Horseback Riding in Aquitaine: medieval castles and towns, vineyards and beaches – France – 2026
- Level : upper intermediate
- Possibility to come with your horse : No
- Non-rider companions allowed : Yes
When traveling across New Aquitaine abounding with breathtaking natural landscapes, be ready for a deep cultural and historical immersion. A noteworthy architectural heritage count hundreds of medieval fortresses with carved ramparts and gorgeous castles sheltering exclusive wineries. Fine wines are served here to meet all tastes, yours inclusively.
We’ll bring you to the well-known gems of Perigord: Bonaguil – Biron – Gavaudun, the vineyard of Sauternes, the medieval village of Saint Cirq Lapopie, and Europe’s biggest forest composed of maritime pines and France’s longest sandy beach located in Les Landes.
” This program is sold by many French and European equestrian travel agencies, a guarantee of seriousness and competence, so you should expect that the English language will also be practiced throughout the stay, and that the courses will be bilingual “.
Main outlines of the week:
- 6 days of Discovery: across 5 French departments of Aquitaine: Lot, Dordogne, Lot et Garonne, Gironde, Landes
- 2 days of Grit: with a daily mileage of 30 to 45 km covered in 6-7 hours approx.
- Wineries on the road: Chateau Filhot (Sauternes)
- Europe’s largest Forest composed of maritime pines and longest sandy Coast
In 1152, the marriage of Eleanor and Henry of Plantagenet drags the Aquitaine region into a long-term conflict, known as the Hundred Year’s war. Numerous walled towns and fortified castles were built during this period to meet different strategic, political and economic requirements. Let’s travel back in time on the back of our courageous mounts. We will ride across magnificent valleys in gorges and step in a maze of foot prints left by ancient yokels who used to refuge in a lush forest.
1st leg:
For 5 days and 4 nights, our base camp will move to the Manor house “Hameau du Peyrié“. Every day, we will ride across one of three neighboring French departments, Lot – Lot et Garonne and Dordogne, to discover a new landscape, a new castle, a new winery. Every night, we will return to the base camp to enjoy the divine cuisine and fine wines of Périgord, as well as to fodder and water our horses..
2nd leg:
Group transfer to Mimizan. A half-day ride to Sauternes
3rd leg:
2 nights / 2 days stay with a two-day trek along the Atlantic Coast.
Characteristics
Duration: 8 days / 7 nights / 6 days horseback
Age admittance: Adults, 13-15 year olds accepted if accompanied by their parents.
Level required: Very comfortable at all three gaits and in good physical condition. This ride requires riders with a minimum level of Galop 3 (French riding proficiency level) and good physical fitness. The pace of this ride is brisk, with frequent periods of trotting and cantering, particularly during the “Raid Days,” in order to cover an average of 40 to 65 km per day in an average of 5 to 7 hours of riding, depending on the itinerary.
Daily mileage: Two days of raids of approximately 65 km and 45 km; on average 30 km/day on the other days
Group size: From 4 to 9 riders. Departure with a minimum of 4 riders
Monitoring and Safety rules: The activity is supervised by a guide holding a BPJEPS Equestrian Tourism qualification. He speaks fluent English.
Program
Sunday
Arrival Day
Group transfer from Bordeaux “International Mérgnac Airport” to Bonaguil
Check-in at the beautiful manor house “Hameau du Peyrié“.
Meeting horses. Chilling by the pool. Medieval dinner at a local restaurant.
Monday
Grit Day: the department of Dordogne
5-6 hours horseback
08h00 Breakfast
8h30 Meeting horses, test rides at different paces
09h00 Start to a ride through a chestnut forest, wonderfully suitable for long canters. The main goal is to put your grit to the test, to give you a taste for the long horse trek planned for day 4, but also to explore stone & cobble architecture typical for Périgord along the way
12h00 Lunch at the foot of the Castle of Sauveterre.
15h00 More cantering trough the chestnut forest. Visit of the famous Bonaguil Castle, an ingenious masterpiece of military architecture, the last of the greatest fortified castles in France. The castle that has never been besieged is in good condition
19h00 Chill time by the pool at “Hameau du Peyrié”
20h30 Dinner
Tuesday
Discovery Day: the department of Lot
4 hours horseback
08h00 Breakfast
08h30 Group transfer (minibus) to the medieval village of Saint Cirq Lapopie, a historical monument voted the most beautiful village of France behind Rocamadour only
10h30 Visit of the medieval village
12h30 Lunch by the river with our horses grazing around
13h00 Trek above the Lot River. Climbing to the top of the mountain, passing through the forest, coming directly from a Brothers Grimm’s fairy tale
18h00 A short hour’s drive will take us to our overnight stop at the Guest House of Domaine de Gardelle
Wednesday
09:30 On horseback to cross a new landscape: the limestone plateaus of Quercy, located in the northeast of Aquitaine, and a 4-hour ride through the Ouysse gorges, culminating in the discovery of another medieval gem : Rocamadour. Another medieval city, but this time vertical, carved into the rock with winding alleyways, and guarded by a series of fortified gates. One of the most visited places in France after Mont Saint-Michel!
13h30 : Lunch and visit of the the village
17h00 : One hour drive to be back to our Bonaguil Guest House and Sauna or Swimming pool
20h30 Diner with Sharing stories and good vibes
Thursday
Grit Day: the department of Lot et Garonne
7 hours horseback. Daily target is 45 km
07h30 Breakfast
09h00 Visiting the fortified Bastide of St front sur Lémance and Lacapelle Biron. Time will fly as the rhythm will often change
12h30 Lunch at the “Auberge of Castel of Biron “
14h00 Visiting the fine and noble Castle of Biron
15h30 Multiple long-distance gallops. Visiting the Bastide of StAvit, the Castle of Gavaudun. Riding in depths of the chestnut forest of Cuzorn. Checking the view over the Lot valley from surprise observation points
19h00 Back to the base camp
20h30 Dinner. Sharing other stories and good vibes
Friday
Discovery Day: the department of Gironde
“Sauternes” winery. Wine tasting in Château Filhot
08h00 Breakfast. Getting packed
10h00 Group transfer to Sauternes (2 hours drive through Lot et Garonne). Welcome to the department of Gironde internationally renowned for its Bordeaux white wines
12h30 Lunch
15h00 2-hour horseback wine cellars tour: Château Ychem – Château Trillon – Château Giraud
17h00 Visit of Château Filhot and wine tasting.
Saturday
Discovery Day: the department of Landes, Mimizan Bourg– Areilhan – Mimizan Beach
4,5 hours horseback
08h00 Breakfast
10h00 Riding for fun
Lunch by the Aureilhan Lake
Evening sunset on the beach.
20h30 Dinner
Sunday
Time to say good-bye
Group transfer to Bordeaux Mérignac International Airport. A short stop over in Bordeaux is possible depending on the traffic
Dates
03 – 10 May
17 – 24 May
31 May – 07 June
14 – 21 June
20 – 27 September
04 – 11 October
Stays are possible on request for pre-formed groups of 6 people and at other times.
Prices
€1999
8 days / 7 nights with full board and shared room
Single room: +€240 per week
Double or twin room: +€120 per week
GROUP PROMO: 30% reduction for the 6th rider of a group
The price includes
The price does not include
Accomodation
Charming 3-star holiday cottage with swimming pool in the Périgord
Special care is taken in the preparation of meals which allow you to discover the traditional cuisine of Périgord, then the cuisine of Landes in Mimizan.
Access
Equestrian accommodation, 55 route de Baleste, 40200 MIMIZAN, France
How do I get there?
Departure from Mimizan around 12:30 on Sunday, then from Bordeaux at 2:00 PM, passing either at the train station or the airport, and transport in the afternoon to arrive before nightfall in Bonaguil
Equipment
Riding matters to be planned
- Riding breeches and top
- Helmet, protective vest (mandatory for cross-country)
- Breast boots and chaps (avoid riding boots)
- Riding crop (optional but recommended)
- Water bottle
Personal Items to Pack
- Regular clothing for the duration of your stay: Underwear, socks, t-shirts and polo shirts, a sweater or fleece (the evenings are cool!)
- For the Pool: Pool Towel, Swimsuit, Sunglasses, Sunscreen
- Notebook and Pen for Taking Notes
Equipment provided on site
- Bed linen and towels
A question? Send-us a message
By phone: +335 58 09 34 25 or +336 81 27 15 01
Greg & Sally – USA –
We thoroughly enjoyed our Landes and Perigord combination ride in France.
Michel & Anne consistently worked to ensure every guests’ experience was optimal. Michel was a terrific guide and horseman! The horses were very comfortable, fit and well adapted to take us across the diverse terrain safely. It was exactly as advertised! Plus we made some wonderful friends through the trip!
We highly recommend this program-trip for advanced riders who enjoy spending an average of 5-plus hours daily in the saddle, seeing/experiencing first-hand the variety of landscapes and the historical beauty (from the mountains to coast) that France has to offer. Meandering through the vast vineyards, to tasting some of the region’s most wonderful wines/food, to high energy gallops up to stately castles and along the Atlantic shorelines, to sharing lots of laughter and stories along the way are now memories that we will treasure for a life-time. Anne was wonderful with coordinating all logistics, details, food/meals and accommodations.
–Greg & Sally – USA
Birgit J. –
I can highly recommend and recommend this trip to every passionate rider!
From the beginning to the end the trip was perfectly well organized and executed.
The hosts Michel Girard Mille and Anne Metlov managed to create a family atmosphere of outstanding hospitality.
Anne is an excellent cook, the personally prepared meals were every time a new a poem, which I miss meanwhile at home very much!
Michel is a highly experienced TourGuide and horse connoisseur whose sense of humor kept the group quite entertained and also taught us many helpful tips & tricks riding-wise.
Each day was completely different and allowed the rider to experience entirely new impressions – from the mystical forests, to the impressive vineyards, to the breathtaking beach experience! On the last day we were even surprised with a professional photo shoot, a wonderful idea.
The horses are extremely fine to ride, unusually sure-footed in the terrain and a joy to ride.
We were accomodated in enchanting, family-style accommodations that were full of French charm.
And last but not least, it should be mentioned that the trip was perfect as described in the description – the two hosts have spared elaborate logistics and no effort to offer and show the guests as much as possible. I take my hat off to the performance of the two, who invest extremely long working days for a unique vacation experience of their guests.
I personally have experienced this week as absolutely wonderful and this will remain in my memory for a very long time as one of my personal highlights.
A heartfelt thank you to the hosts Anne and Michel who did everything in their power to make this an unforgettably wonderful week for the guests!
Best regards from an extremely satisfied and excited customer from Austria,
************
Ich kann jedem Reiter diese Reise wärmstens empfehlen und ans Herz legen!
Von Anfang bis zum Ende war die Reise top organisiert und durchgeführt.
Die Gastgeber Michel Girard Mille und Anne Metlov haben es geschafft, ein familiäres Klima der ausgesprochenen Gastfreundschaft zu kreieren.
Anne ist eine herausragende Köchin, die persönlich zubereiteten Mahlzeiten waren jedes Mal auf ein Neues ein Gedicht, die ich mittlerweile zu Hause sehr vermisse!
Michel ist ein äußerst erfahrener TourGuide und Pferdekenner, dessen Sinn für Humor die Gruppe ganz ausgezeichnet unterhalten und uns auch reiterlich viele hilfreiche Tipps & Tricks beigebracht hat.
Jeder Tag war völlig unterschiedlich und hat dem Reiter gänzlich neue Eindrücke erleben lassen – angefangen von den mystischen Wäldern, über die eindrucksvollen Weinberge bis hin zum atemberaubenden Stranderlebnis! Am letzten Tag wuren wir sogar mit einem professionellen Fotoshooting überrascht, eine ganz wunderbare Idee.
Die Pferde sind äußerst fein zu reiten, im Gelände ungewöhnlich trittsicher und eine Freude zu reiten.
Wir durften in zauberhaft, familiär gestalteten Unterkünften bleiben, die voller französischem Charme waren.
Und zu guter Letzt sei erwähnt, dass die Reise perfekt wie in der Beschreibung dargestellt vorzufinden war – die beiden Gastgeber haben eine aufwändige Logistik und keine Mühen gescheut, den Gästen möglichst viel bieten und zeigen zu können. Ich ziehe meinen Hut vor der Leistung der beiden, die hier äußerst lange Arbeitstage für ein einmaliges Urlaubserlebnis investieren.
Ich persönlich habe diese Woche als ganz wunderbar erlebt und diese wird mir noch sehr lange als einer meiner persönlichen Highlights in Erinnerung bleiben.
Ein ganz herzlicher Dank an die Gastgeber Anne und Michel, die alles in ihrer Macht stehende unternommen haben, um den Gästen eine unvergesslich schöne Woche zu bereiten!
Beste Grüße von einer überaus zufriedenen Kundin aus Österreich,
Erik –
Evaluation of your trip
Please consider the following on a scale of 1-5 (5=Excellent; 4=Good; 3=OK; 2=Substandard;1=Poor):
How was the reception: 5
How was the instruction: 5
How was the accomodation: 5
How was the food: 5
The standard of the ranch: 5
The quality of the riding: 5
Did the tour meet your expectations: 5
Julie –
We had a lovely time with Michael, he was a very good host and did his best to make sure everything went according to plan. The horses were very fit, and well behaved, and forward going. We had lots of long canters and rode a lot of miles each day, which was good.
The accommodation was very good, although we had to change rooms at his place as we were put in a large room house with lots of beds and I was expecting to be in a twin room, this was soon corrected when we mentioned it to him and Annette. The food was very good and we ate out in some very nice restaurants. The pic- nics were lovely as well could not fault them.
The whole experience was very enjoyable, we had a lovely holiday so much so that we are thinking of doing another one of his rides, there several other people on the ride, that had returned for and another holidays, so that says a lot about a holidays.
Regards
Julie
Lynn –
Thank you for such a fantastic few days last week. It was really fabulous to ride with you again and stay in the beautiful accommodation. It was a really special few days and both myself and Sean had an amazing time.
Congratulations to you both too, it was lovely to be part of your special moment.