8 Day Atlantic Coast Trail Horseback Riding Tour in Mimizan, Landes, France

This is an eight-day, seven-night trek with six days on horseback, three of which will be with galloping along the beach. Take advantage of the end of the day to experience moments of well-being and relaxation: yoga, Pilates, massage, and sauna are at your disposal.

Itinerary

Route and times are indicative and subject to change depending on the general level of the group, weather conditions, and tide times!

Day 1 - Sunday: Arrival day

• Transfer by minibus organized by the equestrian center for guests
• 16:00 Pick up time at Bordeaux airport
• 17:00 Pick up time at Bordeaux railway station
• 19:00 Arrival in Mimizan for all riders coming with or without the transfer
• Between 20:30 and 21:30 Dinner

Day 2 - Monday: Mimizan - Bias (20 kilometers / three hours on a horse)

There will be a briefing about the week and the horse ride, a visit to Mimizan Beach for shopping, a free lunch in the city, a meeting with the horses, and the first day ride on departure for the six-day trail without coming back to the base with the horses.

09:00

• Breakfast

09:30

• Meeting with all riders after breakfast and briefing time with the guide about the week's program

10:30

• The clients will be dropped off at Mimizan Beach to visit and walk through the village and on the beach for some shopping before the trail, and take lunch at the restaurant of their choice (not included in the price)

13:30

• Pick up time in front of the tourism office and way back to the guesthouse

14:00

• Meeting at the stable for a briefing about the horses, the equipment, and the itinerary

16:00

The ride will start at the arena for 30 minutes. This will enable the riders to get used to their horses and discover the French way to ride them. It will also give the opportunity to control different levels and expectations of each rider, putting them on the horses that suit them best over the six following days.

Then, it’ll be time to discover carefully the different paces, walking and trotting, one by one, with hacking out. You will not be riding nose to tail during this week, giving the opportunity for each rider to keep control of his own horse at different paces.

This way of hacking out offers every rider to avoid the dust made by the riders in front and to choose the speed of the pace that each rider wants to have, from slow to a quick trot and from canter to quick gallop.

Centre Équestre le Marina's horses used to be independent of the others and may stay walking when other horses are starting to trot or gallop in front of them. They stay under the control of the riders and not under the group of horses. It avoids having horses trotting all the time, as some walk slowly while some are walking quickly.

Centre Équestre le Marina's short surroundings are very beautiful, and the very wild landscape offers, from the top of natural dunes, some nice views above the ocean.

19:00

• Transfer back to the guesthouse and its swimming pool by minibus (eight minutes)

19:30

• Relaxing time

20:30

• Dinner at the guest house

Day 3 - Tuesday: Bias - Contis - St. Julien (35 kilometers / six hours on a horse)

Spend six hours to discover an original forest, coastal landscape with a high sandy dune (up to 150 meters above sea level), and the first beach ride either in the morning or in the evening, according to the tide of the ocean.

• 08:00 Breakfast
• 09:00 Transfer to the horse’s field of the night
• 10:00 Start of the trail ride
• 13:30 Lunch time and resting time
• 16:00 Start of the ride
• 19:00 Transfer back to the guesthouse and its swimming pool by minibus (eight minutes)
• 19:30 Relaxing time
• 20:30 Dinner at the guest house

Day 4 - Wednesday: St. Julien - Levignacq - Lesperon (35 kilometers / 5 hours on a horse)

The landscape and nature are changing every day, offering all the various views of “The Landes,” with wild nature and wonderful ground for galloping. During the next two days, you'll spend as much time walking as with trotting, cantering, or galloping. Visit the most beautiful village of Landes, “Lévignac,“ and its church with magnificent paintings worthy of Michelangelo Buonarroti.

There will be an afternoon adventure trip in the wild along a clear and fresh river. Arrive at “Moulin de Caremonge,” a wonderful and unexpected place, where you’ll leave the horses in their field beside a lake for the night.

• 08:00 Breakfast
• 09:00 Transfer to the horses' field for the night
• 10:00 Departure on a horse
• 13:30 Lunch at Lévignacq and resting time
• 15:30 Departure on a horse
• 18:30 Transfer by minibus to the Guest house (25 minutes)
• 20:30 Dinner

Note: No more bivouac at Moulin de Caremonge; wild camps are now forbidden.

Day 5 - Thursday: Lesperon - Mezos - Orvignac (35 kilometers / 5 hours on a horse)

See wild nature and wonderful ground for galloping. Discover traditional Landes architecture from the 18th century. There will be various landscapes, and you will ride along the river in the original forest during the afternoon. Dinner will be at the Equestrian Guest House.

• 08:00 Breakfast
• 09:00 Departure to Caremonge, the horses’ field of the night (25 minutes)
• 10:00 Departure on horse
• 13:30 Lunch time at Mezo and resting time
• 16:00 Departure on a horse for a ride of two more hours
• 19:00 Transfer back by minibus (10 minutes) to the equestrian guest house and its swimming pool
• 19:30 Relaxing time at the guesthouse
• 20:30 Dinner at the guest house

Day 6 - Friday: Orvignac - Lespecier - Ocean (19 kilometers / half-day ride - 4 hours on a horse)

There will be a half-day rest and a half-day ride in the morning or in the evening, depending on the low tide. Cross the National Littoral Forest and have access to the beach. You can spend two hours on the beach. This half-day trail will give riders the opportunity to enjoy the Atlantic Ocean and have some more exciting gallops along the beach. The other half-day will give riders time to relax beside the swimming pool at the Guest House.

If the weather is fine, from July to the end of August, riders will have the opportunity to play and swim in the ocean with or without their horses.

• 08:00 or 10:00 Breakfast
• 20:00 or 21:00 Dinner at the guest house

Day 7 - Saturday: Mimizan Village - Aureilhan Lake - Mimizan Beach (30 kilometers / 5 hours on a horse)

This will be a full-day ride in the forest and along Aureilhan Lake (a protected area), then along the river to Mimizan Beach. There will be a forest and beach ride at sunset. According to the tide schedules, this program can be reversed.

• 08:00 Breakfast
• 09:00 Departure for the horses' place
• 10:00 Departure on horse
• 13:00 Lunch along the river
• 15:30 Departure on horse
• 19:00 Arrival at the guest house
• 20:30 Dinner at the guest house

Day 8 - Sunday: Departure after breakfast

A transfer will be organized for guests from Mimizan to Bordeaux airport or Bordeaux railway station. Departure from the guest house will be according to the flight or train schedule of the first client.

Trail

This will be a sporting trail for experienced to advanced riders in good physical condition. The trail requires good and fit riders, confident at all paces, and able to ride several hours over varied and sometimes challenging terrain.

For security reasons and for everyone's comfort, Centre Équestre le Marina asks riders to be confident enough to walk or trot independently through the forest, as well as to canter or gallop alone on the sandy ways in the forest, in order to avoid the dust made by front riders. On the beach, riders must be able to gallop alone or in groups of two or three riders and to leave and come back to the group under good control.

Riding pace

• Moderate with lots of fast sections