Brenda (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) an amazing adventure | The horses were amazing, very good to ride, very well trained, with good equipment. I didn't felt insecure, they were staedy and great to ride in the group and the beach.
It was over all my expectations.

Belinda who has been on 9 In The Saddle rides. Great gallops along the beach. | A wonderful experience along the Wild Coast of South Africa. Riding along the Indian Ocean was in an environment I have never been to before. The ocean was mesmerizing with violent surfs, and high cliffs with views over the ocean. The accommodations were excellent and held all the charm of the country, with modern comforts and excellent food. The people, along the way, were very friendly. The guides and the horses know their job. I never tired of the ocean views.
[Olwen from In The Saddle - I am so glad that you enjoyed riding along the Wild Coast. I agree - it is such a beautiful place.]

Karine who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Epic trail! | The riding provided a lot of adrenaline. Very different types of terrain. Lot of fast canters. Beautiful scenery. The riding is next level. Be fit!

Karen (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) What an incredible experience! | Donatello’s horses were gorgeous. So well cared for - responsive, well schooled & curious! All had personalities that shone through. The riding was incredible - countryside to villages to wineries - varied & enjoyable. I couldn’t have picked a better ride for my first trip with ITS. The group I was with were also so lovely and made everything fun. Overall one of the best holidays I have had.

Katie (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) A FANTASTIC EXPERIENCE | The riding was brilliant. There are long periods at walk which for me I found enjoyable and I had seen reviews about this so knew it was expected. We did have canters too mostly on every ride. The only thing I would have liked is to be able to have a gallop which you don't get this holiday, this might be a good thing to pop in the information somewhere so people know this beforehand. I totally understand why this is not achievable though. The horses were fantastic, I rode mostly Nero & Coopers who were both different but both brilliant 🙂

Karoline (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) An absolutely fantastic experience with the most dedicated hosts I have ever met. Beautiful, happy horses, delicious, healthy food and incomparable nature. I would recommend the holiday to all horse and nature lovers!!!!

Carol who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Enjoyable | Excellent

Caroline who has been on 11 In The Saddle rides. Beautiful Scenery, Great Hosts & Special Holiday | The horses were well behaved and sure footed. The Mountain terrain however dictated the pace of the ride and was testing in places. We were all happy to enjoy the amazing views and not too worried about the slower pace.

Annabelle (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Dressage dream | The trail rides were a little monotonous so I would opt for more lessons next time.
The dressage horses were fantastic and so were the 2 instructors, Bernardo and Guilherme. Very realistic lessons in that it wasn’t always easy and we had to work hard but once we asked correctly, the horses were very responsive. Hero was my absolute favourite, a very talented schoolmaster in Grand Prix movements. I definitely learnt a lot so was a dream as a dressage rider. [ITS note - We are happy to hear you enjoyed your lessons so much]

Anon (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Trail riding | Brilliant fun

Ticky who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Super | The horses were very suited to the job. A good variety to suit different abilities. Horse care was excellent with obvious care and concern for all of them.
Each day was different with varied sitings of animals.

Janick (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) UNFORGETTABLE | It was my first horse trip and I went to another continent for this... did I stretch it too much?
I hoped so much that the horse would be up to my expectations and that the fellow he riders would be fun. All dreams went into fulfilment.

The horse staff (Rachid, Ibrahim, Mustapha and Omar) took very well care of the horses, which were well fed and all ready for the job. Where a European horse would break its legs, or refuse to go, these Arab stallions shined…

Andrea who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Fantastic trip! | Me and my daughter went on her first riding holiday to Velani and I cannot have asked for a better holiday for her. The riding was amazing and she was so well taken care off by both the horses and Suzy, her instructor. I would highly recommend and would definitely go back.

[Abbie from ITS replies: Thank you very much for your feedback, we are so pleased that you enjoyed your holiday at Velani Country Hotel].

Tracey (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Luxury spa dressage indulgence | The instructor quickly assessed my ability and matched my horse partner perfectly.
My bucket list was to do a flying changes, I did lines of them in each lesson. Beautifully schooled horse made it easy to experience this dream.
(ITS comment: We are so delighted to hear that you had a great holiday and really enjoyed your lessons).

Sue (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) excellent and authentic experience of Tuscany away from tourist main tracks | The riding was good, through beautiful countryside, many of the canters were on gravel tracks, which was a little disconcerting, not something we would do in this country, but I understand why that was the case and the horses did not seem fazed by it. (ITS comment: We are so glad that you enjoyed your riding holiday).

Joanne who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Incredible | An excellent holiday in every way.

Christine (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Most amazing horseback riding adventure I have ever been on! | Ants was wonderful with choosing horses for us, and if we were not happy, they were more than accommodating to choose another horse for you. This was my first time riding in this type of saddle, and I will say it was very comfortable.

Maria (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) We were very happy with the lessons from Joao, he was good at getting to know us as riders and was a very pleasant person.
The stable was beautiful, the horses were well looked after, and their sweet grooms did a great job, the horses were always shiny with freshly polished hooves.
We had a single ride in nature - it was a really lovely experience, Joao was the guide and the horses were nice.
I myself had 4 dressage lessons. I wasn't particularly happy with the first two. The first ride I was taught by another Portuguese instructor, who didn't bring out the best in either me or the horse. The horse was nice, but could barely canter. My second ride was on a stiff horse, who most of all felt like a half-good riding club pony, who could do some exercises for Medium & Advanced Medium level at most. The next two lessons I got some lovely 6-year-old horses and some super good rides and was actually very satisfied, but I have to admit that I didn't get to do most of the exercises I had written on my wish list.
My mother had 3 dressage lessons. The first ride was also with the other Portuguese instructor, who wasn't particularly inspiring to ride with. The horse was super nice at trot, but had a hard time cantering, and generally lacked the desire to walk. For the next two rides, she got the same horse and was able to do the exercises she wanted while feeling safe and secure. She was very impressed with how quickly the horse had adapted to her after the first ride. So those were two super good rides at Joao.

Kimberly who has been on 7 In The Saddle rides. Fantastic riding and safari experience | I rode 5 different horses over my week. I loved them all. The long winding canters were great fun. As expected the riding was at walk near the animals and canter when moving to different parts of the reserve.

Jan (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Great Holiday | Did not ride this time just went to recharge.

Laima who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Amazing holiday | Great facilities and excellent training, I learned loads.

Jane (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Fantastic and Unforgettable | We had the most amazing time. The riding and instruction were excellent. I learned so much from Bernardo who made the lessons fun but strict. I was given very well schooled horses who worked so hard even when the temperature reached 33 degrees. I was honoured to be given their top horses. One afternoon I booked a trail ride which was great fun over fabulous terrain with gorgeous wild flowers amidst the cork trees, we even saw wild boar and rode through pasture where the mares and foals grazed.
[Olwen from In The Saddle - thank you for your feedback. Monte Velho is such a wonderful place.]

Karen who has been on 7 In The Saddle rides. Kingdom of the Lusitanos | It was great but I would say that I found the long canters a bit too long! Having said that, it was not beyond my ability.

Liz who has been on 11 In The Saddle rides. Portugal trail | Yes it did meet expectations and exceeded them, as the pace was faster than I expected. We did some very long canters.

[Abbie from ITS replies: Thank you very much for your feedback, we are so pleased that you enjoyed your holiday in Portugal].

Jane who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Excellent | The riding & the landscapes we rode through were more exciting than I had anticipated having read your descriptions. Although the riding wasn't fast (alot of walking, some trotting & the occasional & welcome canter) it was exciting as the terrain was interesting and beautiful & the horses were forward going & energetic. Some of the tracks (not all) were very stony but that had been mentioned & so was expected.
I enjoyed the variety of different rides & tracks & the length of the rides felt challenging & adventurous which I really enjoyed. The leader (Richard) was superb at looking after us all - as well as all the horses!
He was conscientious, responsible, relaxed & genuine & I really appreciated the detailed explanations he gave about the places we visited & passed by & through; which gave added value. I felt safe & cared for by Richard and Suzanna. Both these guides were truly caring & helpful & A* fantastic
A great all round experience & lively interesting group of riders of different nationalities.

Natalia (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Unforgettable Experience | Excellent

Nataliya (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Unforgettable experience | All horses that I was riding were lovely and very forward going. The riding was a bit slow when the whole group was riding to match the experience of all riders. However, when we had a chance to ride with a small group of experinced riders, we had some amazing long and fast canters and gallops.

Claudia who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Fantastic trip | The 1st placed I have stayed where you have a thorough assessment of your riding ability before heading out hacking. All the horses I rode were a perfect match and you can see they are very well loved. Opportunity to ride at all paces, with some opportunities to gallop. Bruno was a fantastic guide, very knowledgeable about the island and made sure everything was safe and ran smoothly.

Ettienne (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) An amazing experience | You can tell that the team at Rocking Z take the upmost pride in caring for and training their horses, which was also reflected in how they allocate horses to riders. They took on all your feedback regarding what level rider you are, and matched you to a horse suitable. They were also extremely accomodating in regards to how much or how little riding you wanted to do. We didn’t do the same ride twice, and I really like that they offered workshops like barrel racing and cow herding.

Anon who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Horse riding | I have been riding in this region for approximately 10 years. The variety of rides offered is excellent, with stunning scenery around every corner. There is ample opportunity to ride at all paces. Riding along the beaches is truly exceptional.

Liz who has been on 18 In The Saddle rides. Fabulous again | Always a great experience we all keep going back as it’s such a fabulous holiday

Harriet (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Great Experience | Mario and Ivan taught slightly differently but both gave excellent instruction.
The horses were very well schooled and able to execute lateral work, passage, Spanish walk and changes as long as you asked correctly.
I rode 3 different horses through the week and all were very capable.
More than met my expectations but feel you do need some previous experience at higher level dressage to get the most from this holiday.
Would not hesitate to go back.