Insurance
As this is a horse riding holiday, both you and your travel insurance company will be aware that horse riding is a risky sport. As a result, you will need to provide us with your travel and medical insurance policy number, insurance provider names & contact details before your trip.
Also, you will need to confirm, with your travel insurance company, that horse riding in Ireland is included in your policy cover, along with cover for any other outdoor activities that you find on your chosen itinerary.
Please contact your insurance broker before leaving your home country, to ensure that you have adequate travel and health insurance.
Weight and Height Requirements
At Connemara Equestrian Escapes, we don’t impose weight or height restrictions on our riders because lightness in the saddle does not necessarily relate to how tall you are or how much you weigh.
As we are not catering to total beginner riders, we know that you know how to ride in a way that makes it easy for our horses or ponies to carry you.
Our Connemara Ponies are naturally strong, and our Irish Draught Horses are designed to carry additional weight so whatever your build or height, we have an animal to match every physique.
If you do weigh over 200lbs or 90kg, please contact us in advance of making a booking.
Traveling to Ireland and meeting us in Galway
To travel from Dublin Airport to our meeting point at The Park House Hotel at 1pm on Day 1 of your tour(Saturday) in Galway City, it’s best to take a comfortable coach service operating from directly outside the airport terminals.
www.citylink.ie operates 19 daily direct services between Dublin Airport/Dublin City and Galway with a journey time of just 3 hours.
www.gobus.ie operates up to 18 direct daily departures between Galway, Dublin City, and Dublin Airport (operational between 06:45 and until 23:55).
www.aircoach.ie departs up to every 15 minutes 24/7.
If you are traveling from Shannon Airport you can book the www.buseireann.ie coach service in advance, taking route X51 or 51 from the airport to Galway City.
Allow 2-3 hours for this journey.
*NOTE – private airport transfers can be arranged with 30 days’ notice with a minimum of 4 passengers. Contact us for a quotation.
*If traveling by bus from Dublin to Galway, the Park House Hotel is just a 2-minute walk from Galway’s New Coach Station or the Bus Eireann depot.
At the end of your tour, we drop you back to Galway City at 1pm on the following Friday. Be sure to allow 3 hours for travel time to your departure airport plus 2-3 hours check-in time.
Most of your customers choose to fly out on the Saturday after their tour and stay in an airport hotel to save the stress of trying to catch a flight on the Friday.
Things to do outside your tour with us:
If you have some extra days to spend in Ireland before or after your tour with us, be sure to ask us for recommendations on what to do or where to travel in Ireland.
Some places we recommend to visit in your own time are :
The Cliffs of Moher in County Clare
The Burren in County Clare
The Irish National Stud in County Kildare
Killarney National Park and The Ring Of Kerry in County Kerry
If you plan to stay in Dublin for a night or two, here are some worthwhile visitor attractions :
Trinity College Dublin & The Book Of Kells
The Guinness Storehouse Experience
The Jameson Whiskey Distillery Tour
Things to do in Galway City
Alot of these tours and visitor attractions will need to be booked well in advance of your tour start date as you will be travelling during peak tourism season in Ireland.
Please note that it is advisable to also book your airport hotels and other destination accommodations well in advance.
If you plan on renting a car before or after your tour with us, we recommend our partners Enterprise Car Rental Galway. Be sure to mention you are on tour with Cáit from Connemara Equestrian Escapes when getting your quote!!
What do you need to bring?
- We have washing and drying facilities at our hotel locations, but we advise you to bring plenty of lightweight, shower-proof clothing.*PS – you’ll also need to bring a good sense of humor to fully appreciate the Irish weather which can bring all 4 seasons in one day. (No seriously, we’re not joking!)
- Waterproof boots with a heel – preferably jodhpur boots with knee-high chaps/gaiters or long riding boots recommended.
- Safety helmets are mandatory. We advise all of our riders to bring their own helmets. Please note that helmets MUST meet the current helmet safety standards. Click on the following link to view the current standards.
Riding helmet safety standards - Comfortable riding breeches/jodhpurs are highly recommended.
- A swimsuit or two if you fancy a swim in the sea or swimming pool.
- A reflective vest is provided but please do bring a torch if you plan to venture outside at night-time.
- Please notify us in advance of any dietary requirements in advance.
The following is a list of what is included in your package:
- Transport to and from Galway city to our accommodations in Connemara
- Prosecco and chocolates on arrival
- B&B for 6 nights
- 6 x lunches
- 6 gourmet dinners
- Escorted rides on ridden holidays by professional guides
- Transport to and entry into selected cultural
- activities/sightseeing trips
Not just for horse riders!
Would you like to bring a non-riding guest with you, but you’re worried you can’t? Well worry not, you most certainly can and what’s more, many already have!
Non-rider guests can either enjoy all sightseeing and cultural activities, from your particular tour package, with you or we can customize a trip to suit their interests and hobbies.
How so? We’ve teamed up with some local activity providers who can offer a range of fun and unique activities, aimed at those who want to accompany their partners/friends on the trip but want to enjoy their trip their way, as opposed to yours.
Finally, on our riding holidays, non-riders can choose to join in with the riders for lunch, dinner, and cultural activities each day and rates can be negotiated to reflect this.
Please contact us to find out more about our non-rider adventures!
