Questions,
answered plainly.
What it costs, what to wear, from what age, what happens if it rains, and how to pay without sending an email and waiting. Eighteen answers, none of them evasive.
Start here
These are the eight that come up at the gate and on the phone, most weeks, in roughly this order.
Lesson or walkout — which should I book?
A lesson is in the arena and teaches you to ride; people come back weekly. A walkout is a private hour in the forest at walking pace, on a lead rein, for the view. If you have never ridden and want one great afternoon, book a walkout. If you want to learn, book a trial lesson.
From what age can my child ride?
Pony Play starts at 3 — twenty minutes grooming, then forty minutes on a lead rein. Group lessons start at 5. Pony Camp is for ages 5 to 17.
I have never ridden. Can I do a walkout?
Yes, and most people on a walkout never have. Every walkout is private, at walking pace, on a lead rein. No trotting, no cantering, no surprises.
What should we wear?
Long trousers and a rain jacket. Riding hats and boots are provided free and fitted when you arrive — that is why we ask you to come 15 minutes early.
Why do you ask for height and weight?
So the right horse is tacked up and waiting for you. Thirty horses means we can match confidence and build rather than hand you whatever is free.
How do I pay?
Online at booking: card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or Revolut Pay. Lessons and walkouts are paid in full; Pony Camp takes a €50 deposit per child, balance 14 days before. Bank transfer stays available for livery.
What if we need to cancel?
Change or cancel free up to 48 hours before your slot, from the link in your confirmation email. Inside 48 hours we do our best to offer a credit.
Can we get there without a car?
Luas Green Line to Sandyford then a short taxi, or Dublin Bus 44 / 44B from the city centre. Plenty of visitors staying in town do exactly that.
Paying for it
Euro, VAT included, nothing added at the end. Hats and boots are part of the price, not an extra.
Free cancellation up to 48 hours before.
Change or cancel free up to 48 hours before your slot. Inside 48 hours we do our best to offer a credit.
You do it yourself, from the link at the bottom of your confirmation email. No phone call, no form, no explanation owed to anybody. If something has gone wrong closer to the day, ring the yard on +353 87 223 7981 and we will do what we can — cancelled slots get filled more often than you would think.
Pony Camp works differently, because the places are limited: the €50 deposit holds a child’s place and the balance falls due 14 days before the week starts.
Can I still pay at the yard, the way we always have?
Yes. Cash, or a cheque made out to The Paddocks Riding Centre, handed in at the office when you arrive — choose that at the payment step and nothing is taken online. Bank transfer and Revolut transfer work the same way: ask for them and we email you the details. The slot is held for 48 hours while the transfer clears, and that is still the usual route for livery and for larger bookings.
Do I need an account to book?
No. No account, no password, nothing to remember. You pick the ride, tell us who is riding and pay. Everything you need afterwards is in the confirmation email, including the link that changes or cancels the booking.
Can I use a gift voucher against a booking?
Yes. Enter the code at the payment step and it comes off the total; anything left over stays on the voucher for next time. Vouchers are valid twelve months and can be spent on anything we do — a lesson, a walkout, Pony Play or a week of camp.
Bringing a child to the yard
What actually happens in a week of Pony Camp?
Monday to Friday, ages 5 to 17, grouped by age and by experience. Riding, grooming and pony care — the yard work as well as the fun part — ending with the Friday afternoon jumping show and a rosette each, with families welcome on the fence. Half day, 10 am to 1 pm, is €280 the week. Full day, 10 am to 3 pm, is €350. A €50 deposit per child holds a place and the balance falls due 14 days before the week starts.
What does a parent do while a child rides?
Watch, mostly. There is somewhere to stand at the arena rail and you are welcome there for the whole hour — nobody is asked to sit in the car park. Pony Play is different by design: from age 3 a parent stays beside the pony for the full hour, because that is what makes it work for a three-year-old.
Hats, weights and the walking-pace rule
Every walkout is private, at walking pace, on a lead rein — always. No trotting, no cantering, whatever your experience.
Do we need our own hats and boots?
No. Riding hats and boots are provided free and fitted when you arrive, in children’s sizes as well as adults’. Bring your own hat if you have one you trust. The one thing to avoid is wellingtons — loose on the foot, and a loose boot is the wrong thing to have in a stirrup.
Is there a weight limit?
Maximum rider weight 95 kg (15 stone), for the horses’ welfare. It is nothing to do with how anybody looks; it is about what is fair to ask of an animal carrying a person up a hill. If you are close to the limit, ring the yard and we will talk it through straight.
What happens if the weather is bad?
Lessons go ahead — the arena is covered and all-weather, so the hour is the same hour whatever the sky is doing. Walkouts go ahead in rain too; the forest takes most of it. What stops us is wind and ice rather than water, and if the mountain is genuinely unsafe we ring you and move the slot rather than let you drive up for nothing.
Are the instructors qualified, and is the centre insured?
Lessons and walkouts are run by the centre’s qualified instructors, and every walkout is led at walking pace on a lead rein whatever your experience — that rule does not bend for confident riders. For the specifics of the centre’s insurance, and what it does and does not cover a rider for, ring the office rather than take a line on a web page for it. You will get the current position from somebody who knows it.
Woodside Road, Sandyford
Where exactly are you, and when are you open?
Woodside Road, Sandyford, Dublin 18, Ireland. Fifteen minutes up from the M50 at exit 13, with free parking and horsebox access at the yard. Without a car it is the Green Line to Sandyford and a taxi, about eight minutes, or Dublin Bus 44 or 44B from the city centre. The yard is open Wed – Sun, 9 am – 6 pm · 7 days in school holidays, and the booking page takes bookings at any hour.
Still unsure? Ring the yard or message us on WhatsApp — someone is usually in the office between rides.
No more questions? Pick a slot.
Real availability from the yard diary, the price you saw, and a confirmation that arrives before you have put the phone down.