There is something timeless about travelling on horseback. The landscape moves more slowly, roads become unnecessary and the people who have travelled these routes for generations become part of the journey rather than simply part of the scenery.
That slower style of adventure is finding a new audience, with World Expeditions reporting a sharp rise in interest in its Horse Trek series. Since launching the dedicated collection late last year, many 2026 departures have filled or are close to capacity, prompting the adventure travel company to open bookings for 2027.
The collection takes riders into remote regions of Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, Argentina and Chile, where horses remain closely connected to local culture and everyday life.
Travellers get back in the saddle
Interest in horse trekking has grown rapidly. Over the past six months, World Expeditions recorded a 63% increase in page views across its horse trekking collection, rising from 5,863 to 9,551. Active users increased by a similar amount, from 4,014 to 6,550, while enquiries have nearly tripled.
Central Mongolia is leading the charge, with three 2026 departures on the Central Mongolia Horse Trek either full or close to full.
Kyrgyzstan is another rising favourite. Page views for the Kyrgyzstan Horse Trek have more than tripled since launch, while active users have increased by more than 250%.
Interest is also climbing in Nepal’s remote Dolpo region, where the Into Dolpo: Phoksundo Lake Horse Trek has seen page views more than triple and active users rise by more than 235%. Newer journeys through Chilean Patagonia and Argentina’s Tierra del Fuego are also gaining momentum.
The numbers point towards a broader appetite for adventure travel that slows the journey down and brings travellers closer to landscapes and communities.
Remote landscapes become the destination
Unlike simply riding a horse as part of a holiday, these journeys use horseback travel as the means of exploration.
Riders venture deep into places where roads can be scarce or non-existent, travelling alongside local horsemen and women whose equestrian traditions remain part of daily life.
World Expeditions Travel Group CEO Sue Badyari said the response had exceeded expectations.
‘Travelling by horse changes both the pace and perspective of a journey,’ Badyari said.
That change of perspective can mean crossing Mongolia’s immense steppe, riding through Kyrgyzstan’s mountain landscapes or exploring the remote Himalayan terrain of Dolpo and Mustang in Nepal.
In South America, horseback journeys through Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego tap into regions where riding traditions are deeply entwined with the landscape and local identity.
Culture comes into focus
For World Expeditions traveller Emma Hutchinson, it was the opportunity to experience local life rather than observe it from a distance that made her horse trek memorable.
‘We rode alongside local horsemen, visited nomadic families, helped where we could and learnt about traditions that continue to shape everyday life,’ she said.
It is an approach that fits naturally with a growing interest in slower and more meaningful forms of adventure travel. Instead of racing between attractions, riders spend days moving through the landscape, allowing time for encounters with local communities, nature and traditions along the way.
Animal welfare is also an important consideration when choosing an equestrian adventure. World Expeditions says its horse treks have been developed with local partners and communities under formal animal welfare guidelines, with an emphasis on appropriate care for the horses and benefits for host communities.
For travellers looking beyond the conventional hiking or cycling adventure, exploring the world’s wild places from the saddle offers another way forward, albeit at a decidedly slower pace.
