If ONLY there were more than 5 stars to award! Dominique and the horses at Highlands Unbridled are... read more
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Highlands Unbridled Trail Riding & Trekking Centre
Murley Steading | Ballogie, Aboyne, Aberdeenshire, Aboyne AB34 5DY, Scotland
Review Highlights
“There are not enough words of praise in the English language. . .”
cheryl j
, Helena, Montana
“Wonderful trip, great sights”
We did a 6 day riding trek with the Outlander sightseeing extension. The horses were great... read more
LeslieG1193
, Saint Louis, Missouri
Kirsten H
Milford, Massachusetts
1219
Fantastic Outlander 2 ride!
Date of experience: June 2016
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All reviews coast to coast working holiday day trek well taken care long days riding experience great riding loch ness hour hack days riding an unforgettable experience an experienced rider beautiful landscape behind the scenes lovely horses experience scotland fun ride
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183 - 188 of 238 reviews
459pennyr
105
My daughter and I spend the day with the girls from Highlands Unbridled and found them to be friendly and more than accommodating. We had a lovely ride and would recommend to anyone who wants to see the country.
Date of experience: June 2016
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
IngridJaneEyre
Den Bosch, The Netherlands
4023
We just did the Coast2Coast ride with them, and this far exceeded my expectations. The horses were great (sure-footed, forward yet cool and collected, trust-worthy). Our guides, Jan and later Eileen were absolutely wonderful! We saw Scotland at its best and loved every second of it. Lots of great riding and generous, good meals every time, pleasantly varied accommodation (always of good to excellent quality). We travelled as a group and we all felt that nothing can possibly top this riding trip
Date of experience: May 2016
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
fvs2016
Glasgow, United Kingdom
26
I was disappointed about working holiday. I expected more riding time (instead of 1 hour average per day); working time is 8.30am to 5pm. Also full board accommodation advertised in web page is very misleading, when what you are really getting is a fridge/ freezer full of food for people to help themselves with cooking . I left early ! Very short on staff. On Wed the only staff member left for the day to attend an emergency. On Thursday morning two volunteers and myself started to work on our own,; we were not sure what was happening. I decided to leave, as I didn't know plan for the day and nobody in charge. I contacted Highlands Unbriddled on numerous occassions but unable to get through. I emailed manager on the 5th May and i did not get a reply/explanation/apology. Apart from that, I really enjoyed my horse ride on Sun with Katy and class/ ride with Yvonne. Lorraine was very welcoming/ helpful and volunteers showed me the ropes. The horses are lovely and well trained.
Date of experience: April 2016
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
HighlandsUnbridled, Owner at Highlands Unbridled Trail Riding & Trekking Centre, responded to this reviewResponded 11 June 2016
I am so sorry that you had an unsatisfactory week with us on our working holidays. We always try to give our guests a minimum of 2 hours riding each day, but on some occasions, for example staff sickness, or adverse weather conditions (as we experienced that week), we may re-jig things and give you less riding on one day, then more on another. I have looked in the diary for that week, and the rides that we had you booked down for take a minimum of one and a half hours to ride. It looks like you had a lesson too. There was actually an all-day ride booked in on Friday of that week and from looking in the diary, I can see that we had allocated space for you on that ride too. It is a shame you left early and missed out really and didn't give us a chance to put things right.
Both Eileen and Myself were away on long distance rides that week - the emergency was due to terrible weather conditions on one of the rides - unseasonal heavy snow (there is a review below about how this was handled from one of the riders affected) and our yard manager Yvonne had to attend to this - however I believe the girls on the yard took you out riding that day.
Normally on our working holidays your meals are cooked for you - however the new member of staff who should have been taking care of this side of things, had been delayed by a week, so the two other girls should have been cooking for all of you. I do not know why they did not cater for you - this seems very strange, when I had filled the fridge and freezer before I went on the trail and given them instructions on what to cook each night. They have since moved on, so I cannot check, but if they did not cater for you then I apologise most sincerely as this certainly should not have been the case.
I am glad you enjoyed the riding that you did have with us and liked our horses. Should you wish to visit us again, you would be very welcome and I am sure our experience would be very different.
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
KJourney
New York
169
They seemed to be very short staffed to cover enough trail rides for customers. I tried to book far in advance but they were very hard to reach so I kept calling and calling (international calls) and emailing, and by the time they were able to reach me I was told I could not do the trial rides I had wanted because the trail guides were too preoccupied with other courses. By then, I did not have enough time to search for other places to ride so I just went with what they had offered. The rides were very nice and the landscapes were beautiful - but there was a scheduling mix-up at Highlands Unbridled for my pick-up to the riding center for which I got yell at - a very unkind gesture (2 people ended up coming to pick me up at different times!). That was very inappropriate and unprofessional. As much as I love the Scottish Highlands, I will most likely look for another place to take me riding next time.
Date of experience: April 2016
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
HighlandsUnbridled, Owner at Highlands Unbridled Trail Riding & Trekking Centre, responded to this reviewResponded 5 May 2016
Hi there, I'm sorry your experience of riding with us wasn't as good as it should have been. Unfortunately the weekend you chose to ride was an incredibly busy period for us as it was a bank holiday weekend and at this time of year we only have two ride leaders that are familiar with the East Sutherland trails, which you had originally wanted to book - both of whom were already committed to leading long distance rides - one on the Coast to Coast North route and the other on the Outlander ride - these were rides that had been scheduled since last September, and had been booked up long in advance, so when you initially tried to book at the end of March we had already been booked up for a long time. Of our other two full time ride leaders, one doesn't work weekends and was away visiting family, and the other - the one that should have been leading your rides, was unwell and not well enough to ride that weekend, although she made an effort to come in and make sure your ride went out OK. We drafted in our junior, part time ride leaders to ensure your ride went ahead and that we didn't have to cancel. It wasn't ideal, but we did the best we could in a difficult situation, so that we didn't have to let you down. Sometimes things don't run to plan. We had booked a taxi to collect you from your accommodation each morning, so I don't know what happened there - I know we had tried one taxi company and left a message for them but they didn't get back to us, so we booked another - maybe they both turned up? I am very sorry for the confusion and that you were disappointed with the service provided, but I'm glad you enjoyed the trail rides at least. If you ever do come back this way, we would hope to be of better service. Kindest regards Jan
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Beccamont
Taunton, United Kingdom
13
6 days in the highlands of Scotland on experienced, sure footed ponies with an exceptionally knowlegable and engaging guide, Aileen, was a holiday of a lifetime. Sharing local, historical and equine information and expertise, Aileen took us safely despite extreme and unprecedented weather conditions from the east to west coasts of the Scottish highlands. If you enjoy adventure and beautiful landscape in equal measure, Aileen and these wonderful, powerful kind highland ponies will carry you confidently and inspiringly through this unforgettable experience.
Date of experience: May 2016
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.