South Bohemia, the most southern province of Bohemia, part of the Czech Republic. Mostly known for its capital, Ceske Budejovice, and its great historic town, Cesky Krumlov. However, it is also a horse riding paradise.
The area provides glowing hills, full of grasslands, countrysides, and forests. From riding a horse through beautiful countryside, you will pass picturesque villages and get lost in beautiful pine forests. The area offers you everything from horse riding experiences starting from an hour, till half day, full day and even multiple trek day tours.
So, before arriving in beautiful South Bohemia, we did our research where we wanted to do our horse riding. We had our list ready. A list that contains the popular horse riding schools around Cesky Krumlov, our base.
Our trip starts and we are calling these riding clubs. Unfortunately, they are closed due to the holiday period, or are already fully booked. However, this also shows how popular for locals it is to do horse riding. Because whilst we are sitting in a small coffee shop, tucked away in the many Medieval looking alleys in Cesky Krumlov, we start talking with the waitress. She describes how great the area is, the passion people have that are working on the farm and by chance she has a friend who has some horses and can provide some riding experiences as well.
She gives her number, and of course we couldn’t wait to give our new contact, let’s call her Anna, a call. She picks up her phone immediately, is immediately enthusiastic, and can offer us a horse riding experience the next day.
Great, so the next day we drove to the address she gave us. The road takes us through the Bohemian countryside. Hills that give a small wave to the landscape, passing through villages where time seems to have stopped. A relaxing working culture where people know each other and are surprised to see foreign faces passing through.
The farm is tucked away just outside a village that contains 10 houses. Anna is already waiting for us when we arrive. Happily, she takes us around the farm. She has some sheep grazing around on the fields that seem to last forever. But the highlight is the beautiful horses in the stall. She even has my little brother. A pony that looks like a little Dutch cow, such a cutie.
I have the honour to ride on Eliska. Together with my girlfriend, who has Lightning as her new buddy, we ride slowly under accompaniment with Anna through the fields. Yes, walking, because I never had proper horse riding classes before, so I will take it slow from here. To frustration from my girlfriend, who can’t wait to show Lightning that she can run as fast as the light.
The fields start to surround us with some trees. This changes slowly into a forest where we go uphill, passing an old rail track. The opportunity where Lightning could show she is indeed as fast as light, and where Eliska wanted to catch up, with me struggling on the back. We finally reached the top of the hill. A beautiful vantage point that shows us the fields we just rode through, the village and her farm.
It is peaceful up here. The world here seems to be in balance. People are enjoying and taking care of their animals and farmlands. And nature provides them with the required resources. A lifestyle that I seem to lose in the big cities. It is good to see this still back here.
A great romantic horse riding experience, that you are able to do for around 250Kč (≈£8,50) per hour.
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