Lexma90

I have traveled in Europe, always independently (quite few times, but still not as much as we'd like). I'm considering a horseback riding trip/tour in Europe, however, as a chance to do something I've been doing more of at home (riding) as well as seeing more out-of-the-way sights. I've searched the web, found a couple of good-sounding trips, and have asked some inital questions of the tour operators.

Some of the trips go inn to inn and some stay at one location & ride from there. The group size for all is small. Obviously, a lot of time is spent riding, but all the trips have some non-horse side trips. They all stay in a small area, so there won't be any half-days in a bus. I'm apprehensive partly because of the whole tour thing - lack of control, choice of accomodations, and mostly, lack of dining choices, but the riding part really interests me.

I don't feel comfortable enough on a horse or in evaluating foreign horses or stables, or with a foreign language (and I'm totally intimidated at the thought of riding in England, Scotland or Ireland) to just go somewhere and stop off at a stable for a ride, so the only way I can do this is through an operator who'll do that for me.

I have a million questions more for the tour operators, but I would really appreciate input from the fine folks at Fodor's on what to consider, what to ask, and I'd really love to hear from any independent travelers who've taken a tour, why they did it, and what they got out of it. Help me fulfill my dream!

RachelG

We haven't done a horse tour, but we have done a lot of independent travel as well as some group stuff (hiking with Above the Clouds, kayaking with REI). Both are very enjoyable. The good thing about the tour is that you don't have to worry about a lot of logistics. Certainly, if I were going on a horseback tour in Europe, I would go with a group--only way to do it really. There was actually one of these groups staying at our hotel in Spain last year, and they appeared to be having a really good time. The hotel where we were staying was really nice and the food was great--actually on all the group stuff we have done, that has been the case. We have stayed in places like I would have picked anyway, and food choices have been fine.
However, I would not consider a horseback tour unless I had ridden a lot, or at least had discussed what kind of riding was involved with the people actually running it. We have horses, and I ride frequently, but I don't like to "go fast", so you need to know what you're getting into ahead of time. Also, they mostly have English saddles, whereas I have only ridden Western, so I would recommend checking that out ahead of time.

Christina

well, I ride some and have taken tours and know of some good riding tours, but my feeling from your post is that you are focusing on the tour issue and relating it to Globus, Trafalgar, etc., and riding group tours just can't be compared to those. The main focus of such tours would be the terrain (really important for what kind of ride you want), quality of horse, type of saddle and tack, experience of guide, safety, number of hours riding each day, are all rides guided or can you ride independently, etc. I assume the tours that you've found that move have your personal items transported for you, that's the norm. All of these are horseback riding issues, of course, not related to the tour itinerary. For this kind of tour, that is really what you need to know.

For other issues, I suppose it's like other tours in that you have to get an idea of the quality and size and comfort level of the accommodations, and type of food. The horseback riding tours I've seen wouldn't really allow a lot of extra time for typical sightseeing and that wouldn't be an issue to focus on regarding evaluation, besides you'll be tired at night.

I just think your concerns about lack of control, dining options, etc., are not that pertinent for riding vacations. If you only want to ride an hour on a vacation, I think it would be better for you to rent a horse at a stable instead, although that will be more in rural areas, of course. If you aren't comfortable enough on a horse to evaluate a stable or rental horses for a one-hour ride by appearance of the stables and horses, you'd have to find a riding vacation that is geared to beginners, I guess, and it may be more than you want to do as all the ones I've seen involve hours in the saddle. I can't ride more than about 3-4 hours a day myself without being crippled the next day because I don't ride frequently.

I think reputation is very important for this kind of tour and might go by that. Equitours is a very good firm.

ira

Hi Lexma,

Great idea. Keep in mind that tours, such as yours, that have a theme are not the same as the usual bus tours.

Lexma90

Thank you all for your comments - they're reassuring. The horse trips sound, to me, more like the more high-end small group tours my parents have taken, which are theme-based on cooking or hiking (except the horse ones aren't high-end), but as I haven't taken any of either, I didn't know for sure. (And my parents are looking for an entirely different experience in travel than I am - I don't want to be taken care of, except for the part involving horses!)

I ride English, so that's no problem, and I've already started grilling tour operators (Equitours among them) about the horses, terrain, difficulty level, etc.

Christina, could I ask you some questions specifically about horse trips, as you said you'd been on some? You can email me at [email protected].

Lexma90

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