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Our Family has been to Paradise Guest Ranch the last two years. They have been the best family vacations we have ever taken. The employees are willing to do whatever it takes to make your vacation fun for the entire family. It is the most relaxing week of our year, but we seem to do more in the day then seems possible. We plan on going back every year. You will not go wrong if you choose this as a family vacation, even if you do not ride horses. No one in our family rode horses until we got to the ranch. We do what we want to do such as fishing, riding, reading, hiking, golfing or napping. Their is always something fun to do.
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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're just back from our second family holiday at Paradise Ranch, and the kids are counting down the weeks till next August when we will visit again. (We hadn't been planning to rebook for next year, but we found it quite impossible not to!) No review in words can really capture the spirit of Paradise or do it justice, but I will mention a few of the things we love about it.
Clay and Leah, who are managers and part owners and kind and wonderful people, set the tone of the place, which is warm and friendly and flexible, and they recruit their staff (lots of college students, as well as some older more experienced hands) for their attitude and energy as much as their skills. Everyone appears to enjoy their work, and there is no sense of them and us - staff and guests mix together happily in the French Creek Saloon and out at the chuckwagon dinner up the hill, and the conversation flows between wranglers and guests out on the rides. First names are used (and remembered), and there's lots of good-natured teasing in all directions, lots of laughter, and lots of facebook befriending at the end of the week. The whole set-up of the place (long communal tables in the dining room, mixing different groups up in the rides, and the very convivial French Creek Saloon) also encourages all the guests to mingle and get to know each other, and we've had a lot of fun and made some real friends as a result.
Paradise is particular heaven for kids - and thus for their parents too. There are additional kids activities as well as the riding (chicken chasing, fort building, treasure hunt, dreamcatcher craft, capture the flag, fishing, calf feeding) - there are special kid wranglers who are amazing people, especially Adam this year and Charlotte last year! - and there's also plenty of hanging out with friends at the pool and hot tub and in the rec room (snooker and table tennis) and on the lawn by the climbing frame and volleyball net. Sometimes the ranch dogs Jake and Penny join in playing with the kids. On Thursday nights the kids camp out all night and have a campfire supper and smores, they don't get much sleep but what an adventure!
It's the kind of place where the kids run around with all the other kids for the week, around the whole ranch and in and out of each other's cabins (there are no locks on the cabins), and only occasionally check in with their parents. Everyone kind of keeps an eye out for all the kids and therefore everyone can relax about their own. Our 12 and 8 year olds would race off to be with more interesting people immediately after breakfast, barely to be seen by us again till the evening. They were responsible for getting themselves down to the barn in time for their rides (they usually wanted to ride with their friends rather than with us), and for signing themselves up for whatever ride they wanted to do in the afternoon. (An occasional heap of dirty clothes by the washing machine in our cabin would let me know they had recently passed through.) There isn't anywhere else they get the same kind of freedom to roam around all day long from early till late - they love the independence and we love it too, knowing that they are safe, and that these are precious, priceless memories of childhood that will stay with them forever.
The riding is really fabulous. The wranglers are outstanding, and as well as being great fun to be around (with one exception), they tailor each ride to the needs and abilities of the riders. They're also genuinely happy to give instruction if you ask for it while you're out on the rides - no need to pay for a separate lesson in the arena unless you really want to. We were all non-riders when we first came to Paradise, and have only ever ridden at Paradise, and now we're all loping comfortably (albeit definitely not elegantly!!). Words cannot describe the joy of loping on the mesa beside the snowy Bighorns... Each day there are a variety of rides (from gentle and steady to challenging and exhilarating) to choose from, and you can switch about depending how you feel that day. Over the course of the week we all got really attached to our horses and we were all so sad to say goodbye at the end of the week, most of us had a few tears. My horse this year was a bit of a (very) naughty boy and definitely had a mind of his own, but I really loved his spirit, I miss him and I'd love to get him again next year.
There are dozens and dozens of different trail rides with a variety of spectacular, breathtaking scenery - old forest, new forest (since a devastating fire in, I think, 1988), mesa, tumbling rocky river, valleys, snowcapped mountains and, if you're lucky, moose/ antelope/ deer/ coyote, all of which we saw this year in or around the ranch. My favourite trails this year were Cow Camp and Firebox Park which were both really stunning, though I don't think you could find a bad trail from Paradise if you tried. There is also a particularly memorable moment as you climb the hill out towards the mesa on the south side of the ranch, when you reach the top of the ridge and the view of the whole range of snowcapped Bighorn Mountains is revealed in a burst of glory - it's astonishingly, heart-wrenchingly beautiful every time.
Faults / shortcomings? Well our cabin is comfortable, rustic and cosy, but fairly basic, and the bathroom and tiny kitchen area definitely look a little bit tired. We don't mind a bit though, and the log fire in our sitting room (which we lit several times) more than makes up in atmosphere for any such shortcomings. This is not really a fault in our eyes but might be for some. The one thing that I would definitely change if I could would be to introduce soft fluffy duvets with crisp cotton bedlinen - at the moment the bedding is sheets, blankets and eiderdowns, which I find heavy and uncomfortable and tangly, and neither the children nor I sleep well with them. Duvets would make an significant difference to our overall comfort.
However, in the grand scheme of things this is very small beer and we will go back to Paradise regardless of uncomfortable blankets. I have had a heavy heart since leaving the place 3 days ago, I know this will ease in time and my memories of the kindness of the people, the beauty of the scenery and the sheer joy and fun of the place will sustain me till next time. Paradise is not just a vacation - it's more that it becomes part of your very being. And therefore it becomes unthinkable not to return. If only a year wasn't such a long time...
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Date of stay: August 2011
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.
We are returning for our 4th visit. We got married there last year in their new log chapel. The horseback riding, food, entertainment, fishing, and other activities are to die for. Relaxation and escape are the normal order of the day. I can't say enough nice things. You will want to return as we do.
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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.
This is unfortunate and a good reminder to keep your emails. I emailed the ranch May 8th asking about availability during adult week. Plan was for it to be a week for my boyfriend and I. The ranch promptly responded letting me know they had 2 bedroom options but no 1 bedroom options during adult weeks. The ranch and I exchanged emails May 19th about other cabin availability for the weeks of Aug 13, June 11 and June 25th. I let the ranch know I would check with my family (my sisters ride too) for the dates they had available and also asked if they had any availability for a 1 bedroom during the season or if the 1 bedrooms were already sold out for the season. In reply (also on May 19) the ranch advised they had a 1 bedroom available Aug 20-27. I emailed May 23rd saying “If you still have the 1 bedroom August 20-27th I’ll take it”. Again the ranch promptly replied on May 24th saying yes, that 1 bedroom was available and provided me with the cost and said I could call or use the mail to make the deposit. I called and made the deposit, and she let me know they would be sending me additional paperwork in the mail that we would need to complete and send back. When the confirmation letter arrived, it had the date of Aug 27-Sept 3. Not the date I confirmed or one we had ever discussed. I left a voicemail for the ranch letting them know my confirmation letter had the wrong dates. When the ranch called back they told me the Aug 20 date was not available. I told her the week of the 27th wouldn’t work because we had longstanding plans but I would see if there was a way for us to shift our plans around and I would call her back since I was in the car and my boyfriend was at work. After looking into it, we were not able to change our pre existing plans. I let the ranch know and was told the deposit of $1,722 was not refundable. After several discussions and my request that she give the owners my emails that showed the ranch had confirmed the wrong dates, she advised they would refund my deposit. When the refund came through, they deducted $100 which I can only believe was a cancellation fee. My voicemails to the ranch about the $100 fee I was charged for their employee’s mistake have gone unanswered. This review is no reflection on the experience of the ranch itself. I picked this ranched as friends who have been to several said it was their favorite and a woman I currently work with had worked their during her high school years and loved it. Whatever dates you choose, please confirm it in writing and I hope you enjoy your experience.
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Date of stay: May 2023Trip 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.
First and foremost, let me say that Paradise Ranch is beautiful. If you've never been to WY before, you'll love it. And there is so much to do at the ranch -- a great fishing and hiking program. There's entertainment every night. We saw lots of moose!
I did, however, have some trouble with the riding program. I'm not a very confident horseback rider, and had some trouble with the horse that had been assigned to me. When I asked if I could switch horses, the head of the riding program yelled at me (in front of my whole family and other guests!) -- and said I should work harder to correct the bad behavior that my horse was exhibiting so that future guests wouldn't have to deal with what I was dealing with. He said he would be willing to offer me some tips on how to train my horse better. Well, I never did get those tips -- and with only 5 days at the ranch, I seriously doubt I would have been able to train that horse to behave better, anyway.
Also -- just so you know -- there is NO phone here -- cell phones don't work and there is no pay phone. There's a radio phone that guests aren't allowed to use unless it's a true emergency. That can be relaxing, of course -- but it's also stressful if you get there and suddenly realize that there's no way to, say, check in with the pet sitter back home to make sure everthing's ok.
In short, I just didn't feel all that welcome at this ranch. Seems like a small request on my part (there were dozens of horses that weren't being ridden that week, so switching didn't seem like a big deal) shouldn't have been met with a temper tantrum on the part of the head wrangler. I wound up riding a lot less than I had planned, just because I was uncomfortable with my horse. It put a real damper on my vacation and to be honest, I never did understand why they just didn't accomodate me.
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Date of stay: October 2004
Value
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Cleanliness
Service
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.
First let me say like the other reviewers...Paradise Ranch is stunning - absolutely beautiful. Our young children had a absolute blast. The pool is fun, the hiking great, the outdoor games the kids play so much fun. The last night dancing was a hoot and the staff really did get involved. We met quite a few people who had been going there for 20 years plus. The owners are wonderful - nice nice people - work hard and are incredibly friendly.
Accommodations The room was nice (and BIG - 2 bedrooms with kitchen) had washer and dryer - think 1990's with full kitchen - nothing updated - old carpet...but it's a dude ranch so really quite comfortable. I'm ok with rustic so it was what I was expecting.
Riding program: If you're an experienced rider this solely head to tail riding operation can be tedious. We went on a slow week and were very fortunate to go out with a wonderful wrangler who allowed a bit of freedom...but this was not the norm. With regards to the herd - I also felt a few horses could use a little meat on their bones (my horse was a bit thin and clearly at the bottom of the food chain with all the cuts and abrasions) and one too many saddle sores/cuts for my liking. The ranch leases a lot of their horses for the season - which may or may not be the reason for their shabby appearance. Again if you don't work around horses you probably wouldn't notice the details of the horse care nor care about the constant head to tail rides - My husband who doesn't ride - had a wonderful time and enjoyed himself quite a bit...so again it's your expectations and experience. I visited a well known ranch in MT after Paradise (they highly discourage head to tail riding) and not one horse of the 75 horse herd - looked underweight - they all had shiny coats and great muscle tone.
Staff - I would say 80% of the staff were working their butt's off. Truly hard working lovely people. Well the other 20% - not so much. I also felt - as much as I liked a lot of the staff I felt they were really mentally done with being there - one more guest complaint and someone might go postal (we've all been there so it's just an observation). I don't want to say too much as really the staff (in particular house keeping and few of the wranglers) went out of their way to be incredibly helpful - they truly deserve a big raise. It was the staff member in the children's program who sat on her tush all day while the other awesome girl worked her tail off...well I guess that's really how the world works sometimes.
One last thing to say..the guests who had been going there for 20 years definitely had a step up on everyone else. They had the horse of their choice, wrangler of choice (often allowed to swap horses), ride of choice and allowed their choosing of who could ride with them. I often saw the returning family on private rides. I guess rightly so if you've been going there that long - just a note if you happen to be there during a week of long time return guests.
So definitely a good choice for novice riders looking for a great kids program and beautiful scenery. Not so great for a long time rider who is experienced with horses. I would look for a smaller ranch, smaller herd that maybe does their own breeding.
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Date of stay: August 2012
Value
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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.
My husband and I spend a week at a horse ranch in the West every summer. We live in Florida, have our own horses and do a lot of trail riding. The scenery at Paradise Ranch was amazing. The Bighorn Mountains are extremely beautiful. Our cabin was very nice with a kitchen, living room and fireplace. The view from the front deck was great and some mornings you could see Elk herds and Moose from the deck especially if you were up early. We also saw elk and deer on several rides. The other guests were very friendly and we had a lot of fun with them and made a lot of new friends. The Paradise Ranch website says "We custom fit each guest with the horse that perfectly matches their riding ability". However, this is not true. We told them that we were experienced riders and requested horses accordingly. They ignored our request and gave us horses that barely moved. My horse would barely trot and almost never loped. This would have been a great horse for a six year old. Every afternoon I would ask for another horse but was refused. During breakfast people signed up for what type of ride they wanted that day and we always picked lope but it almost always ended up being just a walk. I know they had better horses because at the team penning event I saw less experienced guests riding better horses than we had. The wranglers at the stables were not very friendly and most treated the adults like children telling us the same things over and over. Some of the wranglers were very nice especially Aaron, Josh, Austin and Lane. However, I would have thought one of them could have given me a better horse. I was looking forward to the square dance night but the wranglers took over and the guests never made it to the dance floor. If you've never ridden a horse and you just want your horse to walk and you just want to look at scenery this is the place for you.
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Date of stay: June 2018
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've visited about 1/2 dozen guest ranches so we have a fairly good basis of comparison. This is probably the most expensive guest ranch facility that we've visited but comes in about the middle of the pack with respect to amenities, customer service and safety.
We thought there was a kids program, but it was only for small children. We thought our granddaughters would get to ride out to their overnight, but they didn't. (This resulted in tears.)
The upside was the washer and dryer in our cabin, the employees were wonderful and the scenery is breath taking. We were also lucky enough to visit during a week where there were many children around the same age; as a result of this there was always someone to buddy around with.
But having said all that . . . . for the most part our granddaughters had a wonderful time and that was the reason for our visit.
If we were to repeat this trip, knowing "then what we know now" we would probably have gone to another facility we've visited in Tennessee. The TN facility has scenery just as gorgeous; it is just as remotely located with a better diversity of trails, a hair less pricey with better amenities, and safer horses. I personally did not ride after Monday, but watched a lot of other folks. Seeing a beginning child on a horse that crow-kicked day after day just wasn't my idea of a good match. Lastly, there were a couple of moments where I felt the owners could have stepped up a bit and we were kind of left dangling.
There isn't quite enough space here to describe our week at Paradise but please feel free to contact me at AnitaJRT@gmail.com. I wanted to wait a week or so to write this so that I could be fair, and I hope that this to be an accurate description of our experience.
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Date of stay: August 2012
Value
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Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled with family
Room Tip:Be sure to get a cabin away from the end where the employees' dorms are located. God love...
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 am not sure what the big deal is honestly. It is lovely and the hikes are nice and at times I had fun. It was great to be screen free for a week. However, the food is very poor!! The first night was ok, but after that the food quality went down. I eventually got to the point where my stomach could not handle the food well. I fell like if you pay a lot of money to go on vacation, why not cook something decent for your guests? The beds are also super hard to sleep on and there is this strange spray in the rooms that goes off about every 20 mins. Also, my showers water pressure was bad and when I turned it up, it screeched at me. I also felt very offended by one of the workers who had a confederate flag on his horse and kept talking about it. It is fine to have your own beliefs, but not while you are entertaining guests. Like I said, it was beautiful there. Getting outside was great. I went on a few horse rides, but I mostly hiked. I enjoyed seeing the wild life. I was, however, very happy to get home. I feel like if you are going to pay a lot of money on a vacation, pick somewhere else that is worth that price. All they need to do is amp up the menu and redo that cabins for it to be a better place.
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Date of stay: July 2015
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
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.
We were frequent visitors to Paradise guest ranch when our children were growing up. We went 5 times over 10 years. We loved each and every visit. Our children grew up and we did not visit Paradise for 9 years. We decided we missed it and need to go back for adults only week, the very last week of the season. I was worried it would not live up to my memories. Not to worry, it exceeded expectations yet again. The staff was friendly and helpful. The food was good and plentiful. We so enjoyed getting to know the other guests. They were all interesting to talk with. However, it was the riding that we always came for and it was fabulous again. The horses were well taken care of and the staff matched us up well with good horses. The trails are spectacular. The scenery is awesome. We love that they take the time and staff to match your riding requests. Sometimes it was just us and the wrangler because of the type of ride we wanted. To clarify, if you want to walk you can go on a walking ride but if you want an easy lope they will accommodate that or anything in between. We were reminded again that Paradise for us is all about the riding. They do an excellent job with hiring and training wranglers. They are a knowledgeable and interesting group who do their best to make your ride fun, interesting, and safe. If I had to knock them down in one area it would be the cabins. They are looking a little tired and need to be refreshed.
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Date of stay: September 2011
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:If you need a cabin with a washer and dryer be sure to request that. Also, some cabins require a...
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.
Yes! We're located in the middle of the Bighorn National Forest so whether you're horseback riding, hiking, or fly fishing, you're going to see some amazing sights and be surrounded by beautiful scenery. The Ranch is an amazing place, true to it’s western roots with a legendary horseback riding program, blue ribbon fly fishing and enough of the creature comforts to refurbish yourself before returning to that hectic world out there. What really makes Paradise special are the people. Our Paradise Family will take care of you with a mix of Wyoming hospitality and enthusiasm that you will not often find.
We have an awesome kids program with different activities that include feeding animals, pony rides, a fishing adventure, and kids rodeo to name a few. If he decides to not attend the overnight that is totally fine if he hangs with you! You are not "required" to ride everyday if you so choose. We have a wonderful fishing program, hiking program, and even a heated pool!
Children can ride just like anyone else @ age 6. Paradise has an extraordinary children's program which features pony rides,calf feeding and playing with our miniature donkeys, along with a full panoply of other activities.
If you child has had riding lessons and some riding experience and is close to age 6, we may make an exception, but as you can imagine that is on a case by case basis. Management; Leah Miller, and Travis our foreman need to approve that exception. Please feel free to contact them to discuss further.
I hope this has been helpful.
There are more places to choose from in the Buffalo area.
ALSO KNOWN AS
paradise guest ranch hotel buffalo, paradise guest ranch buffalo
LOCATION
United StatesWyomingBuffalo
NUMBER OF ROOMS
18
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