Frequently Asked Questions
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Please note that Havana Horses is NOT a tourist attraction. Havana Horses is a natural horse school where you can learn all about natural horse care, natural horsemanship & straightness training - including groundwork, liberty, work-in-hand, longeing, and riding. All bitless and barefoot, of course!
Q&A's about Prices and Payment
Q: Do I need to make an appointment? A: Yes, you always need to make an appointment before coming to Havana Horses. Also when you only want to have a look, let us know 1 or 2 days in advance when you are planning to come. Q: Do I need to pay in advance? A: Yes, advance payment, or payment of a DP, for lessons and courses is required. When you take lessons regularly, you can buy the Lesson Card and you pay 10 x 1 hour lessons but get 11 hours, so 1 hour is for free!
Q&A's about Lessons and Courses
Q: What do I need to prepare for a lesson or a course? A: Wear riding breeches or long comfortable pants, plus riding boots or covered shoes. A helmet and chaps we have for you. Q: How long does a lesson last? A: A lesson lasts 1 or 2 hours. When you take a session of 3 hours in a row, it is called an Intensive Course and you pay the reduced hourly price. Q: What is the difference between a lesson and a course? A: A lesson lasts 1 or 2 hours, an Intensive Course takes a minimum of 3 hours a day - the morning session of 9 to 12am. You can take an Intensive Course of 1 to 14 days! Q: What is the difference between a lesson and a pony ride? A: A lesson lasts 1 or 2 hours and is for riders of 7 years and older: kids older then 7 years and all adults. A pony ride is for kids younger than 7 years and lasts 30 minutes. Q: What do you learn in a lesson? A: A regular lesson starts with meeting the horse in the field, haltering, leading the horse out of the field. Then, grooming, and tacking up. We bring the horse to the riding ring and start with ground work, then riding. A lesson is adapted to your wishes and skills, amd therefore can focus more or less on the ground work or on the riding. If you wish, we can also spend an entire lesson on developing your ground work, longeing, or liberty skills! Q: How many lessons do I need to learn horse riding? A: Horse riding requires balance in body and mind, coordination, fitness, leadership skills, and more. Therefore, it depends on many factors how fast you will progress: do you already do a lot of sports, are you overweight or not, are you a leader or a follower, do you have well developed coordination, do you connect easily with animals, are you mindful, or not? You see, there is no answer to this question as it depends on so many different factors. Enjoy the process!
Q&A's about Accommodation at Havana Horses
Q: Is there accommodation at Havana Horses? A: Yes, the accommodation is called Havana Horses Lodge. It is situated in one of our horse paddocks, so you stay really close to the horses. Q: What are the facilities when I stay at Havana Horses Lodge? A: Facilities in the Lodge are: use of the shared kitchen and dining space, the terrace with loungers and natural swimming pool. On the 1st floor: a balcony looking into the green plantations and a balcony looking over the paddock with horses, a shared relax room with a day bed, book case, reading corner, and desk. Q: What activities or amusement is there to find? A: Havana Horses is NOT a tourist atrraction or amusement park. Nature and animal lovers stay in the Lodge to find peace and quiet, close to nature. Q: Is horse riding included in the price? A: No, you will have to book sessions for horse riding separately. Q: How many days in advance do I need to book? A: Depending on the season, it is wise to book at least a couple of weeks, with a minimum of 2 days, in advance.
Q&A's about Horse Training & Straightness Training
Q: What is Natural Horsemanship? A: How do horses communicate with each other? How do horses know when to eat, when to drink, when to run, and where to run? In the herd, there are two leaders, one female one male, and they work together as a team keeping the horses fed and safe. When the leaders are there, all horses feel comfortable and safe. So, when you can be the leader, that is both the lead mare and the lead stallion, in one body, then any horse will feel comfortable and safe with you, and is happy to follow your lead. This is the basic concept of natural horsemanship as we practice and teach it at Havana Horses.