Saddle up: 10 of the best horse riding breaks in Europe
- Kate Johnson
- Mar 22, 2025
- 2 min read
From camping in Gypsy caravans in Cumbria, to trekking in Transylvania and cantering through olive groves in Crete
Sierra hopping and a parador stay in Spain
Known for their fortitude and amiable nature, Andalusian-thoroughbred cross horses are ideal partners for this adventure in the Sierra de Gredos west of Madrid. Fit, experienced riders can expect up to seven hours daily in the saddle, with plenty of pace. The guided trails follow the route of the Tormes River, taking in pine forests, plateaux, ravines and villages. A support truck delivers aperitivos and picnics, including table and chairs, leaving time for a swim and siesta, before returning to the Parador de Gredos each evening.From £1,200 for four nights including rides and meals, next departure 16 April, blacksaddle.com
There’s no choice but to slow right down on this Gypsy caravan camping trip. The wagon is harnessed to two mares, Meg and Biddy, who are led at a gentle walk by proprietor Barny down quiet country lanes to an off-grid site in the Eden valley, which links the Lake District to the north Pennines. Barny sets up a fire pit and canopy and tends the horses, returning to break camp after a night or two. The beautifully decorated wagons are insulated and can sleep a family of up to five. There’s a hot shower, cooking is on open fires, swimming is in streams, druid circles can be explored. Travel light and spare the horses.
From £960 for four nights, year round, wanderlusts.co.uk
Horse whispering in France
Just under an hour from Paris in the Rambouillet forest, Le Barn is a former equestrian farm that has been turned into a stylish and welcoming retreat where every room looks out on to meadows. It shares its 200 hectares (500 acres) with Haras de la Cense, a world-famous school for equestrian skills. There is plenty of riding on offer (as well as Nordic baths, yoga, cycling, swimming and even a dog to pet). But the magic is the weekly Whisperer’s Experience, a masterclass in learning how to forge a connection by working on foot with a free horse and using your body language and exercises to communicate with them and build trust. Be warned, it’s emotional.From £165 a night for two B&B, including whispering and all other activities, lebarnhotel.com
Learn to ride in Crete
The Greeks have known the value of riding since Hippocrates, medicine’s founding father, spoke about its “healing rhythm”. Where better to learn to ride than the countryside of Crete, with views over the Lagada valley, reliable horses and ponies (for kids aged five and over), starting with a bareback introduction in an enclosed ring, progressing to walking, trotting and possibly cantering through the olive groves by the end of the week. Guests stay in a 12-room, stone-built boutique hotel set in a couple of hectares in Avdou. Saddle-sore beginners can recover by the infinity pool or on the sandy beaches of nearby holiday town Hersonissos.
From £935 for seven nights including meals and daily rides, year round, unicorntrails.com
Comments