Horse Riding in Cuba : See Cuba on Horseback
Horse riding in Cuba it a interesting way to explore the Cuban countryside. Not the best activity for me as I have never ridden a horse and I wasn’t going to have my first experience of horse riding in Cuba incase I didnt like it and then had to endure 3 hours so I opted for the horse cart instead but was this the right decision?
Was the Horse and Cart better than Horse back riding?
After enduring the bumpiest and in some parts scariest horse cart ride of my life I am seriously thinking if it was worth the pain I suffered from days after.
I thought I had gone for the easy option during a horseriding in Trinidad to a waterfall by going in the carriage but how wrong was I.
I had decided to go on the carriage for many reasons
1. I have never been on a horse
2. I am slightly scared of horse or actually they seem to be scared of me which then makes me nervous
3. I am lazy and don’t want exercise…..
Sexy cowboy Miguel collected us from our homestay in Trinidad and walked us to the ranch. I am slightly afraid of horses as they always tend to sneeze on me when I get close so was nervous.
Strangely though having some eye candy was putting me at ease. Unfortunately, I never got a decent picture of him, but the other guys on our tour were jealous of his immaculately plucked eyebrows.
Our experience of Horseback riding in Cuba
As we arrived to collect the horse’s I was still thinking I had made the right choice as I have never been on a horse and didn’t fancy trying it here as it didn’t look the safest opportunity to try a new activity in Cuba.
The horses are a lot smaller than in the UK and they seemed very laid back I was surprised they even moved. I cannot blame them for not moving around too much as the heat makes me not want to move much either. One of our group looking slightly nervous on her horse.
After walking down quite a steep hill with the rest of my group and my trusty companion Sheila who was joining me, we met our horse. Now to me a carriage is something comfortable as in my head I am thinking Cinderella used one but this was more like a cart with a lack of suspension.
I must say I was a bit wary about getting into the cart as I didn’t think it was going to be able to hold us without falling apart. However when I realised our sexy cowboy was going to be driving l got into it very quickly.
Cuba horseriding is definitely a interesting activity
Going over the bumps and fearing for my life was compensated by looking into sexy cowboy’s eyes whilst holding onto his arm for dear life and screaming. This probably wasn’t my best look he just kept saying “OK no problemo” easy for him to say.
The language barrier was good at this point but I think he understood “shiiiiiittttttt” “fuuuuuuuccccckkkk” and ow which was mainly the extend of my vocabulary during this nearly 4-hour ordeal. I think we had the only horse that is afraid of water so every time we got near a stream he would stop and then suddenly dart over it true to his name Rapido.
First stop was at a bar/range/shack whatever you would call it for a beverage and this was also where we would return for lunch after our visit to a Cuban waterfall. The owner kept us entertained with some music he was so cute.
There are other options of horseriding in Cuba, how about horseback riding on a beach in Cuba if you love horse riding then this is going to be an amazing activity to do on your holiday in Cuba.
The waterfall was beautiful but not worth risking my life to get to. There were quite a lot of other tourists there and I think you can only get to it by horse as this seemed to be the way everyone had travelled.
As some of the group cooled off with a swim in the freezing, I mean refreshing water I sat on the rocks and watched.
To get to the waterfall there was about a 10-min hike over rocks, it was challenging but I just about managed it so not too steep otherwise I would not have attempted it.
However any further and I would have started to struggle with the trek. We took it steady and a few people did slip but there were no major injuries luckily.
After the waterfall, we headed back to the bar for lunch and I had one of the best tuna sandwiches I have ever had.
Now the food in Cuba is not amazing but this sandwich was delicious. I don’t know if this is because fearing for your life and being thrown about is a hungry business but it was so good.
I didn’t have a beer as was worried about the bumps we had to endure on the way home and lack of toilets or even bushes to pop behind in the Cuban countryside.
Our cowboy came back to the cart drinking from a beer bottle and said it is ok it makes me drive better! Which I am sure must be a joke as this is the most English he has spoken.
Back into the carriage and we just want it to be over, even the people are on the horses are getting tired and sore. We are all filthy from the dusty tracks and my bag went for a little trip out of the cart luckily there was another cart behind us that picked it up and brought it to us otherwise I would have lost everything.
I am surprised any of us can walk the next day but apart from having a slightly sore behind I am OK. So, in conclusion I didn’t break my bottom but it sure felt like it at the time.
On a more serious note though, I did feel so sorry for the horses and not sure if I would go on this sort of trip again. They were not given any water during the day and some of them had cuts. Our little horse had a bleeding nose from the reins it was so sad. I wish I had my savlon with me.
This was a extra excursion during my tour with G Adventures. It cost 20 cuc but didn’t include lunch this was about 5 cuc. The overall G Adventures tour is one of the best I have ever been on and would highly recommend if you are planning a trip to Cuba. You can find out more information about the tour and current prices here.
I did enjoy Trinidad this part of the trip was so different to Havana. If you want to see some amazing Pictures of Havana read this blog post.
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20 Comments
This was a great read and I love your sense of humor. Enjoyed seeing the photos which really told the story. I’ve heard others say that Trinidad was one of their favorite areas of Cuba and I can see why. It looks like this adventure was a lot of fun and affordable too. Nice post.
I suppose the sexy cowboys make up for the bruised bums, eh? Haha this seems like an incredible experience. I have never ridden a horse in my life!
Sounds like an adventure, but sorry to hear that the horses didn’t seem to be well taken care of. That is why I’m always weary of animal attractions. I know that TripAdvisor has pulled a lot of the animal activities from their site just for that reason. There are a lot doing great work, but it can be hard for the average consumer to distinguish the good ones from the bad ones.
Yea it was really sad Im hoping when they get more money it will go on the animals. Its like this all over cuba even the working horses look ragged
Looks like fun. Waterfall would be so refreshing!
Hahah this reminds me of my first time ride in the camel in Rajasthan, the bum was definitely bruised after an hour or two of desert safari. But sadly, there was no sexy cowboy in vicinity to me entertained ;).
Anyways, like you mentioned the conditions of the camels were not that great. It breaks your heart to see those animals not being taken care of even though there are provisions for animal health care 🙁
What an adventure! Sorry you broke your butt but at least the cowboy was sexy, lol. Eye candy is always helpful. Fearing for your life probably did make that sandwich taste like the best things ever 🙂 The price is great, though.
Such a nice experience. Cuba is in my list and recently I’ve heard a lot about riding horse there. I’d like to get more info about prices there though. Is cuc a currency?
I fell on my bum once while ice skating and I seriously thought it was broken. I couldn’t sit for days 🙂
Yea sorry that’s the Cuban currency I will try to explain it better lol
I was laughing all the way through this … until you mentioned the treatment of the horses. That’s too sad. Glad you’re bum’s okay though!
This reminded me of a trek I had taken as a child. Although I was accompanied by my mom on the trek, I was so scared!! I know, it is possible to very much break your bum when trekking on such paths
What a nice experience you had! I really was entertained reading this post of yours. cheers and safe travels to you!
This was a totally delightful post. And while I know horses are different heights, I hadn’t realized there was such a big height discrepancy between horses in Cuba and the UK. I think with all those horse tours, not just in Cuba, but any tour where the horses do a loop etc., the horses aren’t as well cared for as they should be.
I too love a good horse ride. Walking the day after can be interesting. I’m glad you were walking and getting around fine. Tie in a waterfall, a cowboy and food~ you had the perfect day with a horse. Thanks for the laugh!
I love riding horses! This looks like such a fun time – even with the bruised bum! 🙂
The post is hilarious. Looks like you had great fun on this adventurous trip.
It feels sad to know that horses are not being taken care. Nice pictures!
Glad your bum isn’t broken! I’m not fond of riding horses either (for the horses’ sake and for mine) but at least you had some eye candy to keep you busy. 😉
We had horses growing up and I love horseback riding. It doesn’t sound like the horses were very well cared for here, though. They definitely shouldn’t have cuts and be bleeding! They should also get a drink, like from a stream or someplace, especially when it is as hot as you say.
Horse riding is my favorite. Majestic creatures.