Reviews
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Lona B ./ Canada
Enjoyed the most: The horses. They were very calm, sure footed, and incredible endurance. Lots of long, long gallops with walking in between, to catch your breath. Also, our guide, Lubomirr Gatev was extremely caring, insuring that all of us had food that met our individual needs. Also, Bulgaria is a beautiful, quaint, and clean country. Loved the people. The 2 hour down hill riding on old roman rocky roads at the end of each day. Would of liked a bit more of mountain trails rather than old roads. Our accomodations were in nice guest houses or homes in the mountain villages. Every host was very kind, great cooks and made me feel very welcome. My only complaint would be the serving sizes were hugh and I could not ever eat all the food put in front of me.
Anais Colette Suzanne R ./ Canada
Enjoyed the most: The gallops were absolutely amazing! Large mountain trails allowed us to gallop many times for over 10 minutes at a time. The scenery is also breathtaking, with several high points from which we would dominate mountains and valleys. Our guide Lubo was great! After the 1st day you could see that he really trusted us with the horses and the riding, himself riding in last position. No matter what time we left in the morning, there was always time for a nap in a field or a clearing at lunch. Lubo also organized a wine-tasting in a local winery for us despite the fact it was not on his itinerary anymore. He was also very competent with the horses and I always felt 100% safe with him in charge. He knows his horses and the trails extremely well. This made for a very relaxing trip and really felt more like we were 4 friends riding together, rather than 3 strangers and a guide. I wouldn't say anything bothered me, it was such a fantastic trip! However if I was to be really picky, I'll say I would have enjoyed a bit more riding in narrower trails and paths, for a bit more challenge and change of terrain. We did take some narrow trails in the deep forest a couple of times, but for the most part we were on large mountain trails (wide enough for a car). These were awesome for galloping, but could also get a bit monotonous when we were walking downhill.
Marloes M./ The Netherlands
I was on a horseriding trip in September. I had a really, really awesome time! Lots of galloping, beautiful nature, stunning views, good food, strong schnaps and good guiding from Lubomir. I recommend everyone to take this trip! I had the best holiday :)
Manon B./France
My trip with penguin travel company was really good!! My guide Lobomir was really nice and he give me a lot of advices to visit Plovdiv and discover the bulgarian food. The Horse riding was really good to. I recommande this trip to everyone.
Karin Elsa Maria M./Sweden
I can definitely recommend going on Penguin travel's horseriding trip in the Rhodope mountains, Bulgaria ( I went on the one called the Orpheus Trail, starting in Plovdiv). The local people are warm and friendly, the views are absolutely stunning and the horses had lots of energy. Seeing mountains from horseback with the wind in your face is something one simply has to do, at least once. The whole trip was well organized and staying with the local people was a real treat. My guide (Lubormir Gatev or Lubo for short) did a fantastic job. We had lots of fun together and became friends. All in all, considering the price for this wonderful experience, it's a steal.
Maria Moliteus, 21, from Sweden
Jackie D./USA
Two friends and I have just come back from the Rodopi Trail ride and this is the 4th time we have booked horse riding trips with Penguin, and although each of them has been very different we have enjoyed every one. I don't normally post on tripadvisor so I was shocked to read some of the earlier comments. For our latest trip ( which ended yesterday) everything went smoothly according to the schedule, the riding guide owned the horses and they were very well treated, our support guide ensured everything went smoothly and added lots of local knowledge and opportunities to do extra things. We added some extra days to our tour and Penguin accommodated sorting out extra activities and transfers. The only comment I would add as a note of caution is that if people don't have much ,or no riding experience , I don't think a week trail riding would be the ideal starting point, as the pain might outweigh the pleasure of the fantastic scenery and Bulgarian hospitality!! Jackie
Joan F./Canada
I just returned (with 4 friends) from Penguin Travel's week-long Rhodope Mountains horseback ride on June 13, 2015. We are all very experienced riders and had a great time. Good, dependable horses. Fantastic scenery. Great guides (Lubo speaks excellent English and was a lot of fun). We booked two extra days before the riding in Plovdiv and Penguin handled our transfer to and from Sofia as well as the extra nights' lodging very efficiently. We were housed, on the riding trip, in a variety of types of places which gave us a very good feel of how people live there. Also an effort was made to introduce us to the traditional foods, etc.
Susan B./Canada
I was in Joan's group on the Orpheus Ride in the Rhodope Mountains. The experience far exceeded my expectations--the countryside was lush and beautifully green with fields of wild flowers, evergreen forests,and picturesque villages. Lubo, our guide, was competent, charming and knowledgable. We had good accommodations, visited historic sites, and found the Bulgarian people warm and welcoming. I highly recommend it!
Lee C./Canada
I was in Joan's group for the week of horseback riding the first part of June, 2015. We were a group of five riders who have vacationed all over the world on different horseback riding trips. We are all very experienced riders and own our own horses at home. Members of our group have ridden in Kenya, India, Spain, France, Costa Rico, and various locations in South America. We love to stay in local accommodations and get to meet the people of the country. We actually booked our trip with Hidden Trails and they use Penguine Travels for their rides in Bulgaria. Each country has had its own flavor but our trip to Bulgaria was very special. Our guide Lubo and his assistant on the trip Marion made our vacation a blast! The thing that impressed me the most is the care they took in insuring our safety as riders. The horses were well taken care of and our tack was comfortable and new. Some of the trips we have done certainly could not boast of this! The value in Bulgaria is exceptional for Americans. Unforgettable wonderful vacation!
Dorothy A./Canada
I traveled with a group of 5 to the Rhodope Mountains for a 6 day 5 night horse riding trip. It was great! The Penguin tours was on time, attentive and very accommodating. We stayed in Plovdiv a few extra nights before the tour which they arranged for us. Transfer from Sofia to Plovdiv went smoothly. Our guide, Lubomir Gatev, was exceptional. He was very good with the horses, paired us up well and was concerned for the comfort of the horses as well as the riders. Very personable, fun, friendly and made the trip interesting and entertaining. His knowledge of local history and customs was great. The horses were sturdy, safe, healthy and made our trip very easy. The tack was nice and comfortable.
The tour was a progressive ride and each Inn was clean, comfortable, hot showers with delicious and plentiful meals. I was very happy with this tour and would recommend it strongly. Plovdiv and the Rhodope mountains were absolutely beautiful.
Claire G. /France
We chose Penguin Travel to do horse riding in the Rhodopi moutains and we really enjoyed it!!! Our guide was very funny and explained to us many interesting things about the monastery that we visited during the tour. It was also our first time practicing such an activity and our guide has been a very good instructor, trustworthy for sure! Many thanks Lubomirr!!! :)