We went for the horseback riding in May 2021. Overall, the resort seems to have potential, but at the time we went, they were not ready for beginner horseback riders.
For context, my family does this kind of guided horseback riding once or twice a year but do not ride horses otherwise. So although we've done many such tours, we are all really beginners.
Our trip to Cockaigne started really well. The place was very clean and pretty, and the people were very friendly. However, the horses were dangerously untrained for children or anyone with little experience. The first issue is that they had a new system to get riders onto the horses (steps and a platform), but the horses were not used to it and panicked. The moment I got on the large mustang I was meant to ride, the horse took off running. I didn't even have time to get my feet in the stirrups. I don't mind trotting, but a full gallop is not something I was ready for at all.
All of the horses had pent up energy and seemed desperate to run. Even the guides had a hard time keeping their horses on the trail. At one point, the guide was trying to pony (lead) both my mom and my daughter at the same time, and the horses were fighting with each other. While the guides were very friendly and trying hard to make it work, they were inexperienced and didn't know how to get us up the hill safely. Finally one of the guides asked if I wanted to just give up (at the time, my 12 year old's horse was bucking around), so I said yes out of serious concern for her safety. We ended up returning to the stables, so I can't say what the trail looked like.
They offered to give us a discount if we came again, but we don't live in that area. So, I was out about $300 for a ride that didn't work out for 4 people. While horses are animals with feelings and thus can't be predicted, the fact that every single horse had this pent up aggression made me feel like they were not being exercised enough and not used to being ridden. This left me concerned for both the horses and the people who come to ride them. While I think it would be fun for someone who is used to this, I feel obligated to share that I believe this resort was outright dangerous for children.
Please see Cockaigne's response to my review below. The defensive nature of their response makes it clear that they do not take the safety issues I brought up seriously. The lead guide specifically told me that the steps and platform were new to the horses, that she had not been riding very long herself, and that she had only been working there a few weeks. While I agree that certain aspects of riding are unpredictable, it is not reasonable to expect the horses to fight with each other and run off as much as they did. Again, I've done many guided rides and this has never happened before. I was hoping that they would take my feedback seriously to improve their rides since, like I said earlier, the resort itself is really pretty and has a lot of potential. It doesn't look, however, like that is the likely result. I do feel obligated to share this information particularly for people...
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