Horse riding holiday in Bulgaria
| country: | Bulgaria |
| departures: | 2008: 12 Jul, 19 Jul, 16 Aug, 23 Aug |
| price: | From €650 (8 days) excluding flights. Price includes accommodation, full board from dinner on day 1 until breakfast on day 8, local English-speaking guide, equipped horse and all ground transfers |
the amazing things you'll be doing
The Rodopi Mountains in southern Bulgaria are what many would call a mystery. Historians believe that the Rodopi are the birthplace of the legendary musician Orpheus and his wife Eurydice, as well as the cradle of the Dionysus- cult. For most Bulgarians, it is the numerous caves from prehistoric times, the Roman roads and the beautiful medieval monasteries that account for the Rodopi’s charm. For others it is the picturesque mountains villages, their authentic lifestyle and the warm local hospitality. Or perhaps the mellow green fields and the reflection of the sun in the bright blue highland lakes.
We give you an opportunity to make up your own mind about the mesmerizing atmosphere of the Rodopi – together with our horses we get as close to the heart of the Rodopi and to the authentic life of its people as possible.
We give you an opportunity to make up your own mind about the mesmerizing atmosphere of the Rodopi – together with our horses we get as close to the heart of the Rodopi and to the authentic life of its people as possible.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Arrival at Sofia airport and transfer to Devin in Rodopi Mountains (transfers can be arranged for arrivals at Bourgas or Varna airports). |
| Day 2: | First meeting with the horses. Riding to one of the biggest caves in the area through alpine meadows, offering super views over the mountains. End of the ride in Borino (5 hrs ride). |
| Day 3: | We hit the trail to one of the blue mountain pearls - Shiroka Poliana dam. Overnight at Kaval Tepe, overlooking the waters of the lake (6 hrs ride). |
| Day 4: | Today we ride along the shores of 3 of the most beautiful lakes in Rodopi - Shiroka Poliana, Toshkov Chark and Malyk Toshkov Chark (6 hrs ride). |
| Day 5: | Another beautiful lake is the highlight today - Goliam Beglik dam (6 hrs ride). |
| Day 6: | The ride today summarizes the of the trip so far - along the shores of Dospat dam and the meadows along Sarnitsa River we reach Beslet peak, descending afterwards to the architectural reserve Kovachevitsa (6 hrs ride). |
| Day 7: | Sightseeing Kovachevitsa. Walk to St. George chapel. Short transfer and relaxing swim in the hot springs of Ognyanovo. Transfer to Plovdiv for overnight. |
| Day 8: | Sightseeing Plovdiv (time permitting) and transfer to Sofia for departure (transfers can be arranged for departures from Bourgas or Varna airports). |
travelling with a local operator
This holiday is operated by a company based in the holiday destination and they will be able to provide expert local knowledge. They will be able to tailor make your holiday to suit your requirements not only concerning the dates of travel but also typically the standard of accommodation, and thus price. It is rare for local operators to be able to help with the booking of your flights.how this holiday makes a difference
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Exploring the nature like our ancestors – on a horse saddle. This is the best way to explore the most hidden parts of the mountains far from asphalt roads and villages. We use local breed horses that are raised in the mountains and live there free when not engaged in a tour. They are well known as thoughtful and tough and are extremely well adapted to the mountainous region of Rodopi.
The accommodations are also traditional style guesthouses in villages, where the best of the local organic food is served. Our guide is a local ranger, who has explored the mountains for decades guiding groups of different interest. We try to keep our groups in the range 4-8 riders. This not only makes the group more flexible but also gives the guide the opportunity to get a personalized attitude towards each of the participants, which is essential for the clients’ mood in a multinational group. We believe that what we have now as an environment is not a legacy from our ancestors but something we have borrowed from our children. We will do our best to preserve it and improve it as much as we can. We directly support nature conservation projects, donating money, or providing vehicles for different NGO actions like forestation activities, monitoring of waterfowl, winter counts, research projects on specific species/habitats etc. We provide local nature conservation NGOs with discounted prices on our rent a car services or hostel accommodations for their every day job, workshops, training etc. common initiatives. We recycle paper and reuse paper in our office; all printer cartridges (incl. laser jets) are also subjects of regular recycling. An online version of our printed brochure is available for online viewing at the website, which reduces considerably our paper consumption in terms of print runs and mailing envelopes. We have also adopted a variety of energy efficiency measures at our offices like outer wall insulation, energy saving light bulbs etc. A bird feeder, supplied with huge amount of seeds, is always available by our office in severe winters. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've lead the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |