I'm sure this tour is great for experienced horse riders. The trail and the scenery are beautiful. However, despite advertising as a beginner-friendly tour, I would not recommend this tour at all for beginners. First of all, this tour advertises as having an English-speaking guide. Our guide did not speak English at all. The guide was also on his phone for most of the ride, not paying any attention to us or making sure we're safe. The entire time, I was getting hit in the face with branches and getting scratched by thorns, making a lot of noise throughout. The guide was in his own world scrolling through his phone and didn't seem to care one bit. At one point, the guide went so far ahead that I was completely alone and lost. At a fork in the trail I didn't know which way to go, so I just stood there by myself (with my horse) and waited for someone to come rescue me. I've been on dozens of tours in many different countries, and I've never seen a guide who cared so little about the participants. A month after I did this tour, I did another one from another company with a similar length on a similar trail, and having a guide who's actually paying attention to the riders makes a world of difference. If you're a beginner, avoid this tour.
This was truly the epitome of my trip to Bulgaria. Todor was an incredible guide and the views were spectacular. He was a patient teacher, and told incredible stories of his exploits as a stunt performer and paraglider. The trail we took was peaceful and dynamic as the terrain shifted as we got closer to the monastery. The monastery itself was a wonder. It was hard to believe people could build something like that on top of the mountain. On the way back we got an incredible meal in the most picturesque village you had ever seen. My one regret was not being able to take part in the longer multi-day rides his company offers.
I made a booking for me and my fiancé since it looks like such a great trip on our visit here but a couple days before the trip I tried to confirm personally with the staff about the pickup point since there was no answer I had to contact the support of the site and managed to get a refund The only thing they managed to tell me was there was no reply from the staff that manages this activity It was disappointing since I was really looking forward to it.
We were not supplied with riding helmets and even after asking for them were given only one (so one of us had no helmet). The horses were not well taken care of (dirty and tangled hair) and one of them had a limp. The trail was not easy for the horses (rocks and muddy)... The views were beautiful and the guide Gekko did his best to give us a pleasant experience.
This was an awesome tour. The scenery was so beautiful and seeing it from horseback made it even more special. The guide was really good and the horses were very well trained. I had only moderate horse riding experience, and I think it's good to have at least a bit of experience before undertaking this tour.