This ride threads through multiple regions: big scenery, big gallops, and proper culture.

You’ll push into Chong-Kemin National Park, sleep in yurts by Song-Kul and Issyk-Kul, and head out with eagle hunters (yes, actual eagles). Then it’s Skazka Canyon, Ala-Archa National Park, a kok-boru match (chaos, but make it legendary), and the grand finale: hot pools for your wrecked-but-happy limbs.

Ride Texas the classic way: from the saddle, deep in the Hill Country. This riding centre sits on the former HQ of a century-old cattle ranch, with trails threading through 6,000 acres of live oaks, yucca and wildflowers. Expect wildlife cameos: deer, wild turkey, rabbits, the lot.

South Africa's Wild Coast at the pace of a horse. Open beaches, coastal forests, rolling hills, and rivers still running wild into the Indian Ocean. Villages where Xhosa life moves through the landscape like it always has, unbothered.

Horses are bred for this terrain, surefooted, spirited, and know these trails better than the trails know themselves. 

Clew Bay Trail Ride. Co. Mayo. Six Days. Pure Ireland.

Clew Bay sits on Ireland's wild west coast, framed by the iconic silhouette of Croagh Patrick and the rolling Nephin mountains. One of the most beautiful bays in the country and you get to explore it on horseback. Six days of riding through traditional villages, sandy beaches, mountain tracks and winding country lanes, with stories of local heritage woven into every ride.

Want the perfect way to ease back into the saddle, or just rack up more hours-in-the-seat? This beginner-friendly Italian riding stay is your ticket. Spend 6 nights on the grounds of a magnificent castle (turret included), choose half or full board, and ride at a level that suits you each day.

Ride hard, camp wild, get the whole thing photographed. 

Five days of proper adventure: Ride through desert-ish landscapes, rugged rock, and big-sky views, then sleeping under the stars each night. From confident riders to keen improvers, this one’s for anyone who wants nature, grit, and photos you’ll frame (professional photographer joining the ride).

Tucked between the mountains and the Atlantic, Adrián’s farm is your base. Ride out with this true Galician horseman to find wild horses in their home range and hear the real stories of their history and bond with the people who live alongside them. Hosted by Hooves Around the World founder Sanne Westera.

Family-owned, buried in the Witteberg Mountains of the Eastern Free State. 3,300 hectares, Natural Heritage Site, centuries of history, zero crowds.

Green pastures, mountain streams, plunge pools you will actually want to plunge into. Eland, black wildebeest, springbok, zebra, ostrich, warthog, caracal, serval, the full cast. 

Tucked into the Marche countryside near Fermo, this is Isabella and Franco's world, and you are very lucky to be in it. A proper showjumping centre with serious horses and serious standards.

The week is built around the jumping. Daily sessions with Jochen, your Belgian trainer, on highly schooled horses that know their job. Flatwork to sharpen you up, gymnastics to fix what needs fixing, courses to put it all together. Tell him your level, your goals, your bad habits. He will build the rest.

First class facilities. Elegant clubhouse, immaculate arenas, sixty acres of countryside with the old town of Fermo on the horizon. Stay in the guesthouse or the centuries-old country house, beautifully restored. Infinity pool, jacuzzi, sun decks, long lunches in the gazebo, al fresco dinners that go on too late.

Sicily in full technicolour: farm tracks, little hotels + agriturismos, three wildly different national parks, then a mic-drop finale climbing Etna. Horses are relaxed, willing, and game for the long winding tracks. And the food? Rustic feasts, homegrown wine. 

Wide open canters with wild game in the Umgeni Valley. Owner Tess Miles Stone leads you through shady riverbanks, rocky gorge tracks, waterfall lunch stops, secret pools and long grass canters. Big views and real South African hospitality.

Monte Velho is a world-class Lusitano stud, breeding dressage royalty since 1994, with a wall of national and international awards to back it up. 

The setup matches. Olympic-size, covered and warm-up arenas, so the weather never gets a say. Classical dressage, beginner to advanced, taught by pros.

Ride deep into Bulgaria’s Sredna Gora Mountains and the Valley of the Thracians: ancient legends, hot mineral springs, and seriously drinkable wine. This one’s extra special for your host, Gabi, from Wild Bronco. 

Deep in the south of Kyrgyzstan near the Chinese border, you ride off the map through tiny villages, huge valleys, steep yak hillsides and under snow peaks, sleeping in a family yurt camp. The big show is the transhumance, a twice yearly livestock move where you ride with the herds and let animals and weather set your schedule.

Imagine your Easter escape like this: Tuscany by horseback. 

Ride rolling hills and vineyard country, slip through ancient villages and cypress lanes, and come home to 15th-century, family-owned castles. Add the Palio for a hit of Italian tradition, plus long-table meals that make you consider “moving here” as a serious plan.

They've been at this since 1996. 120-plus horses, free-roaming the private reserve, blending into the wildlife like they belong.

Your day, your call. No wake-up calls, no fixed plan. Six riders a ride, two guides watching, and nobody's lumped in with riders they don't match. Total beginners to bold types, all sorted.

Saddle up at the Spain–Portugal border and disappear into Galicia: green, quiet, and gloriously un-touristy. 

You’ll ride through the Gerês–Xurés Biosphere Reserve (a wild cross-border wonderland of mountains, oak forests, stone bridges and ancient villages), with the chance of spotting native Garrano ponies. The trail is a history buffet too: dolmens, Roman ruins, old forts and scattered traces of everyone who came before.

Seven Days. Into the Wild. Bad Pony Approved

Ride with owner, Tess Miles, from a working farm through bushveld and sugarcane fields deep into the Umgeni Valley reserve, spending three nights at Fountain Hill Estate before crossing into Cumberland Nature Reserve for the final stretch. Each day brings something different. Cliff top farmland, a dramatic gorge ride to a hidden waterfall, open grasslands with game on all sides and a river crossing where you swap the saddle for a rowboat while the horses go by truck. The highlight? Summiting a massive kranz with views over the entire valley that will genuinely stop you in your tracks. Sundowners, campfires and horses grazing nearby every evening.

Pony camp for grown ups. That is genuinely the vibe.

Carine and her horses take you along empty golden beaches, through pine forests, and across vast dunes on Portugal's most secluded coastline. Small groups, slow pace, proper connection with the horses and the landscape. No rushing. No crowds. Just hooves on sand and sea breeze.

Opt for the full pony club effect with off grid, rustic accommodation right at the stables with your horses.  

New trail alert. Head into Morocco’s Siroua Mountains, the volcanic wedge between the High Atlas and Anti-Atlas. Expect high-altitude drama (around 2,500 m, topping out at 3,400 m). Best ridden in spring or autumn, when the weather behaves.

Andalusia's best kept secret on horseback. The Cabo de Gata Natural Park is raw, rugged, and ridiculously beautiful.

White sand beaches, hidden bays, pine forests, and coastal villages that still remember when pirates ran the Mediterranean. You will ride through actual Wild West film sets (yes, really) and cool off at 3 or 4 star hotels with pools.

Five ecosystems, split by 600m cliffs. Craggy rock and open plains up top, sandveld and wetlands below. All of the Big Five live here. Plains game, plenty of it.

You ride both escarpments. Guides know their stuff, teach you to track, and know exactly when to let you open up.

Ditch the January blues and saddle up with a caipirinha.
Brazil brings the heat with tropical vibes, wild nature, and endless beaches made for cantering. Paul Coudenys leads the way through Brazil’s wild northeast with palm groves, turquoise seas, and endless beaches. 

The land of the Golden Fleece, wedged between the Great Caucasus and the Black Sea, a crossroads of east and west fought over by Greeks, Romans, Turks, Mongols, and Russians. Alpine meadows, ancient forests, and abandoned monasteries overgrown with wildflowers, reachable only by horse or on foot.

The pace is fast, the horses are athletic TB-types bred to cover ground, and the country is wide open. No fences, no roads, no barriers, just miles to move across. Nights in simple camps, basic village houses, and the odd hotel. Full immersion, the real thing.

Ride Cappadocia the local way, not the selfie-stick way. 

Six autumn days of cooler temps and fewer crowds, riding past fairy chimneys, cave dwellings, and monasteries, dipping into quiet villages, and tracking the semi-wild Yılkı horses across the open country.

The ride kicks off in Coxilha Rica, a wild high plateau in the south of Brazil. At about 1000m up in true gaucho country, you roll into an old fazenda and straight into the arms of Paul and his gaucho crew. Flemish born Paul Coudneys and his right hand cowboy Daniel host you, guide you, and keep the stories flowing all week.

A fort rising straight out of the desert. Fireplaces hand-shaped by village women from cow dung and clay, floors laid by the one man who still knows the technique. Nothing off the shelf.

Then the horses and terrain. One of India's finest Marwari stables, the ancient breed with curved ears and a floating gait.

This is how we got back in the saddle, racing past the pyramids, cantering along the Nile, and swimming with horses in the Red Sea. Rip off the bandage and feel alive again!

LEVEL: Spicy Intermediate. For riders hungry to get stronger and wild enough to ride with the wind.

Cantabria. Northern Spain. One week. Bad Pony Approved

We have just tested this ride and fallen completely in love with this beautiful part of Spain, Cantabria, and with Caballos de Castilla owners Carlota and Constancia Del Álamo and their incredible horses.

Three days of cliff top riding past wild beaches and rock formations. Santander, Somo, Loredo, Langre and a boat crossing across one of Europe's most gorgeous bays. Sleep by the sea. Do it again.

Then you go inland. Green valleys, ancient forests, mountain trails and thermal spas at the end of every ride. The legendary Gran Hotel Castilla Termal Solares. Then quaint Liérganes, all stone houses and ancient valleys. Finally Puente Viesgo hot pools and prehistoric cave art on your doorstep. Oh, and picnics. On sublime local food.

Coast. Mountains. Spa. Repeat. This is Cantabria on horseback. 

Brave horses. Red sand dunes. Turquoise seas you actually swim in. On horseback.

A week along the Vilankulo coastline. Wide open sand, inland lakes, red dunes with views over the Bazaruto Archipelago. The highlight? A dhow trip to Benguerra Island where time genuinely forgot to show up. Great weather, luxury stays, top seafood, and Pat, Mandy or Charlotte leading every ride. They ride with you, eat with you, share stories like old friends.

Endless dunes and Morocco at its wildest. Kick off the new year with sand in your boots and the wind at your back.

LEVEL: Strong Intermediate - fast paced canters & gallops in open spaces.

A camping expedition across a remote 20,000-hectare ranch in northern Patagonia. Off-grid, wild, and utterly unforgettable — this is Argentina at its rawest. Hosted by Segu Ballester Molina & Simon Ferreccio

LEVEL: Intermediate - A chilled pace. Sit back, ride easy, and let the landscape do the talking.

BOOK NOW: Catch & Release

Discover one of Turkey's most beautiful regions from the saddle.

You ride the iconic valleys of Cappadocia, but you also slip past the crowds into the hidden gems, the wild nature and lesser-known villages most visitors never see. A different town every day, nights in traditional guest houses, homemade local feasts cooked by the people who live here. Fast gallops, long trots, and sunset canters built into the route.

Immerse yourself in Portuguese horse culture at its best. You’ll ride straight into the beautiful chaos of Feira da Golegã, where horses and riders from across Portugal and Spain gather to compete, parade, and celebrate all things equine.

A working ranch with a luxury hotel attached. 500 hectares of rice paddies and pasture in the heart of the Camargue, ruled by black bulls and white horses, run by the Bon family for generations.

Head out across the 500 hectares alongside the gardians, the Camargue cowboys, on those famous white horses, right up close to the bulls. Ride well enough and they'll let you join the bull sorting, proper working-ranch stuff, not a tourist lap.

Mountains, forests, and the Cetina river all around. 20,000 square metres of corral, pasture, sports court, restaurant, and a swimming pool fresh from 2025. Built for keen riders who want a forward-going horse under them.

The Krka trail is the main event. Wild, unspoilt Croatia. You start among the romantic old villages of Dalmatia, then push through lush fields and forest with the Dinara and Svilaja mountains watching over you.

Deep in the Colombian wetlands, ride alongside the original cowboys, mustering horses and cattle. It doesn’t get more real than this. Hosted by Paul Coudenys.

LEVEL: Intermediate - moving at the pace of the herd.

⭐Bad Pony Approved:Rode it. Loved it. Read it.

Egypt's greatest hits. In six days flat. Pyramids, pharaohs, Red Sea, and horses that swim. 

Ride at the foot of the Great Pyramids. Explore the Valley of the Kings. Sunset ride across Luxor's West Bank. Sunrise beneath the hot air balloons. Then the Red Sea for snorkelling, dolphins, and the grand finale: swimming with horses along the coastline.

One wild week in the cordillera of northern Patagonia. You cross mountains, rivers and beech forest, sleep under the stars, in a mountain refuge and in high yurts. Mostly slow mountain miles, then a final day where you finally get to let your horse fly. Between The Ears hosted by Amelia and Lauren.

Do India the Bad Pony way: on the back of a Marwari.

Start at Balotra Tilwara Horse Fair in a swirl of horses, camels and cattle. Then it’s Kumbhalgarh and the Leopard’s Trail: forest tracks, stream crossings, open plains, and wild camping by farms and lakes.

BAD PONY APPROVED

This ride is so good that 2026 is fully booked. Grab a 2027 saddle while they last.

A working cattle farm in the Eastern Cape, in the family since 1898. Four cattle drives a year, and you ride as part of the team. Real herding, real stockmen and women, real Karoo.

Terrain is rocky and steep, so above-average fitness is non-negotiable. Expect to dismount and chase the odd runaway calf on foot.