Ride amazing horses, and dine in luxury at Castle Leslie through Globetrotting’s Castle & Estate Ride in Monaghan, Ireland
My experience of the 5 day Beginner Rider package (now listed as “Happy Hackers” on the Globetrotting website)
This 5 day riding package at Castle Leslie was truly a magical experience. The horses were responsive, yet quiet. Instructors in the arena lessons were very supportive and gave fresh perspectives on our positions, challenging us to try things we hadn’t done in lessons at home. This ride was also so special for me because friends from the riding school I attend were able to come along, too. My mom also came as a non-rider, joining us for a single hack at the end of the week.
Each day we were treated to a massive continental breakfast spread, one arena lesson, and one hack on the estate (3 hours riding in total). The days concluded with dinner at one of the two restaurants (Snaffles or Conor’s Bar).
On this ride, we were assigned different horses throughout the week. It was really fun getting to know each one, and over meals we talked at length about which ones were our favourites.
The itinerary
The daily routine is simple, and that’s what makes this holiday so nice.
It goes something like this: wake up -> join your friends at Snaffles for breakfast -> head back to your room to finish getting ready to ride -> walk down a staircase to get to the stables -> find your horse and enjoy a lesson, untack your horse -> enjoy a short break in the middle of the day -> head back to the stable for another ride -> then finish off your day with dinner at Snaffles or Connor’s Bar.
There are two real “breaks” during the day; around midday and in the evening. During these breaks you can wander around the estate, taking photos of trees, gardens and stone buildings. You can also walk to a nearby chocolate shop in Glaslough, taking even more photos of the beautiful farmland scenery. One evening, we opted to take our rental car and drive to an equestrian tack shop in a town that was about a 40 min drive away, and still made it back in time for dinner.
Inside the Lodge and around the Estate – Photos
Our main accommodations were in the Lodge, separate from the actual castle. This is certainly the ideal place to be for the riding package, since the rooms overlook the stables. In between rides, we wandered over the the castle and explored the interior, which was also decorated for the upcoming Christmas holidays.
The amazing food at Snaffles and Conor’s Bar – Photos
The package included two meals per day (breakfast and dinner), and the Globetrotting page did say that lunch is typically not needed due to the meal sizes. Personally, I found this to be accurate, and never got hungry enough in between rides to really miss it.
I would like to note that some of my friends did feel peckish around lunch, and grabbed small bites (scones) and tea at Conor’s bar between the rides. These snacks were not included in the ride package but were not too expensive.
The horsies
The riding schedule had us in a 2 hour arena lesson and a 1 hour hack each day. On the final day, we had a 1 hour lesson and a 2 hour hack on the estate, which was a great way to finish off the week.
Summary
I loved this ride package. The horses and instructors were superb, the accommodations were so comfortable and the food was amazing, too. I would definitely return for a ride here in the future.
My packing list for this 14 day holiday with 5 days of riding
As it was my first time in Ireland, I wanted to spend some extra days in the country to get a better feel for it. After the ride, I made stops in Galway, the Cliffs of Moher, Limerick, Cork, Kilkenny, and Dublin. Below is my packing list for this trip.
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Clothes for riding in November
Clothes for other activities
