San Miguel de Allende: Horseback Riding & Ranch Lunch

Three Hours on Horseback at a Working Ranch 18 km from Town

You get picked up from your hotel, driven to a working family ranch, learn basic horsemanship and ranch traditions, then spend three hours riding through open countryside with a local guide. The ride ends with lunch and a cold drink before the drive back to town. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included.

Step-by-step itinerary

Horseback riding and ranch experience

• Pick up from hotel at 9:00 am
• Drive 40 minutes to Rancho Xotolar
• Register and complete Covid-19 protocols
• Introduction to rural life and milking cow
• Learn traditional cheese making process
• Horseback riding lesson and safety instructions
• Three-hour horseback ride through nature
• Enjoy traditional ranch meal and drinks
• Drive 40 minutes back to hotel

The experience

The Morín family has been running Rancho Xotolar for four generations, and when you pull up in the air-conditioned van after a 40-minute drive from San Miguel de Allende, you're not walking into a tourist operation. You're arriving at an actual working ranch on the high plateau. Thomás or Felix will be there to meet you, and they'll start by walking you through the basics: how to mount, how to hold the reins, what the horse responds to. It's not rushed. They've been doing this long enough to know that some people have ridden before and some haven't, and they adjust the pace accordingly.

Before the ride itself, there's a small introduction to ranch life. You'll help milk a cow and learn how they make cheese the traditional way. The kind of thing that takes fifteen minutes but sticks with you. Then you're on the horse, and for the next three hours you're moving through countryside that opens up in every direction. The views are the real thing here: not a postcard version of Mexico, but the actual landscape the family has been working on for generations. Thomás and Felix know every part of it, and they'll point out details as you go: the way the light hits the plateau in the afternoon, where the water runs, what grows where. The archaeological site of Cañada de la Virgen is nearby, pre-Columbian pyramids and structures built by the Tolteca-Chichimecas groups centuries ago, and the whole ride happens in that context of deep history.

After you're done riding, you sit down to a traditional ranch meal: fresh food prepared that day, cold beer if you want it, and the kind of meal that tastes different when you've spent three hours outside. The whole experience, from pickup to drop-off back at your hotel in San Miguel de Allende, takes about five and a half hours. You can choose either the 9:00 am or 3:30 pm departure, depending on what fits your schedule.

What’s included

Your day includes hotel pickup at either 9:00 am or 3:30 pm, a 40-minute drive in an air-conditioned vehicle to Rancho Xotolar, an introduction to ranch life with traditional cheese-making, a riding class, three hours of horseback riding through the countryside, a traditional ranch meal with fresh food and cold drinks, and the return drive to your hotel in San Miguel de Allende.

Before you book

Lasts 6h, runs every day at 09:00 and 15:30, from US$ 181 per person, with a live guide in English and Spanish, as a private tour and with free cancellation up to 24 h before.

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 09:00 and 15:30

AgesAdult (18 to 60 years) · Senior (61 to 69 years) · Youth (12 to 17 years) · Child (3 to 11 years) · Infant (1 to 2 years)

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish and Spanish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup is optional; you can also go straight to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund.

Prices and times updated 14 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortNot recommended during pregnancyNot recommended with heart problemsNot recommended with back problemsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Rancho Xotolar Excursions-Adventures

Is this one for you?Good for anyone who wants to spend a morning or afternoon on horseback without arranging transport or worrying about finding the ranch: the pickup and drop-off mean you just show up at your hotel ready to ride.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English and Spanish.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Youth (12 to 17 years); Child (3 to 11 years); Infant (1 to 2 years).

What happens if it rains?

It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.

How long is the actual horseback riding?

Three hours. The full experience, including pickup, introduction, and lunch, runs about five and a half hours total.

What time does the tour start?

Two options: 9:00 am or 3:30 pm departures from your hotel.

How far is the ranch from San Miguel de Allende?

About 18 km from the town center, roughly a 40-minute drive.

Is lunch included?

Yes. A traditional ranch meal with fresh, locally prepared food and drinks are included after the ride.

Do I need riding experience?

No. There's a riding class before you start, and the guides adjust the pace based on your experience level.

What's included in the price?

Hotel pickup and drop-off, the riding instruction, three-hour ride, introduction to ranch life, and lunch with drinks.

Is the van air-conditioned?

Yes, the vehicle to and from the ranch is air-conditioned.