How To Choose a Horseback Riding Ranch in Puerto Vallarta
With so many great options, how do you decide what ranch would be best for you? We’re convinced that every ranch in Puerto Vallarta has something great to offer. It’s important to find what ranch is right for you. Here are some things to consider:
Location, location, location
Horseback riding is part horse, part scenery, part service! The riding environment that appeals to you may not appeal to others. Do you want to ride in foothills, in open prairies, or through mountains? The location of the ranch determines the terrain. Some ranches are close to mountains, and some are close to prairies. Ranchers love to share history of the town that they’re in.
Rancho el Charro is just fifteen minutes from Vallarta! You won’t spending two hours round-trip just in a vehicle to go horseback riding. Town is close to mountains. We are in the mountains. We are biased.
Type of riding
Are you a beginner rider who would benefit from a more relaxed ride, or are you an experienced rider that wants a challenge? Most ranches offer some instruction for beginners, and some offer rides for experienced riders. Some ranches have scenic trail rides with limited trotting and loping, while others have terrain that allows for more.
Ranch el Charro has beginner rides that are relaxed and take you up river, as well as more adventurous rides up and through the mountains. We also offer advanced rides where experienced riders can trot and lope and gallop.
Size of group
The number of guests that a ranch can host varies. Some ranches have fifty horses and therefore need to accommodate for fifty horses. Some ranches choose to remain small and focus on quality instead of quantity.
Rancho el Charro is a small ranch by choice.
Other activities
Some ranches offer activities in addition to riding, like food options, side trips to local attractions, or an ATV ride. If you have children, this is probably super appealing because you can wear them out.
Rancho el Charro has considered ATV rides, but we find them to be noisy and unfair to neighbors and the animals that call the mountains home.
Price
Cheap rides are backed by cheap horses, are backed by cheap feed, and by a lack of investment in the health of horses. Some ranches optimize for quantity of riders: appeal to a broader group of people and make more money. Horses, unfortunately, don’t scale this way, and it means a higher turnover of horse.
At Rancho el Charro, we price ourselves to be a quality product, to thrive with smaller groups, to invest in the community and the wilderness around us. This sounds cliché but it’s true.
