Any bad situations with Randi's Happy Horses?

[wendyparmer]

All I have heard are good things about Randi's but what I want to know is if anyone has a bad story or situation to tell about it. I am asking about this because we went horseback riding in Aruba and my husband hated it and almost refuses to go again. We had to go up big hills full of rocks and the horses wanted to run full speed when they hit the beach. I still have a scar on my thigh where somebody else's horse bit me because my horse passed him. But, I am still willing to go again. I just want to have some assurance

for my husband. I have already reserved a space with Randi's in February but he is still wanting to back out.

[Cruisin Rick]

Watch out for the rattlesnakes! :D

 

 

 

 

 

Just kidding!!!!

It's a fun excursion and very safe. Even non riders like my wife and I had an enjoyable time. The terrain is pretty much level and her horses don't bite. Of course anything can happen anywhere at any time but all and all, it's a safe bet you'll have pleasant memories of this excursion after it's over. We have.

[candigirl41]

You won't have any problems. I was scared to death the first time and I managed so well I went back again this year and am going again in January. I still felt a little intimidated the second time but had a really good time. It is really quite a good day. Victor's for lunch is fantastic. The beach is beautiful. If you husband doesn't want to ride, Randi will arranged just transportation and he can meet you at Victor's. That way you get to ride and he can enjoy the beach while waiting for you. Best of both worlds.

 

Candi

[russellm]

I just came off the Mercury on Friday Dec 17th.

 

I had booked Randi's happy horses for Dec 9th and had confirmation from Randi and exchanged a few emails with her.

 

She informed me that there would be two ships at port on the 9th (the Mercury and the Pride) and that the Mercury would be there first and our pickup time would be 8am and the Pride at 8:30am.

 

My first warning that something was wrong was when we arrived ontime and my wife and I were on the dock at 7:55am waiting for Randi's Happy Horses to pick us up and she was not there.

 

My second warning was when I found out that the Pride was not docking on Dec 9th.

 

My 3rd and final warning was when it hit 8:35am and my wife stomped off back to the ship extremely pissed off that Randi's Happy Horses never showed up.

 

I had also heard many good things about Randi's Happy Horses and that is why I booked it. But in my case, my luck was not so good and it ruined our day.

 

Thanks,

Russell

[karfest]

We had an opposite situation than Russell had. We were set up to go with King David's group. We never found them. Some of our CC friends were waiting with Randi and asked her if we could join them. She was very accomodating, my hubby was not up to riding because of a recent surgery so she hitched up the wagon to take him along.

 

Randi had a fairly large group not show up that day, we waited quite awhile and she was worried that they would be upset. She must have had her calendar wrong to not show for Russell's group.

 

We had a great time and would definitely do this again.

[JohnQ]

On our trip on Pride in Feb, we had booked with Randi due to the threads here, and we had a great day. We were met at pier and had a couple not show up and another couple joined us. She also had to deal with two ships so we had to wait until she rounded up all 10 or 12 of us. She takes care of all transportation and makes sure everyone is accommodated. Go in with the attitude of having a good time and you will enjoy it. Part of the experience is seeing what life in Mexico was like 40 years ago and Stone Island still lives like that. Enjoy.

[JJPNYC]

Russell-

Did Mercury flip-flop the dates it was supposed to be in Puerto Vallarta & Mazatlan? On my sailing (the Nov. 26) it did. Luckily a few of us were able to reach Randi via e-mail as we found out about this change in itinerary as we boarded. But from talking to her, the news of the date switch never got to her and when she heard from us that we'd be in Mazatlan a day later than scheduled, it was news from her. So maybe this was a case of the flip-flop.

Jeff

[firefightermediclasvegas]

Randi is awesome. We rode with Randi last January and we were completely satisfied. She was on time and gave us awesome service. She let some riders who had experience run the horses on the beach. I have had several friends ride with her since we went and they love her service too. I would definately recommend her to anyone who wants to ride.

[russellm]

Jeff,

 

Did not flip the dates as far as I was aware. I made the plans for a Dec 9th arrival and we arrived on Dec 9th. Maybe she had the dates different in her own journal, I am not sure. She sent me a confirmation on my request for Dec 9th but maybe the date was not what she expected and she just didn't catch it.

 

Who knows the reasons but it seems everyone else has had good luck :)

 

Russell

[Cruisin Rick]

Hey Russell, they asked and you gave your experiance. I would rather hear the cold hard truth than a fabricated sugary review and I sure others do too. That's why the question was asked. Thanks for your honest input.

 

I can only speak of my own experiance and it went off as planned and had a great excursion.

[JohnQ]

Russell

Your experience sounds kinda weird! Sometimes, most times, I think Randi is computer challenged-------not that I could balance that laptop and apptmt calendar on the saddle any better!! She really tries hard and usually comes thru which I can attest to based on reading these boards for 3or4 yrs. Sorry it got messed up for your trip.

 

Rick--How is it possible to have two critics from CH? Must be getting too crowded here, I need to retire and move to Stone Island or Hoonah, AK!!!

[daiseee]

I have booked a ride with Randi. She seems like a lovely person, however after several emails back and forth, I still havent gotten to the bottom of whether I am supposed to meet her on ship time or local time. I will be on the Pride which ports in Mazatlan at 9am on 12/30. Anyone know the answer to this? Is the ship time the same as local Mazatlan time?

 

thanks in advance!

[candigirl41]

You shouldn't have any problems. Just debark as soon as they let people off. I was on the Pride last March. When you get off the ship you have to take a tram to a terminal type area with shops. Just look for the Pink sign that says Randi's Happy Horses. She will wait for you, especially if she knows the ship has any problems getting in late. Ships time is different from local time by an hour I believe. Hope this helps.

 

Candi

[SoccerMom#3]

I thought the only place ship time and port time differed was in Puerta Vallarta, not Matzalan.

[JohnQ]

Get off as soon as you can. She will be waiting with a pink sign.

[fahywray]

We just got off Mercury yesterday and had booked Randi for December 20th. She was there right on time and made it so easy to find her. She had a terrible fall about 10 days earlier and her knees and legs were really beat up. She seems to think she had a concussion from her fall but she did not go to the doctor (maybe that had something to do with the earlier poster's problem as why she was not there).

 

We had sooooo much fun with her and her horses are the best as well as the rest of her crew (Thanks Tony, Daniel, Maria and Pedro). Randi is an absolute hoot!! Will definitely ride with her again.

 

Just FYI - we were there on a Monday and normally Victor's is not open. They opened especially for our group of about twelve. Now that's impressive!

[TOGolden7]

We had a great time with Randi last summer. I would not hesitate a second to book with her again. My wife is hard to please and she liked the experience.

 

As a side note if you want to do a good deed, bring along some candy for Randi. I am not talking about expensive chocolates, but rather a variety of simple candies that cost a few cents at the store. Candy in Mexico isn't very good. She will apreciate it!

[utopia]

i don't have a negative experience from the tour, but rather with pre-tour communication. randi misread the date on my reservation request that i sent in from her website. she was off by a month and said that no spots were available. i emailed her back immediately letting her know that she had accidentally misread the date and emphasized the correct day we would be in port and asked that she let me know if the correct date was available. unfortunately, after another week of failed attempts at getting a response from her, it looks like a lost cause. i feel rather let down, we were looking forward to it from all the posts that i've read about her. but, i'll have to book something else because time is precious and the other horse ride tours may sell out. Has anyone had a good experience with tours with King David's horses or Miguel's gentle horses?

 

Thx~ ^_^

[karfest]

I had arranged a tour with King David's but they never turned up at the dock to meet us. Randi took us in as strays. She didn't bad-mouth King David's at all, but did mention that ocassionally they do forget a group. (as maybe she has done!)

 

Miquel's is located right next to Randi's, there is some sort of not friendly family situation going on between the two groups.

 

I can't imagine there would be a huge difference between these groups because everyone ends up at the same place, but Randi has such a good reputation on these boards that everyone books with her. We did have a fantastic time and she is a lot of fun.

[utopia]

karfest, (and anyone that joined randi's group on the spot),

 

i thought randi kept her group at a specific small number? was she able to take you because another couple was a no-show or did she just make an exception that day and go with a bigger than usual group?

[karfest]

1- we were the only ship in port (and the Dawn Princess is a mid-sized ship, not a mega size)

2- almost half of our ship were people from Mexico City who never appeared to leave the ship at all

3-it was the first part of May, the start of their slow season

4- a group who had booked through their travel agent never showed, although she still wasn't completely booked, even with them.

5- we just lucked out!!!!!

 

I was already aware of Randi because of these boards but hubby wasn't sure he was up to riding so we booked with King David instead as you didn't have to ride. She is really outgoing and quite a character so you can't miss her at the pier. We ended up with just 6 in our group and I could tell Randi was disappointed that she didn't have more bodies, we were even trying to recruit some of our other CC members but they already had plans. I think 6 was the perfect sized group, but I don't think that small of a group would keep her in business too long.

[JohnQ]

If Randi has more riders, she will rearrange her crew. Sometimes she does not ride but meets back up with riders at Victors while Tony and Maria take the ride. If she has more, I believe she will ride or someone else goes. I think she likes to stay under 12, but she is so accommodating.

[CrazyforCruisin]

We are leaving for Mexico in Feb and would like to try The horseback riding. How do I find Randi and make reservations? it sounds like a wonderful trip and we love to ride. I assume she has a website? Thanks all.

[ciship]

Randishappyhorses.com

[soprano]

On our Diamond Princess cruise in April, we were at the same table as a family of 4 who had booked with Randi, but were unable to find her at the assigned time and place. They found another tour through someone at the pier that they said was fine, but were quite disappointed that Randi didn't show.

 

So, an indirect story, for what it's worth.