horseback riding in Jamaica

[angel69]

Does anyone have done horseback riding in Ocho Rios, Jamaica ? Who did you book it with? Any shared experiences will be appreciated.

Thank you

[Shekirk]

Does anyone have done horseback riding in Ocho Rios, Jamaica ? Who did you book it with? Any shared experiences will be appreciated.

Thank you

We rode with the Jamaican Polo Club (!?) years ago (1995?) and we still talk about it today. Our daughter was horse crazy and taking lessons so it was the excursion she picked. We rode through sugar cane fields to a beach where they unsaddled the horses, changed the bridles from leather to waterproof ones and we rode bareback in the surf to the point that the horses were swimming. It was incredible! My husband didn't last long as the bouncing without a saddle got to be uncomfortable for him...but we girls loved it! You have to squeeze your legs tightly to hold on, since the horses forward motion in the water creates serious water resistance against your legs. We laughed so hard when a horse made a "dump" in the water (well they are just animals)and it came floating along right past us as we frantically tried to stear away from it. Now that we have owned a horse for 10 years we understand that their manure is mainly undigested grain. That's why it floats, initially. Anyway, I hope that part doesn't turn you off. It probably was a fluke, but something you should be prepared for. Our family would ride in the surf again in a heartbeat. Hope you can find a similar experience.

[sunandseagirl617]

We did the horseback riding in Jamaica! It was a fantastic excursion we booked driectly through the cruise line (Voyager!)

 

We rode partially in the water (watch out for the floating biscuits :D) and the other 1/2 was on land through a nature trail of sorts.

 

Since we were there after a hurricane, the ground was soked! It was still fun and I'd do it again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I think it was Chunka or Chucka farms, but we booked direct with RCI!! ;):D You can purchase the dvd after you complete your tour which is rather amusing to my friends.........!

[SafetyChief]

Does anyone have done horseback riding in Ocho Rios, Jamaica ? Who did you book it with? Any shared experiences will be appreciated.

Thank you

DW and DD just did this last week and loved it, but a word of caution. They were almost 45 minutes late getting back to the ship, and if we had not booked it through RC, there is a very high probability that the ship would have left them in Ocho Rios. Because we booked it through RC, they held the ship for this excursion to return, as they will with all of the excursions booked through them.

[Kailyn]

I did it in 2003 with Chukka farms as well, I think we booked it independantly but we were with the rest of the people from our ship - just paid less! It was fun. Standard trail ride, fairly slow. We rode to the beach and then they took us in two seperate groups into the water.

 

I was disappointed that we had to wear funny floats around our waist in the water. The water portion also didn't last too long and they suddenly told me that my horse was "unreliable", so we had to ride behind a guide holding my horse's lead. As a very experienced rider I wasn't too happy about that!

 

I would say that it's a good ride for the price and for a beginning or intermediate rider. I have had better though, in particular on a private ride in St. Maarten. Also, we didn't book through RCI, just got a fairly early time and we were back to the ship in plenty of time. You might find some more information about this on the Jamaica boards.

[angel69]

Thank you for all replies! Sounds like fun thing to do.