had wanted to go on a dressage holiday and it was certainly that. The dressage teaching, schoolmaster level of the horses and therefore the level of execution possible even for me was to a level that I have not been able to access at local riding schools.

Horses were excellent.

I was very impressed with the quality of the horses and their training and I was very pleased with how much I learned.

Excellent instructors and wonderful horses. Tack somewhat stiff - especially the reins which is difficult for people with small hands.

It rained and was cold the whole stay, so we weren’t able to ride outside. Other than that I had a wonderful time there! I found one horse that I liked, and others that I didn’t like that much..

Good or Very Good

Excellent

Excellent

Good or Very Good

Good or Very Good

Yes it did.

Good or Very Good

Excellent

Yes, it was good. Maybe a little more variety of the exercises and horses.

Very good instruction, good accommodation and meals. A lovely setbup

All 3 instructors very good
Patient and gave me a chance to try new things

I needed to refresh my basic riding skills and learn basic introductory skills in dressage, these were all met.

The horses were in small boxes after Danish conditions and did not get out in fields while we were there. The saddles were somewhat different, both newer Kentauer and very old Passions saddles. There were, however, generally used with gel saddle pads.

Good or Very Good

I've done this holiday twice before and this time I was surprised at how 'naughty' the horses were. There was quite a bit of spooking and bucking and one woman's horse reared up. I thought it was quite good fun really, but I can imagine not everyone would feel like that. [In The Saddle comment: We are sorry to hear that you had these experiences with the horses. This is unusual to hear and we will investigate this further with our partners.]

For the very last lesson I was put on the most fantastic, responsive horse ever and when I asked why I wasn't put on him before I was told that they didn't think I was capable!

George wasn't there. It was just Paolo and Renato that were teaching and their teaching style is mostly wait until something goes wrong and then shout. Neither of them liked to be questioned or challenged.

But, nevertheless, I got to do loads of riding, eat some lovely home-cooked food and meet some nice interesting people.

Excellent

Had a very enjoyable experience learning the more advanced moves of dressage on school master horses. All of the horses I rode at Alcainca were well trained, safe but forward! Instruction was clear and easy to follow.

The horses were very nice. The outdoor arena was under repair and the indoor arena was a bit small - especially when we rode 3 people (they even suggested we had to ride 4).
It's a bit bad that you had to ride in a row, as only the 1st rider got an experienced "self-riding".
The instruction was generally nice after some initial difficulties understanding the orders. One a time we had to find George on the terrain 1/2 hour after the agreed start of riding and then agree for another time for a lesson. A little annoying for our day planning, when we were 4 persons, who has to coordinate. Otherwise, all riding was very nice.

Very well-trained horses. Paulo was a very pleasant teacher.
I think the lessons were a little too short.

Good to get control on the lateral movements - shoulder in etc

Went not really knowing what to expect and was very pleasantly surprised. Horses were all excellent, and staff all extremely knowledgeable, kind and pleasant.

Excellent

I was accommodated with the lessons to suit my riding ability. The instructors are very passionate about the correct use of the aids and sometimes could get a little frustrated, probably due to the language getting lost in translation.
Overall I learnt lots.