Provence, France
Personal experience:
“I had a great time in the Provence, what a beautiful country! I enjoyed
staying at the main guesthouse, which is rustic, but has a lot of
atmosphere. First of all, it has a real feeling of a country stay, with
the paddocks right beside the rooms, so you can see and hear the horses
at all times. There is a nice grassy yard set up with eating tables and
hammocks. Dinners are eaten outside in the summer, prepared by amazing
chef, Gael, who also happens to be a DJ, so you will never lack good
music when he’s around! He will surprise you with impressive looking and
tasting French and international dishes. The picnic lunches while on the
rides were amazing too. They’d bring up a tablecloth and a variety of
dishes, salads, breads and cheeses, local wine, and set up a yummy
gourmet picnic in the middle of nowhere! And of course, the Provence is
just perfect country for horseback riding. It has the most amazing
scenery, especially in early summer, when the lavender fields bloom. We
rode across vineyards, forests, meadows, and one of my highlights: we
went swimming in the river with the horses! Another beautiful experience
for me was to witness one of the girl guides initiating a young horse
into the saddle. I saw how she patiently first showed him the bridle and
the saddle, and then started fitting him with the gear, very slowly and
respectfully, always patting and reassuring him. And he would willingly
allow it because he trusted her! She then made attempts to mount, she
put some weight on his back so he would get used to how it felt. One
step at a time, she finally mounted and was helped by Cedric, who was
holding the horse by the reins. And they went for a little walk. I will
never forget the shine in the eyes of that horse, his youth showing, his
look of wonder and curiosity, and above all, his trust in the girl who
was working with him. I feel blessed and honoured for having this
experience, for being there to witness this magic happening, and the
beauty of natural horsemanship. I am touched by it even when I’m writing
these lines…”.
Horse story:
“I rode lovely Kaki, a cross-bred that I couldn’t really identify, a
short but strong and sturdy mount. I confess at first I wasn’t so
thrilled when they assigned him to me, I wanted a bigger, fancier horse…
but most of them were away working on another trail. So there was Kaki
for me, and he taught me a lesson: he turned out to be the sweetest
horse, so patient and with such good disposition! I loved him dearly. It
was amazing to go swimming with him in the river. When I asked our
guide, Cedric: “Does he like to swim? He said: “Mmm, depends.
Sometimes”. This was not very encouraging... Nontheless, the start
seemed good; he went right in. Yes, but to drink! When he was done, he
played a little with his front legs in the water, and then he made a
sneaky attempt to go back to the beach. Almost at the edge of the low
water we stood, the two of us, pondering… I didn’t want to push him, so
gave him some time, then slowly tried to coax him back in. After a bit
of hesitation he finally agreed and in we went, splashing around
joyfully. He was powerful in the water! And he looked so cute sticking
his nose up to the sky! And one more adorable memory: one night I
decided to go out to the paddocks to visit the horses, under the bright
moon. Kaki came to say hi and I gave him a back massage, in gratitude
for all his nice work carrying me along amazing country and adventures.
With a balancing movement, my palms pressed against his spine, I moved
him from side to side in a gentle rocking… He loved it! He was so
relaxed; his eyes were closing in delight… and it was such a delightful
experience for me too!”
Vicenza Veneto, North of Italy
Personal experience:
“This is a wonderful place, it’s
just how you imagine Italy! I can’t say enough about it. Beautiful, lush
and green country, delicious food and entertaining hosts, where you will
get to stay at a spacious and comfortable farmhouse, with very nice and
tastefully decorated rooms overlooking the paddocks. And you will get to
ride the most awesome and fast quarter horses ever! These horses are
exceptional, fit, well trained, so willing and responsive! They are a
real pleasure to ride. You will canter on grassy hills, ride across
forests, villages, churches and castles. But the highlight for me, was
riding in the mountains near Malga San Giorgio. The landscape here is
incredible: perfect green hills and slopes crossed by white dusty roads,
scattered with small ponds, pasturing cows, goats and sheep, on a
background of high snow caped peaks and impressive rock formations. We
were taken on a beautiful old-fashioned carriage pulled by two gorgeous
Lippizan horses and driven by a friend of Antonella, who is the
president of the Italian Carriage Association. He is a delightful man
himself, and has a masterful command of the carriage and the horses; it
is impressive to see what he can get them do by just using his soft
voice. This is one of
the most beautiful and scenic experiences I’ve ever had in my life. I will confess
the beauty of it was such; it made me want to cry…. Highly recommend it!
Antonella can arrange to take guests, especially non-riders, through
these highlands on the carriage. It’s so worth doing it! We stopped for
lunch at a small country eatery/cheese factory, where we had some home
made ñoquis and local wine, while the horses were grazing nearby. Then
we visited the cheese factory where visitors can buy some fresh
cheeses”.
Horse story:
“On my stay, I got to ride the beautiful and spirited Charly. He is such
a sweetheart of a horse. Antonella called for an experienced rider for
this horse, and I volunteered. Not that he was difficult or anything,
he’s just very eager and happy to go. It felt like as if he was trying to
read my mind, guessing that I wanted to increase the pace, even before I
knew it! But he is very sensitive and we got along perfectly. He had an
amazing start and the fastest gallop I’ve ever experienced. So
thrilling, but it never felt unsafe because he was very responsive and
smooth to stop, no problem. This is what I call a well-trained and happy
horse.
I couldn’t state enough how much I loved it here, everything: country,
farmhouse, hosts, food and horses!”
Crete, Greece
Personal experience:
“This is a wonderful place to go for a holiday, where you will get to
really relax and experience the island of Crete from up high, in a
mountainous setting, with beautiful views of the valley. Our partners are exceptional hosts, gracious and very pleasant company, they
try hard to look after guests and they will make you feel at home.
Manolis is an extra friendly, very funny guy, with lots of charisma. He
is a multi-tasker: besides running the hotel accommodation, he’s in
charge of the cooking and helps with the horses. The other guests and I
really enjoyed his old greek stories and fables after dinner. Sabine,
his partner, is Dutch and she runs the stables and is the main guide.
She’s very knowledgeable about horses. The atmosphere at the hotel and
surroundings is quiet and serene. The mountains at the back of the hotel
turn orange with the sunset light, so beautiful and romantic. I visited
in June, the season when the loud tzitzikis are out and about. This
variety of cicada hangs out by the millions on the olive trees
everywhere, chirping non-stop their mating song, and blending the
soundtrack of the long, dreamy summer days in Crete. Picture this:
riding in the mountains, in between hundreds of olive trees, with the
tzitziki singing at the background, climbing up high, watching the
vultures soar from the high peaks above your head against a clear blue
sky, with stunning views underneath, cliffs and rocks, and jumping goats
that appear out of nowhere. It’s amazing! It was a real adventure on the
second day, to go down an old donkey path, very narrow and rocky, on
foot with our horses, to get to the Lassithi plateau, were we enjoyed a
long canter on flat roads, between windmills and crops. I specially
enjoyed swimming in the sea with the horses. It was at the end of a
day’s riding, when we reached a small coast village where we spent the
night. We took the horses to a stony beach and started walking them in…
This was my first time and was very excited and a bit nervous. Sabine
helped me get going and my horse Mangas, who I rode that day, was quite
fond of water and he went in jumping like he was a dolphin! Once we were
in deeper water he settled, I was holding his mane and we went for the
most wonderful swim, were gliding together smoothly. After the riding,
each day, we’d come back to the hotel for a refreshing swim in the pool,
perhaps a greek coffee or a drink at the restaurant’s panoramic terrace,
and a plentiful and delicious dinner afterwards. A truly enjoyable
riding holiday!”
Horse story:
“I rode Eros most of the days, a handsome and tall thoroughbred, he is
the son of one of their mares, Mama, and was born at the stables. He is
very sweet and forward-going but calm at the same time. I enjoyed riding
him up the mountain trails and specially his comfortable rhythm in trot
and canter. He had some muscle soreness after a few days, so I switched
to Selini, a mare who has a slower pace, but will still take you
anywhere you want to go and is a good riding horse. Mangas was my
companion in the water, the dolphin-horse!”
Catalonia, Spain
Personal experience:
“I spent some amazing riding days in Catalonia! The main house,
Can Muni, is very much a country home, old and built mainly on stone, I
got the feeling I was walking in the Middle Ages while there. The first
day of the Mountain to Sea trail, we started riding through soft hills
and meadows that were full of butterflies everywhere – I have never seen
so many together, fluttering around! After the picnic lunch and a siesta
in the middle of a pine forest, we headed off to a beautiful lookout
point were we could see the ocean not far down. That was our destination
for the day, a beach hotel by the village of San Martí de Empurias. We
arrived there around 4pm, and had time to go for a walk and a swim at
the beach, where a group of fishermen were casting their lines from the
shore. There was a little beach bar too, were we had a beer. After a
varied dinner with different courses, we went to bed because the next
day was an early start. We got up at 6 A.M. and I’m not sure what time we hit
the beach, but the sun was out and a pale golden light was shining on
the horses and us. This was my absolute highlight of the trip: the most
amazing non-stop beach canter ever! What a thrill! It was the longest
canter I’ve ever done, we would just keep going and going, always by the
edge of the water, which is where the sand is harder and safer for the
horses to gallop. The feel of the salty sea air on the face, the
beautiful morning light, the horse’s mane undulating to the wind, the
sound of the splashing hoofs - it was a delightful experience of pure
adrenalin and joy! I definitely recommend it to any intermediate and
experienced rider!”
Horse story:
“I rode an amazing horse, Altiu, a beautiful golden coloured
English-Arab cross who used to compete in endurance races. Because of
this, he’s tireless and has the longest breath ever! I noticed how fit
and used to the long trails he was, when we arrived at camp at the end
of the riding days, and the other horses were sweaty, but he wasn’t – he
looked like he’d just come back from a pleasurable little go out! At
first I noticed he was just a little wary of me, like wondering who this
new rider was, and when cleaning his feet on the first day I met him, he
moved around a little nervous. But after a while of riding he got
confident and relaxed, and I got the feeling he would happily take me to
the end of the world! Or at least on the most wonderful beach canter
ever! I felt so safe riding him, he was very sure-footed, never tripped,
willing and forward going, but never tried to run away and was very
sensitive and responsive to what I asked of him. A sweet, awesome and
very handsome horse”.
Terradelles, Girona. Catalonia, Spain
Personal experience:
“I greatly enjoyed my stay at Mas Alba and riding around the surrounding
countryside. The house is a big old catalan masía, full of history. The
rooms are comfortable, with their own bathroom and decorated in a
country style. It has a big dinning room that opens to a backyard with a
swimming pool and nice views. There is a goat cheese factory in the
premises, so you will be delighted everyday, sampling different types of
fresh cheeses! I went on a couple of pleasurable day rides, on forest
trails, meadows and hills. We crossed a river and had lunch at a small
village restaurant. The highlights for me were the canters on flat
plains and forest trails, and especially riding along the sunflower
fields! How much beauty and bright colours all around! Just the perfect
spot for a photo session! Another thing I really enjoyed was the visit
to the Senillosa Purebred Spanish breeding farm. The farm is in itself a
work of art; it has a big lagoon with ducks and swans, and extensive
green fields and pastures. Here we were introduced to the most beautiful
Spanish horses; impressive stallions and sweet mares with their foals,
and we were offered a riding demonstration - an amazing display of fine
training and movement”.
Horse story:
“I rode Café, a Spanish purebred 6-year-old horse that even being so
young, was well trained and responsive. He is in fact one of, if not the
most, comfortable horse I’ve ever ridden. He has the softest movements
and flow. His trot and canter felt like riding on heaven! He’s a
fantastic horse. Our guide, Katrin, told me how it is very common that
riders who come here on holiday fall in love with their horses and then
offer to buy them! I would have certainly loved to keep Café for myself.
Their horses are trained using natural horsemanship methods, and live in
outside paddocks year round, which I think accounts for well balanced
and calm horses that are tempered in character, used to life outside, so
they don’t spook easily”.
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