Troels Vang (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Good, steady, fresh horses. Nice to try different horses and get your favorite horse on the last ride. The guides are very attentive to all riders, throughout the ride, they are in control of everything.

Ros (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Breathtaking | What a fabulous experience! Such a hardy & willing breed of horse, a joy to ride.
Very much enjoyed learning the Tolt and Pace!
The team at Islandshestar were brilliant with people and clearly loved their horses.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for your feedback and we are so pleased you enjoyed your holiday in Iceland.]

Helen who has been on 10 In The Saddle rides. Beyond my expectations ! | I was well suited to the horse I was given so all good . The riding was varied and I particularly enjoyed the ride on the last day to the farm

Christina who has been on 8 In The Saddle rides. A fantastic 50th birthday! | A dream come true for my 50th birthday! We loved how riding meant that the animals weren't disturbed by any noise and you could get quite close. Lots of fun riding - splashy canters, polocrosse, swimming with the horses and sundowner rides! Horses were so calm and reliable so you could focus on looking at the amazing country.

Lina who has been on 4 In The Saddle rides. Damara Ride - Amazing | The trip was everything I had hoped for and more. The riding was fast and fun, through amazing ever changing landscapes. Everything was very well organized from day 1 till the end. Go if you can!

[Abbie from In The Saddle replies: Thank you for your super feedback Lina. We are so pleased that you enjoyed the beauty and excitement of riding in the Namibian desert].

Rebecca who has been on 7 In The Saddle rides. World class horses, fast and super safe on their hooves. Tried 3 different horses, all amazing in their own way. And the horses are well taken care of.

Joanna who has been on 5 In The Saddle rides. Miyak Tribes North Macedonia | This is a superb holiday - its a proper "pony adventure" that reminded me of the pony fiction I used to read as a teenager! The terrain is challenging - constantly up and down mountains, the paths often feature overhanging branches so you need to concentrate! There are plenty of opportunities for fast canters where the terrain allows; the smell of fresh mountain thyme rushing past as we cantered through the meadows will always remind me of Macedonia! There are long days in the saddle and I personally would have benefitted from a higher level of fitness. Vasko and his team were amazing. What makes Sherpa Riding so special is the seamless organisation. The support and catering jeep led by David and Beatriz provided excellent mountain rescue support and the most delicious, creative picnic lunches. The camp team set up a wonderful mountain camp; everything was taken care of under Vasko's careful but relaxed direction. Everyone supported one another when you felt you couldn't ride another kilometre. The horses were complete sweethearts, so genuine and brave and lots of fun. Although it was challenging riding, I completely relaxed and switched off from the trappings of a fast paced life at home - just wonderful!

[Abbie from In The Saddle replies: Thank you Joanna for this wonderful feedback. We're so pleased that you enjoyed your adventure in North Macedonia].

Tim who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Masai Mara Ride - an amazing experience | The horses were all in tip-top condition and were responsive and well behaved, It was clear that Felicia had taken great care to match the horses to the riders. All of us really enjoyed our horses. We specifically booked this holiday for the wildlife experience and as such fully expected a leisurely pace getting very close to a wide variety of game, yet feeling totally safe in the experienced and capable hands of Gordie
I have to say we had heard great things of this trip from a few years ago and, with that in mind and the Covid wait we had built up very high expectations of the holiday. Our expectations were very much exceeded. Where this safari really excelled was the personal hands-on involvement of Gordie and Felicia in every aspect of the holiday
The whole camp team were simply wonderful, it was great to see that everyone was so happy, friendly and obliging. The service was first class, the tents and beds excellent and the food was superb
We can can certainly recommend anyone seeking a true wildlife experience to book this trip.

[Abbie from In The Saddle replies - Thank you so much for providing feedback on your long-awaited trip to Kenya. We are thrilled that you had such a memorable and special experience. It was a pleasure to arrange your safari].

Liza who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. The quality of 2 of the horses I rode was perhaps not quite as good. One seemed to be slightly lame and the other had no doubt previously been very good, but coughed a lot, had difficulty keeping up and was affected by his age. But there was no problem in getting another horse.

Janet who has been on 16 In The Saddle rides. Well worth waiting for | This was my third attempt at going on this holiday and wow did it deliver. First the horses are perfectly cared for and know their job in a nice way. They are certainly not dull. The guides are very attentive to what is going on and we did have a riding lesson on Day 1! It is beautiful, lush with extremely different terrains...and no biting insects. The riding is very varied, plenty of change of pace and you do see all parts of the island. Christina and Claude have an amazingly beautiful place and organise everything perfectly nothing is too much trouble. Christina cooks the food and it is delicious....what more can I say other that this is a place you will meet people from everywhere.For us we had Americans and Danes all delightful. I will certainly go back
[Olwen from In The Saddle - we are so glad that you were eventually able to enjoy this wonderful holiday having deferred from 2020 and 2021.]

Christine who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. The horses were fresh and well schooled, and they were really well looked after by the guides. I asked for a forwardgoing horse that was responsive for light helpers. I was very happy with the horse I was allocated, which suited me very well and lived up to my expectations. It was long days in the saddle with an average of 8 hours of riding, but my experience was that everyone on the ride enjoyed every moment.

Linda who has been on 15 In The Saddle rides. Special | Rocky ground, two canters a day

Jo (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Dream come true! | Great instructors for both lessons and trail rides.

Alison who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. A good riding experience | These are working horses and as such were fit and well cared for with the odd knock here and there. My horse suffered from heat stroke one lunchtime and the crew were on it immediately and soon had everything under control. I was impressed by their efficiency in dealing with the issue - this is about the 14th trip I've done so I've seen it all before and have owned horses for more that 40 years so I accept that different countries have differing standards.
This was a good team and they looked after us well.

Jo who has been on 7 In The Saddle rides. Perfect Sicilian Adventure | Excellent

Wendy who has been on 7 In The Saddle rides. Portugal-Wolves and wild horses | The pace of the ride is leisurely as it is in the mountains which gives you time to take in the beautiful and varied surroundings. We were able to canter two times each day with the canters being long ,fast and fabulous!
The horses are all schooled by Pedro and are ridden with a loose rein and a light squeeze ,no kicking needed ( or allowed ). The horses are very sensitive to the human on board but if you are confident with them they are confident with you and are a joy to ride !
We saw lots of groups of the wild garrano horses on our rides out .
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you for your great feedback and we are so pleased that you had a lovely time in Portugal.]

Sine Orgaard Olsson who has been on 5 In The Saddle rides. A dream that was fulfilled. Good horse, tack and fantastic scenery

Joely (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Amazing Experience | The riding was fast and exciting, covering a huge variety of terrain. The horses were all so willing, and excited to get going each morning. Sophie the team leader put a lot of effort in matching horses to riders, and always wanted to hear feedback in order to improve her pairings.

Sarah who has been on 3 In The Saddle rides. Amazing | It was well-paced and the horses were forward-going and sure-footed.

Andrea who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Short stay riding holiday - Spain | Excellent

Sue who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Wonderful | The riding net my expectations, and was very enjoyable. Our guide was extremely good and very knowledgeable about horses. Nothing was too much trouble and they were very accommodating.

Helen (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Fun and relaxing | Riding was brilliant. Really liked that there was only us with the guide. They look into account some of the difficulties my daughter was having mentally and made her feel comfortable.

Steven who has been on 5 In The Saddle rides. Amazing | Great riding, enjoyed the fast canters and gallops, especially on the beach.
My wife was lacking confidence due to bad fall before the holiday, Los Alamos matched her perfectly with a horse that boosted her confidence and was able to thoroughly enjoy all the rides

Lucia (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Just amazing!! | The riding was demanding for someone not adequately trained but always very pleasant and fun.
We had a lot of walking in beautiful landscape, long canters and amazing beach riding were the horses were very excited about!
I really liked how we were taking care of them, un-tacking them during lunch time and made them have a well deserved break.
Miguel the guide tries always to rotate them to don’t over work them and during the night they are kept in the field together.

Susan who has been on 6 In The Saddle rides. Everything I'd dreamed of! | We had a fantastic week! I learnt so much; tried cattle cutting, Liberty, barrel racing and driving the heavy horses. I had two fantastic horses, who I felt quite sad to leave at the end of the week.

Kelly (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Everything and far more that we hoped it would be | The riding was fantastic we took a different route everyday with two days being cattle drives.
The horses were very responsive, well trained and an absolute pleasure to ride.

Fiona who has been on 6 In The Saddle rides. Fabulous trip to Horizon | I love this place so much!!!
Lovely riding, great guides, super accommodation and food. All done to a high standard and still retains a friendly, family type feel.
Can't wait to come back to see TP and Hilbillie Blue.
I had some tears when it was time to leave - has only ever happened on one holiday before (also in South Africa)
Thank you Horizon.

Fiona who has been on 2 In The Saddle rides. Fabulous trip | I loved everything at Velani.
The people, the riding, the horses, the food, accommodation and the scenery.
I will definitely go back there as it was just the right combination I was looking for.
Vladimir and Giulia were very helpful and did their best to keep all riders happy.
Sabine is a very astute horsewoman and has a very good knowledge of horses and their suitability for the riding at Velani.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for your lovely feedback and we are so pleased to hear you enjoyed your holiday.]

Dorthe Hartvig (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Desirable with a little more options for saddles. There were only two to choose from for two riders. Seemed somewhat worn and hard. Friendly staff and kind guides.
Good strong horses.
All in all, some really exciting and challenging riding days which require good riding skills and a lot of courage.

Bev who has been on 8 In The Saddle rides. Just what we planned | Would have liked it to have been a little faster pace but it was particularly hot. Maybe riding earlier or later would have been better. Vladimir our lead was great and the horses in good condition and well looked after.
My horse was delightful albeit a little on the small side for me.
Overall though thoroughly enjoyable.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for your feedback and we are pleased to hear you had a great holiday despite it being very hot.]

Mary who has been on 19 In The Saddle rides. Fabulous Experiences, Not to be missed | I did three rides on this trip which was quite a challenge for my fitness, but it was well worth it. I started off with Ants, then went to the Wild Coast, then off to Botswana, to the Tuli Block. This was a safari ride and lots of fast riding and fantastic wildlife. Most of the tent accom was great.
On all the rides, we have a great group of people. Everyone contributed and will remember these holidays!

Joe who has been on 18 In The Saddle rides. An exiting, adventurous trail ride on superb horses through glorious forests & mountain scenery. | After reading previous reviews our expectations were high but were totally exceeded on this holiday.
We had a great group , great weather & the organisation & itinerary were excellent. The Sherpa team couldn't do enough for us & were very good company .
Vasko & his team know horses inside out. We were carefully matched with our mounts & their welfare was the main priority throughout the ride. After 6 days of hard riding over 180 km with thousands of metres of ascent & descent the horses were in better shape than we were!
The horses were forward going, well behaved & well socialised & the western saddles were comfortable & secure. The pace is a fast walk which eats up the miles. As the week went on there were plenty of opportunities for steady & fast canters through the alpine beech forests & lots of exhilarating gallops through mountain meadows full of wild flowers & skylarks.
The accommodation was very comfortable & the 2 campsites were in beautiful locations.
The food was some of the best we've had on any holiday both in hotels & on the trail Everything was freshly cooked with fresh local ingredients. The meat was first class as were the vegetarian options & the local sheep cheeses were delicious & often straight from the farm. The team were very careful & considerate in looking after any special dietary requirements & cold beer & decent wine were always at hand.
Macedonia is a beautiful country & the Mavrovo National Park is particularly stunning with steep, wooded gorges & valleys which are heavily forested in beech up to about 1800m which then gives way to grassy valleys , meadows & mountain tops full of wild flowers, herbs , butterflies & insects. Skylarks are everywhere & we saw eagles , wild boar, deer, chamois, wild horses & even a couple of bears. The vistas are huge.
The meadows are grazed by sheep which are milked by hand twice daily for cheese production. The flocks of sheep are minded by shepherds & huge dogs to protect them from wolves. We often ate lunch in the sheep farms & were lucky enough to see the milking & cheese making processes. Vasko worked on the farms as a boy & gave us great insights into the way of life.
An added bonus to this ride is learning about the long & interesting history of the region & the Miyak people. Vasko was born & bred in the area & his family have been there for centuries. He`s extremely knowledgeable about the past & is keen to pass this on to visitors.
The modern day history is no less interesting.
We've been on a fair few riding holidays & this is up there with the best. The horses & riding were first class as were the organisation & the Sherpa team. The location was breathtaking . If you`re riding fit , adventurous & up for some excitement you`ll have a blast.
Thanks to Vasko, Shaipe, Davide, Beatrice,all the team & the lovely Sherpa Shenanigan crew for an amazing holiday.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for your great feedback! We are so pleased to hear how much you enjoyed the Miyak Tribe Trail.]