All activities / Horse Riding / Equestrian / Cappadocia
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Horse Riding / Equestrian in Cappadocia
The land of beautiful horses: fairy-chimney valleys, cave churches, and dawn balloon skies over a landscape carved from volcanic tuff.
Why here
Cappadocia's ancient name, Katpatuka, is popularly read as the land of beautiful horses, and riding here restores the ground-level region the balloons float over: multi-day treks of up to five and nine days thread the fairy-chimney valleys, remote villages, and cave-church canyons that day-trippers never reach, camping or guesthousing along the way. The horse culture is real rather than themed, the Akhal-Teke center in Avanos has bred and worked its thirty-plus endurance horses since 1985, and the Dalton Brothers ranch in Goreme runs the trekking side with the kind of rider loyalty small operations earn. Dawn rides put you under the balloon mass ascension from the saddle, the region's two icons in one frame.
Best months
April to June and September to October are the riding seasons; summer runs hot and winter brings snow rides for the romantic. Multi-day treks want riding fitness; valley loops take novices.
Getting there & around
Fly to Kayseri (ASR) or Nevsehir (NAV), under an hour to Goreme and Avanos. Book multi-day treks one to three months ahead for the spring and autumn windows.
Skill levels: beginner, intermediate, advanced
Schools & guides (2)
Akhal-Teke Horse Riding Center
OutfitterThe Akhal-Teke Horse Riding Center rides out of Avanos in Cappadocia. It runs one, two, and four hour tours, full day rides, sunset rides, and a sunrise ride under the balloons, plus multi-day treks of four, five, and seven days, riding courses, and photoshoots. The center dates to 1985 and keeps a thirty-box barn of Akhal-Teke and Arabian-cross endurance horses.
Dalton Brothers Horse Ranch
OutfitterDalton Brothers Horse Ranch rides from the heart of Goreme, among the fairy chimneys, open valleys, and ancient trails. Rides run from one and two hours through sunrise, sunset, half-day, and full-day tours up to five-day treks, with photoshoots and running-horses video sessions on the side. The ranch is family owned and run by Ekrem, a Goreme native featured in the Lonely Planet guide.
Also good for horse riding / equestrian in September:
Torn between Cappadocia and Jerez de la Frontera for September?
A plan settles it for your skill and budget, same-day.