Equus Silvaina offers vacation holidays in our Beautiful Guesthouse in the quaint village of Sinca Noua. Here you can reconnect with the outdoors through our unique Eco-Destination. Experience Fine Dining, you will taste the exquisite flavors of local organic foods and wines. Horseback riding is offered to all equestrian enthusiasts. Family activities, such as Hiking, Bird Watching and Archery are accessible. Join us for Bear Watching in a special Hide that makes for a memorable holiday. Seasonal Year Round Packages are offered, such as Easter, Christmas, New Year's and many more. Equus Silvania provides a pleasant and social atmosphere during your stay.
Staying here was a highlight of our summer Holiday in Romania...thank you all!
[1] We had a family room; the rooms are clean and beautifully decorated, the beds comfortable, the bathrooms and showers lovely and the home-grown food is wonderful.
[2] the riding experience is fantastic - my teenage daughter loved it because the horses were in great condition, were responsive to commands and had lots of energy....galloping uphill through the meadows is why we ride!
The centre is well run - and has beeen externally reviewed by agencies such as inthesaddle.com. Take this seriously - always check out where you want to ride before you go as not all riding centres take equine welfare or riders' safety seriously!
The ability to ride for hours in such beautiful countryside without crossing a road is a great experience - something hard to come by in croweded countries like ours.
The riding guides are excellent - my daughter was treated with much kindness and she was given lots of tips and hints about how to improve. I was able to contact them by email before we set out so that they had several trips out planned for her that matched her experience and ability.
You don't need to pack your safety helmets or crops; they will lend you that - but do pack your riding trousers, boots and chaps as several hours on a horse demands that you be comfortable!
It is our second visit - we came first in Autumn 2022. Autumn is a good time to visit - it is when the weather in Transylvania is typically bright, sunny and dry (it is a geographic phenomenon caused by the encircling mountain ranges) - and the trees were turning gold. It will not be our last !
When you get to be a strong rider - you can sign up for their one week trips; travelling between villages or camping out in the hills. Check out the Equus Silviana website for a lot more information. My daughter cannot wait for the next visit!
[3] It isn't just a place for riding, food and comfort - there is such a lot to do and see within an hour's driving time of Equus Silviana. Wildlife fans will not want to forget their binoculars - in a nearby valley the birdwatching group recorded more than 100 species in one day. Pack walking boots because there are great trails into the meadows and mountains from the centre's front door.
[4] yes its a riding centre - but if only some of you want to reide, the rest can have a fantastic time too (as we can demonstrate)
[5] if you must keep in touch with work - the wifi there works well!
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Date of stay: July 2024
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Trip type: Traveled with family
Room Tip:Â [1] check out their website for the riding information
[2] tell them your skill level ahead of...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Myself and my friend have wanted to horse ride in Romania for many years and Equus Silvania and their amazing horses and guides (Sam, Anna x 2, Helena, Katherine and Roxanne) all made our dreams come true. They are the friendliest, knowledgeable and most professional guides, but also fun too. They all ensured we had the best most comfortable stay.
We did the centre based riding for one week. They matched us perfectly with stunning horses. After my 2nd day I was so sore and realised I was quite a bit too unfit to ride 6 hours in one day. I was so embarrassed by my unfitness, but they were so kind and accommodating. They even had some of their lovely guides take me out on short rides instead that I could manage while the others did the full days. The lodge and farm is so fantastic as well. It was so beautiful to stay in. They made sure my experience was still the best it could be despite me being unprepared fitness-wise. They go above and beyond to make your individual stay the best it can be.
Equus Silvania horses are the most stunning, beautiful, much loved and friendly, safe horses I have ever met in the world. The staff here are so kind and really love their animals and show them so much respect. It's fabulous.
All the staff made beautiful fresh food for breakfast, lunch and dinner and the dinner even was a three course meal that never disappointed. Some guests were vegetarian and some needed gluten free and they accommodated everyone which again was really going above and beyond.
Our bedrooms had all be newly renovated and they were stunning. Huge beautiful wooden room, with table, chairs, very comfortable large bed, big ensuite with large shower. Fresh bottled water in the room every day.
I loved my stay here. I hope to be back again for full day rides or even a trail!
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Date of stay: April 2024
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Trip type: Traveled with friends
Room Tip:Â Be sure you're fit enough to enjoy this beautiful place with long rides and some hikes.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Equus Silvania, General Manager at Equus Silvania
Responded Apr 23, 2024
We are happy to hear you had such a wonderful stay with us, Aoife! We look forward to seeing you here again!
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I visited Equus Silvania in September for the centre based ride and it was the best equestrian holiday that I’ve been on! On arrival we were met at the front door of the house by a lovely bunch of girls – Greta, Ina, Lea, Esther and Crissie - offering us a well needed drink after a long journey. They made us feel at home and relaxed straight away, in fact they literally could not do enough to make our stay a great experience! On the first night we had a chance to discuss our riding experience and what sort of horses we wanted to ride. I had managed to get a shoulder injury before my trip, so I asked for something steady that wouldn’t pull and I was matched perfectly with Nadira, a lovely little chestnut mare and Assad, a beautiful and very experienced ex competition horse. I loved both of them! Greta was our guide for most of the rides, she is such a lovely person and a great guide, always making sure everyone was safe, but also making sure we had plenty of fun! The pace was perfect given the amount of hours we were in the saddle for, lots of walking due to the fact we were either going up or down mountains, but also lots of long trots and fast canters where it was possible! Ina was our guide on a few rides too, and she was also a great guide, in fact all of the girls were such a lovely people! The scenery is absolutely breathtaking and it’s like going back in time, seeing farmers out on horse and cart! A lovely break from the pace of modern life. I was travelling solo, and I had a lovey spacious room overlooking the stable area. The food was all delicious, straight from the farm onto your plate, and the locally made alcohol was even better! I can’t fault the place at all, and I cannot wait to go back!
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Date of stay: September 2017Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I really anticipated my stay here and wanted it to be my favorite stop in Romania; unfortunately, it was the worst memory of my trip. There are a few reasons for that, all notable before planning to stay here. My first inclination after arriving at the house and settling into my room was to go outside, explore the grounds and take in a peaceful sunset. I noticed a group of teens/young adults sitting out on the play equipment singing pop tunes at the top of their voices. I thought they were guests, but found out later they are the employees that run the place and ride guides. Almost like a movie, this was a foreboding irony. Since it wasn't very peaceful, I went back inside. I was scheduled to ride the next day. I had been asked prior about my experience level. I had emailed that while I'm an experienced rider, and have ridden horses since I was 9 yrs old, I'm certainly not an expert. I did own a horse at one time, and we used to canter in the Simi Valley hills, but that was long ago, and since, I've ridden at intervals here in the city. The main group had been riding together all week, and had already done the trail ride, so they were going toward the city. I wanted more of a peaceful trek, so I opted to go separately on that ride. In the morning I was introduced to my guide, who was one of the girls I'd seen when I arrived, singing Taylor Swift out on the jungle-gym. There was one other rider, a teen guest. My horse was a 14 year old veteran, and the "tallest horse in the barn". At only 5'2", I had quite a climb to mount the saddle. From the beginning, my horse was slow and ornery. I kept falling behind, and not by a little. I had to keep nudging her with my heels to catch up. After doing this a few times, I mentioned this to my guide, and so she broke off a long twig and handed it to me. She said all I had to do was hold it and my horse would perform better, and if she fell behind, just tap her neck with it, and she'd respond. This worked well the couple of subsequent times my horse fell behind. The first canter went fine, but when we got to the second canter, my horse became belligerent. I had been taking up the rear the entire ride thus far, but to my horror, no longer. My horse decided to take off, pass up the other guest and our guide, and once no one was in front of her, gallop as fast as she could. I tried pulling on the bit, verbal commands, more pulling, but she only ran faster. I looked back once, and the others were a couple hundred yards behind me, looking bewildered. There was forest coming up on my right, and it seemed she was heading there (that was our next part of the trek, I came to learn later). All I could think was that she was heading for the trees and I was going to get hit in the head by a random branch and dragged. I held on, but I was in fight or flight. My next split decision was just to GET OFF. I kicked my feet out of the stirrups and started to fall, but my fear caused me to faint. I passed out before I hit the ground, and the next thing I remember, my guide was kneeling next to me waking me up. She gave me her horse and got on mine (she told me later that my horse gave her trouble the entire ride back to the ranch) She called to have me picked up after we got through the forest to the road. From this point on, I was in the care of Chiproan, the young manager of the ranch. He was very helpful and offered to drive me to the hospital to get x-rays. The local hospital was CLOSED when we got there, so he drove me to the one in Brasov, one hour away. (Keep this in mind if you go here and need emergency medical attention!!) He went with me to the pharmacy to get meds, and looked after me when we got back. He was really the saving grace to this place and is a true asset for them. I am SO lucky that nothing was broken--I'm not young, at 52, but I'm a fitness instructor and in good shape. Maybe this helped, I don't know. Maybe it helped that I was unconscious when I fell. (FYI, the ranch also has NO first aid kit, they had to poke around to find me some bandaids for my knees, and there were NO ice packs or ice to be found to ease my pain) That night at dinner, the owner made an appearance, but didn't speak to me. The owners never spoke to me or followed up. Before I left, I asked to talk with them, but they were out and not picking up their phone, so I ended up having a very awkward conversation with their teen daughter, who had a defensive, haughty attitude with me the entire time. Chiproan settled the bill with me and tried to charge me for part of the ride, but I balked, so he removed it entirely. I asked the girls if there was emergency protocol for this type of event out on the trail, but they didn't seem to know. Eh, they're horses, they said, and unpredictable. I asked why my guide didn't try to gallop up to me and help with my horse, block her path, slow her down or even advise me, but they were at a loss. I told them I believed my horse to be barn sour, and intolerable of riders, but they got defensive about her. All I can say is, I fell off the tallest horse in the barn, running at top speed, and no one was apologetic about it (except Chiproan). No one from the ranch has followed up with me. I hope my horse has been retired!! Fingers crossed. The rest of my trip in Romania was difficult, as I had a light concussion for 3 days and was dizzy, and my hip hurt pretty badly, so I limped around at my next stops and had to forego one destination with lots of stairs. When I returned back to the US, I was still in pain and had black bruises all over. I still have pain, nearly 6 months later, which the doctors have called "bone bruises" and said it can take a year or more to heal. The pain has traveled from my hip to my foot and wrist, which is painful and has taken extensive, expensive therapy. While the incident above is the most important aspect of my review, it's also notable to say that the food was quite bland and mediocre, and that all meals had a constant and plentiful amount of FLIES. I understand that this is a ranch, so flies are present, but why not put up screens on the doors and windows, or at least get some mesh-screen food cover tents for the food? There is an insect zapper in the dining room doorway, so the meals are peppered with the constant sound of flies being electrocuted. There were napkins placed over the communal dishes, but you'd lift one up and 20 flies would take off from underneath it! There were literally at least a hundred of them on the food at every meal. It was quite unappetizing and unsanitary, and I'm sure it's no different in the preparatory stages in the kitchen either. I understand that dealing with animals can be risky, but this place is run by teenagers who aren't trained for said unpredictable situations, and is extremely ill-prepared for emergencies. I couldn't wait to leave this experience behind me.
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Date of stay: October 2017
Rooms
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Trip type: Traveled solo
Room Tip:Â Floors are wood, so ask for a room in a low-traffic area if you're a light sleeper
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Equus S, Manager at Equus Silvania
Responded Jan 2, 2019
We are sorry to hear about the bad experience of Lisa, however have to say that Equus Silvania is a responsible company, we are working since over 15 years with most of the major horse riding agencies and have a serious management at place (our managers and guides are all in their twenties). Our rate of accidents is way below average, however, being a riding centre, accidents unfortunately happen from time to time. This usually happens if people overrate their experience, which was what happened with Lisa, who told us she is an experienced rider, however had only basic skills of sitting on a horse and not about controlling a horse when riding out. We gave her a horse which fit to her described abilities (btw, a 14 year old horse is not a veteran ...), but then obviously (as every horse person can read from the description of the incident) Lisa greatly overestimated her abilities. Riding on lively horses in the countryside is something different than riding in an arena or walking on city trails. If our guides would have known her true capacity, they would not have cantered with her in the first place but just would have done an easy walk outside with other horses. If a horse canters off, the worst a guide can do is trying to canter up to the other horse, since this would just stimulate a racing situation and would have made it totally impossible for an inexperienced rider to stop the horse. If Lisa wouldn't have jumped off, the horse would have stopped by itself. The respective horse has been ridden all throughout the 2018 season by a lot of happy and satisfied clients. Otherwise, we have an accident procedure in place, what was exactly what happened: Our manager brought Lisa to the county hospital in Brasov (which has the best standard in the wider area) where she had been checked and medical service was offered. As for the rest (staff singing and food being mediocre) we won't comment and we won't apologise for our staff being happy. We put a great emphasis on organic, natural, local food, most comes from our own garden, our own animals, or from small farms in the nearby. We are sorry if she couldn't appreciate this.
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Two weeks riding in the Transylvania of Romanian. Excellent manager and the staffs. Made good friends and improved riding skills. Enjoyed the warm hospitality and get the hang of home made P'alinka. Thank you!
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Date of stay: July 2017Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Had such a great time at Equus Silvania. The hosts there were so friendly. The food was locally produced, fresh and delicious. The environment there was so relaxing. Great family holiday option with lots of activities such as bear watching and horse riding available. Wish i couldve stayed longer and will be going back although we didnt have very good wifi in our room
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Date of stay: October 2017
Rooms
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Service
Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Fantastic holiday at Equus Silvania. Great accommodation, great food, great team running the place and organising hikes on foot or with horses. Ideal also with kids. Also organised camping trips into the forest, with brown bears and other wildlife. Close to nature - will re-energise you completely. Loved this place and its owners and team!
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Date of stay: August 2016Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We began and ended our Transylvanian Trail ride at Equus Silvania - what a truly outstanding week! It began with an evening gathering over a fantastic meal (produce from the farm and the local area) where we chatted about our riding experience and horse preferences. Next morning we were introduced to the horses and helped to mount and get our kit ready to go. Nairobi was to be my steed for the week - what a sensational horse. What then followed was a week of breathtaking scenery, exhilarating riding, fast gallops, jumping, excellent guides (thanks to Julia, Ina and Ben), delicious local food, quirky accommodation and an introduction to the fascinating Romanian culture.
The days were long and exciting - don't even think about going if you are not super ride fit and happy to tackle anything that comes your way! Its the ride of a lifetime but you need to be open to explore and embrace diversity in accommodation, food and riding.
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Date of stay: August 2018
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Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The manager was beyond great and matched everyone perfectly to horses brilliantly. She did what any great manager did which was to work amazingly hard whilst making it seem effortless. There was a lovely atmosphere and everyone on the trail was great.
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Date of stay: August 2016
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Traveled solo
Room Tip:Â You're travelling to Romania.. so no wifi - but enjoy that whilst it lasts!
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I didn't stay at the guest house but I contacted them for a day ride, the response was fast and informative. The guest house and the stables are in a beautiful green area and during the ride I think we crossed only 4 roads, we rode through green fields, fields full of flowers, through forest area and we crossed a few creeks. The view from the highest plateau was stunning. My guide (I'm sooooooo sorry I can't remember your name at this moment) was a very nice girl from Hungary and my horse Kato was a very sweet and beautiful 6 year old gelding. They had asked me before about my riding experience and the horse was a perfect match, very well behaved and forward.
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Date of stay: July 2016Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi, good to hear from you! Yes, Bree is working as our horse manager and top guide since March last year and she will be staying with us until the end of August, unfortunately she than has to go back to Australia for a wedding. I am afraid we are fully booked all through July and August, we would have some places free in the last days of August/first days of September (26/08 - 02-09) for a special gourmet ride if you'd be interested in this, otherwise we have only places on the centre-based rides Sept 30 - Oct 7 and Oct 14-21 and on the trail ride Oct 21-28. If you send us your mail address to us (check our Equus Silvania website for our mail address) we can send you details about the programmes and prices.
Looking forward to hearing from you
Your Equus Silvania team
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