Mongol Horse Trail - Mongolia

Saskia (this is their first In The Saddle holiday) Beyond All Expectations | The riding was absolutely amazing, and the horses were great. Our horse guide was truly knowledgeable, and even though the Mongolian horses are nameless, we had a lot of fun giving them our own names.

The only thing that took some getting used to were the saddles. Being accustomed to high-quality saddles, the Mongolian ones were an adjustment. The leg position is also very different, but the two-hour ride on our first day was the perfect amount of time to practice. After that, it was perfectly fine. Overall, the saddles and the leg positioning were the only minor drawbacks of an otherwise fantastic experience.

Do you have any comments about the accommodation and food?

Our group consisted of only six people, accompanied by an excellent staff of eight, which included the horse guide (also the horse owner), a translator, two cooks, and four other support staff.

For our first three camps, we shared a large yurt and slept in separate, high-quality tents. The nights were quite cold, so I highly recommend packing thermal shirts for sleeping. We slept on camp beds, and the yurt was heated every evening, making it very comfortable. We were pleasantly surprised to find that the amazing staff had even set up a makeshift shower tent for us. We had expected to shower in the river, but they went above and beyond by heating the water (it wasn’t hot, but it was definitely not cold).

The food at these first three camps was the best we had in Mongolia. It was a bit heavy on meat, which is to be expected from Mongolia. The staff even prepared special vegetarian meals for the two vegetarians in our group. So, if you're a vegetarian, just be sure to let them know in advance.

The sleeping arrangements at the final camp are something you have to experience for yourself—they were simply amazing. I definitely recommend the sauna!

How could we improve the quality of pre-holiday information that we send?

Everything was very clear! You have an amazing team. Thank you!

The only thing I would advise is to add one more item to the packing list: padded underwear for horse riding.

We've used the brand Seducci, which is popular in the Netherlands. We brought a couple of pairs. The saddles were very hard, even with a seat saver, so these saved our butts!

How could we improve the way we handled your booking and payment?

I can't of anything. Even though we're from the Netherlands, we found everything to be very easy.

Do you have any other feedback for us?

Yes:
I had been dreaming of this trip for over 10 years, which meant my expectations were incredibly high. The danger of having such high hopes is that a trip can easily become a disappointment, but in this case, nothing could be further from the truth—it was the greatest trip I've ever had so far!
(ITS comment: We are so delighted that you had such a great time in Mongolia.."