Your first horse safari in Side
Beginners are the rule on this ride, not the exception. Here is exactly what that looks like.
No riding experience is needed. Before the ride you get a short lesson — how to sit, steer and stop — a riding helmet, and a horse matched to your build and confidence. The guide stays with the group throughout, the pace is a relaxed walk, and a young or nervous first-timer can have a staff member walk alongside holding the horse's head for the whole ride. Nobody is asked to go faster than a walk.
What the lesson covers
Sitting: where your weight goes, where your feet go. Steering: what the reins do and what they do not. Stopping: the one thing every beginner wants to know first. It is minutes, not an hour, and it is done standing still before anyone moves — so by the time the group walks out of the yard, you have already done each thing once.
The horse you are given
The instructors match each rider to a horse that suits their build and confidence. That is not a small thing: much of what makes a beginner comfortable is a horse that does not need managing.
What you can ask for
- A staff member at the horse's head for the whole ride — for a child, or for an adult who would simply rather have someone there.
- To stay at a walk. The whole group rides at a walk; a faster stretch is only offered to experienced riders, at the guide's discretion, and never to anyone who does not want it.
- A moment. If something feels wrong, say so. The guide is alongside, not ahead.
What nobody will make you do
Ride alone. Ride fast. Jump anything. Keep going if you are frightened. The safari is a guided walk through the countryside, and a first-timer's version of it is a guided walk with a little more attention.
Who should think twice
Pregnancy rules the ride out, and so do serious back or mobility problems. Children generally ride from age 6, at the guide's discretion; the recommended maximum rider weight is around 100–110 kg. Who can join lists the recorded limits with their qualifiers, and the safety page says plainly what is done on every ride.
Ready to ride?
One ride to book, three to request, hotel transfer included, nothing charged online.
Book the horse safari