Travels on horseback

What to expect on a holiday

So, we imagine you might be wondering what to expect on a riding holiday with Travels on Horseback? Well, that’s a fair question. How does it all work with the saddlebags, the horses, the pubs, the hotels and everything, you may ask? Well, it goes a bit like this:

In the beginning…

If you’re coming by plane or train, we’ll be very happy to collect you from the terminal - just let us know. If you’re driving, we’ll give you directions you can trust! If you’re bringing your own horse, rest assured your horsebox will be parked very securely, and all our routes are circular, so you won’t get stuck miles from your transport.

My horse/your horse?

If you’re riding one of our fit, happy horses you should also be pretty fit (and happy), and comfortable at walk, trot and canter. The first day of your holiday we’ll take you on a little hack just to make sure you and your horse are comfortable together. If you’d like to holiday on your own horse, all you have to do is box yourself over to Somerset and we’ll do the rest.

Equipment

You can find out what we provide (lots), and what you’ll need to bring (not much) on our Equipment page. Once you’re here, we help you transfer your luggage to our pretty roomy saddlebags. Believe us, you can get enough for six days into these things, and on long trails, your hosts will graciously help you out with laundry if you run out of smalls.

Hotels and horses

There’s some information on our lovely hotels here at Rest and Comfort. But from a practical point of view, many people ask us ‘what do we do with the horses?’ Well, at each country hotel we have arranged either stabling or pasture for your horses. So, when you arrive in the afternoon, your host will be there to greet you and show you where everything is. You first untack and leave your equipment in a nice dry room provided for us. Then you feed the horses (food ready and waiting), and finally turn them out into their field or stable. In the morning, after breakfast you catch, feed and tack up horses at your leisure and make your way back onto the trail.

Pubs

We’ll work pub stops into your trail if you’d like. Each of them has been thoroughly checked out as horse-friendly by Travels on Horseback, and tie-ups are ready and waiting for you in courtyards or carparks. The landlords will be only too happy to tell you where to park!

Riding

We believe we’ve got some of the best riding in the country, nay, the world, here. Fast or slow, up, down and around, we’ve got it. Many people haven’t heard of the Quantocks, but we hope our trails page has given you a taster of the riding we can offer. And it’s so beautiful up there. Take a look at our photos.

Click here to reserve your holiday now