Sue who has been on 14 In The Saddle rides. Macatoo - Truly wild horseback safari | This holiday was on my bucket list for several years (after seeing a Richard Attenborough documentary on the Okavango Delta) so I was thrilled that it exceeded my expectations. Seeing the flooded Delta from the small aircraft flying into camp gave me butterflies at the thought that I would be riding through it for the next 7 days. The riding was exhilarating with lots of splashy canters and at times overwhelmingly emotional when we came across large herds of elephants crossing the Delta streams. Watching a pride of lions lazing and playing with the cubs in the afternoon sun was sublime. A highlight was when a dazzle of Zebra joined alongside us for a fast canter. This part of Botswana really felt truly wild. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and very good at judging the pace of the rides and making the rides fun. The horses were very well behaved and loved the rides as much as we did. The camp was really well set up and my large tent had everything I needed along with a private veranda for afternoon sunbathing and snoozing. Every meal was delicious. I cannot recommend this holiday enough for anyone wanting to see the extraordinary phenomenon of the Kalahari desert flooding and all the African wildlife that comes with it all from the back of a horse.

[Abbie from In The Saddle replies: We're so pleased that you had such an enjoyable time on your long-awaited safari at Macatoo. Thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback.]

Jacqui who has been on 4 In The Saddle rides. African Explorer - amazing Africa | Excellent

Lee who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. African Explorer - Great!! | Yes it did meet expectations. The owners and staff were FANTASTIC and went out of their way to make my trip comfortable. Loved it. Will repeat one day.

[In The Saddle replies: Thank you for your feedback. We're so pleased that you enjoyed the African Explorer].

Sophie (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Experience of a lifetime | Excellent

Sarah who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. African Explorer | The riding and horses were amazing. I enjoyed the variety of paces. The terrain was very different between South Africa and Botswana so it was great to experience both. Felt I was matched well with my horses in both places, and the guides were knowledgeable which made me feel safe.

Carole who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Monte Velho | I had an awesome experience on fabulous horses who make you feel completely safe. I never ride without my air bag in France but in Monte Velho, I took it off, in full confidence.
The coaches are full of energy and living the ride with you. The owner is showing you his property explaining the history and the horses.
The food is just so good, people there are so nice.
I can't wait to go back to Monte Velho next year.
Thank you Abbie for your perfect organisation.

Louise who has been on 19 In The Saddle rides. Fantastic | Excellent as always

Kate who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Monte Velho - Fantastic |
The horses all exceeded my expectations and were an absolute joy to ride.

The main large arena seems to be the preferred choice for the trainers. There can be up to 6 people riding in the arena at any one time (including instructors) which makes it very difficult to keep out of each others way. We would have enjoyed it far more if we had been able to have our lessons alone in either the covered or outdoor arena.

The next time we book we will also ask to have our lessons (husband & wife) at different times so that we can watch each other and take photos and videos of each other.

Hanne Tang Koch (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) The horses were well taken care of, well-schooled and in good health. Lovely horses who know their job and are happy with it.

Ann who has been on 5 In The Saddle rides. exhilarating horse riding under the Spanish sun | The horses are very fit, well behaved and well trained, very responsive to your aids, can stop from a gallop on a sixpence, and light to the hand, none of my muscles ached after riding which was delightful, although if you do have any aches and pains they can organise a massage!. I rode the same horse all week except for the last day, and they were very well matched to my ability. We enjoyed two beach rides on our trip, at the same beach, and despite the beach being very popular with locals for exercising or dog walking, we still managed to get our canters and gallops in. Our guide Jose is quite rightly very safety conscious, and is careful not to put any rider or walker at risk.

Ole who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Quinta do Rol | It was really good horses and similar instructors who took the lessons very serious and with great enthusiasm. We really learned a lot.

Julie (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Wonderful relaxing break | In general the riding was good - however I found the hack sub standard - we were taken out and taken down a track which resulted in turning round a tree and coming back the same way!! I would have liked to have hacked around the grounds.....we then cantered back at full pelt which resulted in one of the group dramatically falling off as he was not experienced enough to deal with the pace. It was very irresponsible and when I asked for us not to canter again on the way home I was ignored. I didn't pay for a hack to a tree and back - it was all about going out for a fast ride and not about seeing the sights and the grounds. Completely misjudged in my opinion and was the only bad point of the holiday. If I go again I won't be doing a trail ride.

(Abbie from In The Saddle replies, "Thank you for your feedback on the trail ride you joined at Monte Velho. This is very unusual and we are looking in to what happened. We appreciate you highlighting this to us.)

Laura who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Great food, good company, beautiful surroundings & lovely horses | Excellent

Leslie who has been on 6 In The Saddle rides. Sicilian Trails - Fantastic! | The riding far exceeded my expectations - beautiful & varied scenery, athletic & safe horses, wonderful guides that made it fun, educational, and thoroughly enjoyable from the start to end of every day!

Jenny who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. The riding was great, we cantered wherever possible, the horses were well behaved and there were a good selection of types to cater for the different riders abilities.

Sean (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Fantastic riding holiday in amazing countryside | Yes it did. After initial trepidation in the indoor arena learning 'Western' with Franco, we were out on a trail. Our confidence grew together with our understanding of our horses. Very good package of rides around the area with welcome lunch stops.
Thankfully dry and no flies so perfect conditions for us and the horses.
Ailsa was an absolute star, she was very in tune with the group, keeping us safe and maximising our enjoyment. Going out at 6am to mark a twisty trip with paint says it all. She was ably assisted by Costansa and Diego and with Franco's oversight they were a great team.

Simone (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Quinta do Rol | Super passionate instruction and skilled horses. Super delicious riding facilities.

Carole who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Memorable Experience | Truly memorable experience. Ten days in Jordan, five of them riding in the Wadi Rum. Met wonderful people, AMAZING horses, superb food, even in the middle of the desert. Happy Birthday sung to me in several languages under the Wadi Rum stars, truly memorable! Many thanks to all involved.

Juliette (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Wine and ride in Toscana - Everything was great, from the weather, food, host and her beautiful horses | Donatella takes great care for her horses and the security of her riders. She adapts the ride to the level of the group and is very happy and proud to show us through the beautiful countryside of her region. She speaks so many languages that she can adapt also to all group nationalities! Great ride, great place, beautiful region

Vivien who has been on 41 In The Saddle rides. Fab as always | Great holiday at Los Alamos as always. I had the pleasure of riding Polly for a couple of days, a real bundle of joy and proper speed queen - appearances are deceptive! It was a really nice group too with lots of laughs.

Jackie who has been on 13 In The Saddle rides. Superb holiday in every aspect | The terrain was varied including woodland tracks, open mountain ascents and descents and open grassy valleys where we enjoyed some fast canters/gallops. Although it was the first trail of the season, the horses were all forward going and managed the terrain and long days (9 hours +) exceptionally well. They were all extremely well behaved.

Lorraine who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Miyak Tribe Trail | The riding exceeded expectations. Lots of fast walking as expected, but also plenty of nice canters and races in gallop! So exhilarating! The horses were always up for it, even on the toughest days!

Patti (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) A lovely week! | The horses were beautiful but the riding was very 2 paced - it was either walk or gallop. (the guide kept saying we would have a slow canter, but such a thing did not exist!) We were all experienced riders and the galloping was great, but we had to walk a lot to allow the horses to cool down, so personally I would rather have had some nice slow canters and not quite so much walking. And for me personally, probably as I have ridden in coastal Australia a lot, the landscape got bit samey. There were people who were back for the 12th time though!!
Really nicely structured with only 4-5 hours riding (much of it walking) so if you hadn't ridden for a year like me, it was no problem and it was really nice having the afternoons round the pool.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for your feedback, we're glad you enjoyed your time at Los Alamos.]

Ruth who has been on 6 In The Saddle rides. Great time learning to be Cowgirls!! | We were matched up with our horses after a discussion on our ability, and requirements. We did need to switch later, but in the end we got our perfect match.
It was a shame that the rides were not better divided up into riding ability. Experience riders often went out with a group of novice riders.This did effect the pace of the rides sometimes. We would have liked more opportunities for faster "lopping"
Maybe in future requests of what was happening the following day could be discussed the evening before over our meal. There was always a delay with the rides going out, which could have been better organised. I think that the week we were there they were a little overstretched.
The horse were beautifully cared for as was the tack.

Charlotte (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) A great week in beautiful Montana made very easy by in the saddle | I think I downplay my riding ability a little bit which did mean it took a few days to find a horse I really loved (my fault). I wasn’t expecting such hard ground which meant quite sedentary paced rides & there were lots of beginners so I would consider experienced rides only for my next trip. The opportunities to have long canters (through a little more than one field) were limited, but the staff did everything they could to suit everyone’s wants and the rides with Maria were particularly fun / all the staff are lovely. Some periods of disorganisation and waiting around in the mornings - i think this is because there is not schedule which is both a pro and con for them from what I could see.

Chris who has been on 19 In The Saddle rides. One 100% Perfect | Excellent

Katy who has been on 10 In The Saddle rides. A relaxing, immersive journey into a remote and beautiful area of Portugal | The riding is relaxed and due to the nature of the terrain, there are limited opportunities for canter. It was possible to canter at least once on each day however, and sometimes twice. The scenery is stunning, particularly at the end of May, early June, when the countryside is covered with purple heather, yellow gorse and broom - a real treat to see!
There was quite a lot of free time on this holiday and the riding day starts late. For example, we were collected between 10 and 10.30 in the morning and driven to the stable, which is about 20 minutes by car. By the time you have collected your horse from the paddock, groomed and tacked up, it may be nearer to 12 by the time you set out. Be prepared for a relaxed approach with late lunches and late suppers - Portuguese style!

Sophie (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Absolutely Perfect! | The riding was amazing, I felt so confident on my horse and you could tell all the horses are well cared for.
Jose and Roberto were so knowledgeable and friendly and I felt in such safe hands throughout the entire trip. They couldn't do enough.
Rachael matched us all up perfectly, she came out with us on the first day to ensure we were all happy and confident and met us numerous times throughout the week and back at the stables.
The riding was relaxing, exhilarating, fun, and exciting all at the same time.
The entire team couldn't have done any more for you, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this holiday to anyone. I just wish I could have brought the horse home with me as he was so perfect!

Jane who has been on 13 In The Saddle rides. Kingdom of the Lusitano - Fabulous holiday | I had an amazing week riding in Portugal. The riding was brilliant with lots of long canters and some exhilarating gallops!
Miguel was an attentive host who entertained his clients whilst ensuring everyone was able to manage their horses. Our particular group was made up of quite a mix of nationalities but we all loved to ride and there was a lot of laughter and fun.
The authentic, charming accommodation was perfect and the food delicious.
The afternoon spent at the Alter Real stud will be one I will remember for ever. Being able to walk amongst the mares and foals was a very special experience.
I am not at all surprised these particular rides are usually booked up months in advance - go if you possibly can!

Suzi who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Los Alamos - absolutely perfect | My time at Los Alamos surpassed expectations. We were all so well looked after and felt relaxed literally from being greeted at the airport. I expected to be quite let down by the food as I'm a vegetarian, however, nothing was too much trouble and I ate some of the nicest food I've ever had. A real home from home feeling at the house. Our hosts were absolutely amazing and nothing was too much trouble. I always felt safe and well looked after on the rides. The horses were so well schooled and knew what they were doing. The rides were well organised and very exciting. I can't wait to go again next year.

Ase who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Very good, lovely riding and very good organized. | Excellent

Lorraine who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Absolutely amazing ! | Once you had learned how to ride them on a long rein, grazing as and when they wanted, and heads were straight down when they stopped they were great. They were all very responsive and a pleasure to ride. Due to the length of time in the saddle it was also helpful to lengthen your stirrups a bit to help with knee and ankle strains.