Jackie who has been on 8 In The Saddle rides. Bottlenose Trail Portugal - A brilliant week of horse riding, scenery, guiding support and fun with friends | Exceeded expectations. I was concerned that it wouldn’t be enough riding as we had chosen a trail of 4-6 hours per day. But actually it was more than enough time in the saddle. Must be getting older! Scenery more varied and remote than expected. I don’t think we met anyone on the whole trail and only very little roadwork connection tracks with some spectacular views.

[In The Saddle replies: We really appreciate your feedback and are so pleased that your holiday exceeded your expectations.]

Casey (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Absolutely amazing! | It was absolutely perfect for my riding ability and what we were looking for. I am an intermediate rider and was matched perfectly with the right horse for me (Flash) and found the pace to be very comfortable. If anything, it was a bit slow / too much walking which would be the feedback from my husband who is a more advanced rider. But overall it was an amazing experience, for both our first safari and riding holiday.
[In The Saddle - we are so pleased that you enjoyed your safari.]

Kathryn who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Chianti Castles & Wine Tasting | The horses were good quality, very fit and extremely well looked after. As an experienced rider it can be a bit frustrating to have to ride in single file all the time but I do understand from a safety perspective why this is done. The landscape was very hilly and the horses managed this very well. I mostly rode a fantastic horse that was actually the owners daughters eventer so I feel privileged to have been able to use him.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for your feedback and we are so pleased you enjoyed the ride.]

Nicola who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Quinta Do Rol - Fantastic | The riding was fantastic. We were not the most experienced riders but the instructors never made us feel awkward about that. They were enthusiastic, encouraging and had a wealth of knowledge to impart. Our riding really developed during our stay and each lesson was the perfect mix of being challenging and fun. The riding centre itself is incredibly well run and the horses were amazing.

[Abbie from In The Saddle replies: We really appreciate your feedback, thank you. I am really pleased that you enjoyed your stay at Quinta do Rol.]

Vanessa who has been on 7 In The Saddle rides. Fabulous location and excellent horses | We were extremely impressed with the equestrian centre at Velanie, the yard was organised, clean and with good facilities. The staff (Vladimir and Julia) were extremely helpful and patient. We were expected to help prepare our horses and, as it was some time since we have done this for ourselves, we needed some help. Both Vlad and Julia were happy to show us what to do and careful to check everything was in order before anyone mounted. They clearly loved all the horses and made sure their welfare was always the priority.

We were both very happy with our horses and when we were allocated less interesting horses on one of the days, the situation was quickly rectified following a chat with the team.

The riding was on fairly hard and narrow tracks which limited freedom a little but this had already been explained before we went so we knew what to expect. However, the scenery and the overall experience made up for these limitations and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Jamie (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Phenomenal! | Excellent

Caroline who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Incredible adventure of a lifetime | The riding is not for the feint hearted but if you’re up to it, it will blow your mind. Forward going ponies and so sure footed over the toughest terrain. Even galloping was exhilarating over the mountains. Everybody was carefully considered and matched perfectly to their pony.

Charlotte who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Amazing holiday - excellent riding, wonderful hosts, great tuition | The horses were outstanding as was the instruction. The facilities were excellent and I learnt a tremendous amount in a very short period of time. The horses and tuition were very well matched to my requirements but with the right amount of "stretch".

Ira who has been on 4 In The Saddle rides. Bottlenose trail - Brilliant holiday, well organised and fabulous riding | Yes as described.

Lizzie (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Fabulous | The riding was fabulous with the good mix of walk trot and canter. The beach ride was really great and our guide Miguel was professional and good fun always making sure the horses were well cared for.

Gillian (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) A truly wonderful experience | Riding at Borana was absolutely wonderful. The horses were in excellent condition, well mannered, and forward going. Our guide Nicholas took us on a different ride every day (we rode for 7 days) . We saw different terrain , lots of animals and had some amazing long canters & fast gallops.

Elisabeth who has been on 20 In The Saddle rides. Beautiful location and excellent service | The riding took place in small hill/mountain/field roads, with gravel or concrete or asphalt surface. Most of the riding was upwards or downwards with beautiful views and with short and some longer canters in the more relative smooth upward parts with gravel ground. The selection of horses is varied and will fit the unexperienced and the experienced rider. I got to ride 3 different horses and was very pleased with 2 of them. We were riding in one line with the same order within the same day. It was therefor a nice experience to change the horses some days to also get another place in the order, being in the back and also being in the front. It was difficult, some times, to get the information given by the guide when riding in the back. The guides were very helpful and nice in all respect.

Sara Fevre (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Good

Liz who has been on 9 In The Saddle rides. Fabulous - again! I’ll be back - again. | I rode the wonderful Mangas who suited me completely. Willing, able and with a great temperament. I also had three lessons on him in the open air ménage - with a great view down to mountain.

I am not able tack up the horses but this was done very willingly for me.

I was on the Sunny Rides programme which proved suitable and fun for an experienced rider of advancing (advanced!) years.

Marianne who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. The horses were fantastic. Regarding riding level Red+, I expected a relatively calm ride with a lot of walk, but was pleasantly surprised by a quite fresh pace in both trot and especially canter. There was far more canters than I expected. A huge pleasure.

Olaug who has been on 12 In The Saddle rides. Ride, food, relax. Hospitality. Lovely hotel, room/food. | Excellent

Grethe who has been on 6 In The Saddle rides. Wonderful | A good selection of horses in a changing landscape.
Did different rides everyday and enjoyed the variety this offered.

Joanna who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Great riding, great people, great accommodation and location | Riding was great, lovely horses - clearly well cared for. Enjoyed being able to help with grooming, tacking up etc.

Jane who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Memorable and great fun | As anticipated this ride was slow due to the terrain with quite a lot of on foot walking where terrain very steep.However some cantering days 2 and 3 and well worth the ride to cross the high Sierra Nevada. Horses sure footed , picnics delicious , views amazing and you really were off the beaten tracks. We keep talking about our Spanish adventure. We loved being in the mountains and the two villages, Bubion and Trevelez, were fascinating.The horses were well schooled so could relax and enjoy the countryside eg picked their way over rough terrain, you just gave them a long rein, in canter went into a rhythm and did not pull so can just sit still with light contact, when leading they walked behind and did not tread on you !

Pippa who has been on 4 In The Saddle rides. Quinta do Rol - Lovely place | The equestrian centre facilities were truly beautiful. The horses were very well turned out and cared for. Good quality tack that was cleaned after each ride. There were 3 trainers and it would have been more beneficial for me to swap about a bit more.

Claire who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Beach and Forest riding | Definitely met expectations
Horse operation was excellent

Lisa who has been on 4 In The Saddle rides. A great way to see the Island of Crete | I was a little disappointed with the riding as the terrain was really rocky with lots of walking single file in an order set by the ride leader. Although we had numerous opportunities to canter it was not on good ground.

Liz who has been on 13 In The Saddle rides. Greek odyssey to the sea | A challenging trail. The exceptional heat we experienced on several days made the riding tougher.
Picking fresh fruit (pear, apple, grape, pomegranate) along the way was a delight but of course swimming with the horses was the highlight of the trip.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for taking the time to leave us your feedback. We are glad to hear you enjoyed the expedition in Crete.]

Janice (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Outstanding vacation !

Julie who has been on 4 In The Saddle rides. Exhilarating Unforgettable Ride | Vasco takes great care to match you well with your horse and Johan my horse was a dream. I loved every minute of the riding especially the fast walking and great fast canters and gallops. Such a thrilling ride.

Sarah who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Outstanding. | Horses were superbly looked after. Rachel had great insight and diplomacy, with all the riders. Unusually we were allowed to gallop on the beach day 1. (We only found out after they normally assess you first but seemed happy w us after we said we hunted regularly). There was not a single horse that misbehaved or put a foot out of line at any point in the week. Fantastic ratio of horses to riders to ensure adequate rest time between work. They all knew their job and are a great testament to Rachels investment into training over a long period. They were all well shod, sound and a delight to ride. I was given three greys through the week.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for your feedback, we are so pleased to hear you enjoyed your holiday at Los Alamos.]

Rachel who has been on 26 In The Saddle rides. Perfect riding safari | They are really good at matching horse and rider, for me I had a perfect combo straight away and fell in love with all the ponies I rode. Each of us in our group found their ideal pony after a couple of rides. All abilities catered for.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: It's great to hear that you enjoyed your holiday to Ant's :-)]

Karen who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Amazing in every way | The guides ensured the riding was geared to all members of the group. We had some steady and some faster rides depending on how everyone was feeling on the day. The horses were great, forward going but sensible and we all found a favourite.

Maxine who has been on 6 In The Saddle rides. Fabulous week of riding | I had an amazing week at Monte Velho, my riding improved so much with some great instruction and superb schoolmasters.

[In The Saddle replies: Thank you for your feedback on Monte Velho. We're so pleased that you enjoyed your return visit.]

Juliet who has been on 15 In The Saddle rides. Fantastic - as always | Super, well trained and willing horses. A great variety to suit all abilities.
I have had numerous trips here ( I’ve lost count!) and can always feel an improvement in my riding when I get back home. Emphasis on correct riding but also the opportunity to work on ‘the tricks’ too.

Miquel (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Horseback riding safari in the Macatoo Paradise | All ridings were carefully cared about.
The guides were excellent.
All was specially prepared for Kate. All horseback riding endings were on a different location and we were always surprised and excited.
All the staff were really good.

Magdalena who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Wonderful lodge and people and horses of course! | Very well schooled and very fit horses. I wanted to take home especialy one.