Mountain horseback riding
Just a 20 minutes drive from our Quinta, you will find a horse riding farm and kilometres and kilometres of mountain tracks: beautiful rock sculptures, valleys and forests, Roman bridges, little rivers, authentic villages with shepherds and their flocks….
Horseback riding in the breath taking nature of Portugal, for children and adults with and without experience! Hour rides, picnic rides or 20 to 40 min rides for inexperienced riders and children from 4 years old.
You like riding in small groups?
Enjoy your horse riding experience in pure authentic nature?
Here you are at the right place!
For experienced horse riders they even offer the unique experience to ride in the full moon, trust your horse completely while you canter in the moonlight.
Romantic getaway
Horse riding during your holiday in Portugal and stay in a romantic getaway right in the heart of Portugal: Quinta da Palmeira – Country House Retreat & Spa.
Their horses form a true herd, always being together and almost always grazing in the meadows, having around 25 hectares available to live, that is, not only eat but also run and play, being in fact real happy horses.
When they have to work, they are temporarily in their stables, which have the particularity of being open so they can see, touch and smell each other. In winter, when it rains a lot and it´s cold, they go to their stables to sleep and eat, but during the day they go to the meadow again, rain or shine.
All of their horses are what is usually said “barefoot”, that is, they have not used horseshoes since 2006. They believe that they are therefore healthier and happier. The hooves are trimmed every 6 weeks by Tom de Graeve, the Bare foot trimmer from Portugal, a specialist in “bare foot trimming”. When derived from the work they usually do, especially in the summer, when they start to have the most sensitive hooves they wear hoof boots, from the brand “Renegade“.
They currently have 12 horses, of which nine horses are available for riding and three are spending their well deserved pension or have a permanent injury.
Two are Haflingers, four Lusitano thoroughbreds, four Portuguese Cross, one Garrano, one KWPN and one Selle Français. They all have a unique character, being calm, gentle and loving horses, but with a lot of spirit and inner energy giving many joys to all types of riders.
You ride with English saddles and all of them have sheep skins, in order to make the rides more comfortable. For longer rides we also have saddlebags available.
The horse riding farm can be reached within a 25 minute drive from Quinta da Palmeira – Country House Retreat & Spa.