?Nicki's riding on GCI web site??

[rae519]

Buckaroo's Dad had a great time at Nicki's riding but I can't find the website - so if anyone has it or if you, BD, see this, help!!!

The Nicki's link I have goes to "Honeysuckle" - did she sell out?

Thanks!
Rae

 

[Buckaroo's Dad]

Hi Rae. A copy and paste from another post.

Her e-mail is listed as Nikiride@candw.ky

Don't know what happened to her web site...

 

[rae519]

Thanks so much, BD! I knew you'd have a way to get to it!

Rae

 

[Wavegirl]

Nicki's was good but we enjoyed Honeysuckle more. Penny the owner of Honey Suckle was so professional and so good with the kids as she has some of her own. She made sure they were comfortable and gave them horses that matched their skill level and ours too.

If you want to have a look at Honey Suckle Beach rides you can find them atGrand Cayman Beach Horseback Riding

She has great horses, brought in from the USA that are extremely well trained. My kids loved the ride but I guess all kids love horses don't they

 

[rae519]

Nikki didn't reply to my e-mail so I guess she's either busy with the bad weather or ????

Glad to get the report about Honeysuckle. Will check them out!
Thanks!!!!

Rae

 

[macbasset]

I saw somewhere there's horseback riding at Mr. Sanchos. Is that right? How is that different than the DCL horseback riding on cozumel? Barb

 

[inkkognito]

macbasset,
I don't know about Mr. Sanchos, but I do know that the Disney riding is at a place called Buenavista Ranch. They have riding at Xcaret, but I didn't like the looks of the horses. In contrast, at Buenavista, they looked well cared for and were all very well trained. The group from the excursion was broken down into two smaller groups, with guides at both the front and rear. It was handled very safely. Most of the ride is walking, but we were allowed to canter (run) a couple of times too (you don't have to if you don't want to). After the ride, one of the wranglers put on a show with two trick horses. He said he had learned natural horsemanship methods in the U.S. That made me feel even better about the place, as I used a form of natural horsemanship to train my horse Figment (he is becoming quite the trickster himself).
Rae, we had booked Nicki's from that website for our second Western cruise, and we got an email from the GC site saying that they would no longer recommend Nicki due to bad service and that we should book through Honeysuckle. But Nicki had been prompt in responding to our queries, so I thought it might just be because Honeysuckle was willing to pay more for an ad. I never found out for sure, as the ship couldn't dock in GC so we never got to ride (we did 7-Mile Beach on the next cruise instead).
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[Marcotta]

Come to think of it...

I emailed Nikki weeks ago after BD gave me the email address and to this day, I STILL have not heard back from her. It's not sounding to good is it

 

[rae519]

Thanks Barb. With no word from Nikki, it really doesn't sound good!

Rae

 

[buzz638]

Hi wavegirl

My kids loved the ride but I guess all kids love horses don't they

We are consedering the horseback riding in GC for our cruise, but i was wondering since it's at 9:30am, do you have enough time to make it ?

We would like to hear it from someone who actually did it...

Also how much time are you on the horse??

Thank you for your help

Steff

 

[dylan'smom]

DS & I did the ride at Honeysuckle in June. We arrived in plenty of time -- picked up the tender ticket @ 8:30, arrived a few minutes later, & were picked up around 9:30. The actual horseback ride is about an hour & a half. The whole trip lasted till almost noon (there is a drive to get to the beach where they keep their horses). The stretch of beach was GORGEOUS!!! We were then taken back to the meeting place, with a quick stop for water at a local store - that was very nice of the wife/owner.

DS 11 had never ridden before & I was really happy with how they handled everything for him -- he loved it!

Now the precautions...
As for me, I was a bit put off by the husband/owner (sorry - don't know names) when we went. I explained that I hadn't ridden in many many years & was very nervous about the whole thing, but he still put me on a very "demanding" horse & then later snapped & chastised me for not letting him know I wasn't a skilled, confident rider. That was a bit much since the whole time he was assignning horses I kept asking for a more tame & gentle one. I finally said, "but I did tell you!!" & he just sort of grumbled & rode off & left me there feeling very insecure. Not so good, but the horse was fine & didn't "take off" or "lay down" like he had threatened he might...

BUT, because DS had so much fun, & it was such a beautiful beach, & the horse did behave, I tried to take the whole thing in stride -- didn't really like getting scared & yelled at, though. I still had a good time & would highly recommend the wife/owner as a wonderful guide & listener!! If you go, just make sure you are VERY clear with the husband about what you need -- I guess I wasn't loud enough??

Also make sure you bring some water!! It was very hot & we forgot ours. They didn't have any place for you to get a drink there! And don't wear a hat unless you are prepared to lose it. I bought DS a Grand Cayman hat while we were waiting to be picked up, it fell off when his horse began to trot, I asked the husband/owner if he would grab it, & he yelled, "the hat stays!" & refused to pick it up even though he was separate from the group & sitting on his horse right beside where it fell. That was a bit weird, but I had already learned that he was to be avoided...

Sorry for all the disclaimers... we really did have a good time!

 

[buzz638]

dylan'smom thank you very much !!!

That's a very good trip report.
I think we'll have to stay away from the husband/owner
-
One more thing if i may : you mention the water bottles,
if we have like a bag or bagpack do we carry it with us
or do they have a secure place for those items ???

Thank you again for all the info

Steff

 

[dylan'smom]

Hi Steff,

Everything was safely locked up in the SUV we were picked up in. Good luck w/ it & have fun!!

 

[rae519]

Dear dylan'smom - thank you so much for warning us about the owner/husband of the Honeysuckle team. Isn't it pathetic that a person who is making his living off tourists has NO personality or consideration.
It is exceptionally dangerous to put a novice rider on a "difficult" horse. That does it for me - I refuse to take any chances with either Michael or myself with them.

Our stable is very safety conscious and we can't even take our horse out of the corral until we have a met a certain criteria and shown our ability to control him and work as a team. They are a very successful stable/trail riding group and if anything I have learned that you can't always get that elsewhere!

Always wanted to run the beach but I can just as well dream that these overflowing creeks are the ocean for now!!!

Glad you made it safely and your son had a good time.

BOO to the Owner/Husband!

Rae

 

[SueEllen]

We had an excellent experience with Nicki.

I don't like the sounds of Honeysuckle--especially with not stopping to pick up the hat? Come on now! I will definitely NOT book a riding experience with them.

I had heard that Nicki was not on the GC site anymore because of advertising costs. She gets most of her customers from referrals from local hotels there. She is very nice--offered the stop at the convenience store for us to get a drink and donuts, and took us to the stables. We had a wonderful ride on the beach and were the only ones on the beach. She gave my daughter, who was a first time rider, a horse that "followed" her horse exactly. She made sure my daughter was very comfortable and had her in the front, directly behind Nicki. We got to do some cantering, and for the more experienced riders we were able to do a bit more running with another guide related to Nicki (met back on the beach). It was GREAT. She stopped and took pictures of us all with our cameras and then we headed back. She will also drop you off elsewhere on the Island if you would like. The horses were well taken care of and you could see she really loved her horses. She did have water for us to drink when we got back to the stables also.

I have her phone number somewhere--I'll look for it and if anyone is interested I will be more than happy to give it to you.

She comes HIGHLY recommended from me and my family.

Sue Ellen

 

[Wavegirl]

Glad to hear you had a good time but wow, how rude I hope he was just having a bad day.

We rode with Penny and she was truely a gem and she is the one who really runs the show their and I think her husband just helps her out. I wonder why she didn't take you on the ride. We met her husband only briefly when we arrived at the stable but the we where just with her.

Maybe I would request Penny as a guide when you book and see if that is a possibility.

We were on the horses for 1.5 hrs and we had no problem making the 9:30 time. You have two walk to a store near the port dock and they pick you up.

Our experience was so wonderful, I'm sad to hear that yours was less than perfect but glad your son had a great time.

 

[inkkognito]

Dylan'smom,
I would definitely NOT have liked that attitude either! Even though I have owned horses for almost 25 years, I am a timid rider because I am so used to my horse Cochise (I trained him myself, and he & I are so in tune that I barely need to do anything). Cochise would never take off on a rider, and he has a very soft mouth...I ride him bareback and sometimes don't even use a bit. Because I am so used to that (and also because of a bad experience on another horse), I get nervous on a hard-mouthed horse or one that I feel might run away with me. At riding stables, I always emphasize that I'd rather have to work to make the horse go than to stop it!
They've almost always gone along with me wishes (although when we spent a week at a dude ranch in Colorado, the wranglers realized that I knew how to ride after watching me for a couple of days, so they switched me to a more "challenging" horse to free up the tame one for novices...fortunately I got along well with my new mount, as he was soft mouthed...just silly).
Having a horse matched to your ability really enhances enjoyment of the ride. In Cozumel, I made my usual request, but while we were waiting to leave, my horse seemed rather antsy and high strung. Thankfully, I think he was just anxious to get started...on the ride he was an angel! I won't canter if I don't feel fully confident, but the horse was so obedient that I was galloping down the trail and having an absolute blast. The sore butt the next day was well worth it.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[rae519]

I wrote an e-mail to Nikki but haven't heard back. Will try again!

Buckaroo and BD went riding with her and have nothing but praise for her and her horses. She does come very highly recommended!

Rae