Quinta do Rol - Portugal

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.

Do you have any comments about the accommodation and food?

We had booked 2 rooms, so we ended up getting a whole house to ourselves. It was authentically decorated and true to the style, very charming. We were very satisfied, but I think it would have been annoying that it was so noisy if we hadn't had exactly the same habits. Unfortunately, it smelled like there were problems with the sewer/plumbing.
The cleaning in the house (and on the place in general) was perfect, we couldn't put our finger on anything.
All 8 guests ate together three times a day, it was cozy and our fellow travelers were nice. The food was as described; Portuguese, everyday and light. Served by friendly staff.
The pool building was beautiful, we used it several times.

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

We would like to praise you for the process itself.
I think you responded well and nicely to my first email (which was actually the reason we chose a trip with you and not another company I had also contacted). All the information prior to the trip was great and we felt safe and well equipped.

Do you have any other feedback for us?

All in all, we had a lovely and relaxing stay. And we can easily think of going on a riding holiday again another time!