household running as normal.
Return day: you land; the dog stays one more night so the handover is not rushed.
Go-home session: the day after you are back, at the Cypress home or at your door, with a plan for the guests, the doorbell and the leftovers.
Price and inclusions
Holiday board and train is $2,500 for Gold or $3,750 for Platinum, with no holiday surcharge.
Gold at $2,500 covers two weeks of sit/stay, place/stay, loose leash walking, door boundaries, jumping, pulling and impulse control, then a go-home session, one additional lesson and lifelong support. Platinum at $3,750 runs three weeks and layers on down/stay, a structured heel, behavior modification, field trips, the comprehensive handover and unlimited private lessons. The price does not change because the dates are Christmas.
The $250 reservation deposit. Holiday weeks fill before any other dates because the training home keeps a limited number of dogs and every family with a flight wants the same fortnight. After the free consultation, a $250 deposit through Reserve Your Spot holds your dates and is applied to the program. For Thanksgiving and Christmas, reserving in late summer is not too early.
- Standard pricing on every holiday date
- $250 transport on travel days, when driving to Cypress is the last thing you want
- $250 deposit holds the dates and is credited to the total
- Reserve Thanksgiving and Christmas by late summer
| Holiday window | Program that fits | Price | Included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving week or spring break, 10 to 14 days away | Gold Board & Train, 2 weeks | $2,500 | Sit/stay, place/stay, loose leash, door boundaries, impulse control, go-home session, additional lesson, lifelong support |
| Christmas through New Year's, 3 weeks away or a dog with reactivity | Platinum Board & Train, 3 weeks | $3,750 | Gold plus down/stay, structured heel, behavior modification, field trips, comprehensive handover, unlimited private lessons |
| Pick-up before the flight, return after | Transportation | $250 | Door-to-door with the first lesson at home; included in VIP |
Houston specifics
Houston holidays mean fireworks twice a year, a houseful of guests and a table full of hazards.
New Year's Eve and July 4 are loud in every neighborhood from Bridgeland to the Heights, and a dog who bolts through an open door on those nights can be miles away by morning. If a stay covers either date, the dog spends the evening in a crate in the quietest room with the household going about its business, and the AVMA's fireworks guidance is what our trainers follow and pass to you. A July 4 stay also runs on the full summer heat schedule.
Guests and food are the other holiday problem. A dog on place during dinner is the goal, and the stay rehearses it with people arriving, plates carried past and food left at counter height. The ASPCA's Animal Poison Control list is what we hand families for the table: chocolate, grapes, onions, xylitol and a turkey carcass are the ones that send Houston dogs to the emergency vet on December 25.
- Crate calm on New Year's Eve and July 4, prepared inside the stay
- Guest rehearsal at the front door and place during dinner
- A hazard list for the holiday table from ASPCA Animal Poison Control
- Holiday drop-offs timed around 290 and 99 traffic, with transport available
The programs
The two programs holiday travelers choose between.
Gold for a two-week trip and a dog who needs manners, Platinum for a longer break or a dog with reactivity. Our team confirms on the free call.
Asked and answered
Questions people ask about this.
Can I book board and train over Thanksgiving or Christmas?
Yes, and those are the first dates to fill each year. The training home keeps a limited number of dogs, so holiday weeks are reserved months ahead with the $250 deposit. Call our team by late summer for Thanksgiving or Christmas, and by January for spring break, and we will line the stay up with your flights.
Is holiday board and train more expensive?
No. Gold is $2,500 for two weeks and Platinum is $3,750 for three, on every date of the year. Transport is $250 if you would rather not drive to Cypress the day before a flight. The only thing that changes over a holiday is how early the dates need to be reserved.
What happens with my dog on New Year's Eve or July 4?
He spends the loud hours in a crate in the quietest room of the training home, with the household running normally around him, which is the same routine our trainers teach you for future years. Fireworks preparation is built into any stay that crosses those dates, and you see how he handled it in the next update.
Can the go-home session wait until I am back from my trip?
That is how holiday stays are scheduled. Your dog stays one extra night after you land so the handover is not squeezed into an airport day, and the go-home session happens the following day at the Cypress home or, with transport, at your door. The additional lesson in Gold follows a couple of weeks later.
Will my dog be ready for a house full of guests when he comes home?
He will come home with place, door boundaries and a calm greeting rehearsed with people coming and going, which is the foundation. The first real holiday dinner is a test, and the go-home session gives you the plan for it: place before the doorbell, a leash for the first few arrivals, and no food within reach.
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Tell our team your travel dates before the calendar fills.
The free phone consultation takes one call with our trainers. A $250 reservation deposit then holds your holiday dates, which are the first to go each year, and is applied toward the program.