Castles of the Loire

Please Note: The opinions expressed in these reviews are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of Unicorn Trails Ltd. These reviews are "directly from the horses mouth" and unedited. Unicorn Trails may make additional comments for clarification clearly identified in red.

Review received from EP of London on 04/10/2011

	Ride Review
		Unicorn Trails sales staff Professionalism     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Friendliness     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Speed of response     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Efficiency     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Knowledge     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Other(please specify)     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Riding tour leader Professionalism     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Horsemanship     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Pacing of Ride     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Concern for Safety     (   ) Excellent     (X) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Leadership     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Friendliness/availability     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Knowledge of local Culture     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Knowledge of local Flora/Fauna     (   ) Excellent     (X) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Concern with Environment     (   ) Excellent     (X) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Language skills     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (X) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Additional Comments Horses and Tack Condition of Horses     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Condition of Tack     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Performance of Horses     (X) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Additional Comments Meals Meal Quantity     (   ) Excellent     (X) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Meal Quality     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (X) Fair     (   ) Poor Meal Punctuality     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (X) Fair     (   ) Poor Accommodation Camping Equipment     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (X) N/A Hotels/Lodges/Inns     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (X) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Hygiene standards     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (X) Fair     (   ) Poor Miscellaneous Transfer arrangements     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (X) N/A Other office staff     (   ) Excellent     (   ) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (X) N/A Other ride staff     (   ) Excellent     (X) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor     (   ) N/A Weather     (   ) Excellent     (X) Good     (   ) Fair     (   ) Poor Was this trip accurately described to you beforehand?     (   ) NO     (X) YES Please give more details to explain your response Was there anything you should have known and were not told?     (   ) NO     (X) YES Please give more details to explain your response That more details of the ride, including a map, were available on the French website. What could we do to improve this ride? Two of the hotels were below standard. Although the midday picnic was always good - and fun (!), dinners were sometimes disappointing and in one case bad - a cafe in Bracieux. The Hotel St Jacques in Blois was very unwelcoming and average, although it was conveniently located near the station and easy to find on arrival. The Hotel la Croix Blanche in Montrichard had no redeeming features - this hotel should certainly be changed. How would you rate the difficulty of this ride out of 10 where 1 is very easy and 10 is very advanced? 7 Please explain why you scored it as you did The horses were very well schooled and it was easy to keep them in line and avoid racing on the long canters, which made the riding easier than it might otherwise have been. Would you recommend Unicorn Trails to your friends?     (   ) NO     (X) YES Please give more details to explain your response The ride was very well organised and although accommodation sometimes fell short, the most important aspect - the riding - was excellent and the other riders were all good company. May we use you as a reference for other people wishing to go on this ride?     (   ) NO     (X) YES Any other comments Thank you for a wonderful holiday! Unicorn comments