Farm Holidays & Horses | Holiday Cottages with Pool

Portugal by Horse

We offer Farm Holidays with unique holiday cottages and a magic salt water pool. Horseback riding in nature for experienced and inexperienced riders, mountain biking trails, hiking and above all...an unforgettable holiday.

Farm Holidays Portugal by Horse

Portugal by horse was created in 1996 in central Portugal.

Liesje grew up in the region of Antwerp (Belgium). In 1996 she left for Portugal with 2 horses, 2 dogs, some chickens and a tipi, setting out for a new challenge, a new life, Portugal by horse was founded.

She moved 5 times in 3 years but always in the same region. Finally settled in Midões. A very beautiful and historical village near Tábua.

João grew up in Alcantarilha-Algarve and Lisbon City. He always dreamed of moving to the Alentejo and live closer to nature. He studied Management of Computer Networks and later Geography at the University of Coimbra. Before moving to Midões he worked in Lisbon in the area of Information Technology.
Then he met Liesje and everything changed…

Together they organize farm holidays at the holiday farm Quinta da Alegria, a little paradise in central Portugal. Here you can go horse riding in the most beautiful nature & feel the magic of horses. They host visitors in their enchanting unique holiday cottages & organize Horsemanship lessons, hiking tours, private yoga lessons and reiki experiences.

With heart and soul Liesje and João take care of the farm and everything that is included. The two of them are your guides on the rides and both are leading you on foot when you are an inexperienced rider, Liesje is also a masseuse.

For all the other sport activities they work together with colleagues.

Come and discover what makes Farm Holidays so Special!

Our horses form a true herd, always being together and almost always grazing in the meadows, having around 25 hectares available to live, that is, not only eat but also run and play, being in fact real happy horses.
When they have to work, they are temporarily in their stables, which have the particularity of being open so they can see, touch and smell each other. In winter, when it rains a lot and it´s cold, they go to their stables to sleep and eat, but during the day they go to the meadow again, rain or shine. All of our horses are what is usually said “barefoot”, that is, they have not used horseshoes since 2006. We believe that they are therefore healthier and happier. The hooves are trimmed every 6 weeks by Tom de Graeve, the Bare foot trimmer from Portugal, a specialist in “bare foot trimming”. When derived from the work they usually do, especially in the summer, when they start to have the most sensitive hooves they wear hoof boots, from the brand “Renegade“.

We currently have 13 horses, of which 9 horses are available for riding and 3 are spending their well deserved pension or have a permanent injury.
Two are Haflingers, 4 Lusitano thoroughbreds, 4 Portuguese Cross, one Garrano one KWPN and one Selle Français. They all have a unique character, being calm, gentle and loving horses, but with a lot of spirit and inner energy giving many joys to all types of riders.
At Quinta da Alegria we ride with English saddles and all of them have sheep skins, in order to make the rides more comfortable. For longer rides we also have saddlebags available.(due to COVID-19 we can not use sheep skins on the saddles)

Quo-Vadis

Breed: Lusitano
Birth: 1997

Quo-Vadis is a pretty boy, with his long legs he’s very forward. He listens very well to voice, legs and mind. He likes to be in front leading his girls to the right path. A very sweet horse, you just have to think where you want to go and he takes you there…

Lola

Breed: Cruzado Português
Birth: 1993

The baroque horse. What a character, and definitely the merriest. She always knows how to unravel her halter, She is very smart and playful. She is one of the horses who loves to munch around and often opens her gate to steal the horse food out of the saddle room. Lola is already a grandma horse and is turning slowly blind unfortunately, therefore we do not use her anymore for riding and she can enjoy her pension spending time eating, sleeping and peddling in the water…the good life…

Lusia

Breed: Lusitano
Birth: 1992

Lusia is a Livery horse, she is used for guided walks with children or lessons.

Walking light as a feather, this mare takes you everywhere. She is always happy and wanting to work, graceful but with her own will. She trusts her rider and is very sensitive as she has been taught to ride in the Horsemanship way of Adam Shereston. Lusia is your partner in the horsemanship lessons or riding lessons in the picadeiro, she is an old lady so only lightweights can ride her.

Milo

Breed: Haflinger
Birth: 2000

The youngest of children and grown ups learn to ride on Milo. She is very mischievous but also a hard worker and willing to learn, she is funny, very smart and as you can see, … very naughty and sweet… She’s the protector of the herd in the field but less secure outside. A very curious horse who has tried to escape under the fence many times and put her “catch me if you can” face on.

Trudy

Breed: Haflinger
Birth: 1993

Grandma Trudy. The bodybuilder among the horses. This Haflinger is as fiery as a the children love her because she is very gentle with everybody when we have lessons and on horse rides.

Bonnie

Breed: Cruzado Português
Birth: 2002

She is part of the family since summer 2011 and gets along with all the horses. She is a very pretty lady with her dark hair and in winter she even looks like “Black Beauty”. Bonnie is very sweet but has a lack of confidence in people which she is gaining back every day, bit by bit.

Gipsy

Breed: Garrano
Birth: 2007

The Português warrior horse. The Garranos were used in the battles against the Romans a long time ago. He is the big man in the field but with the rides a little insecure. He is Trudy’s lover boy and friend of Milo. Together with him you can take the whole heard walking behind you to a new field. He was not so well-treated in the past so some times he is a bit naughty but he is learning to trust again and improving all the time. All the horses have respect for him.
He is a tiny pretty boy who knows what he wants, the fastest of them all and the teenagers love him…

Linda

Breed: Cruzado Português
Birth: 2011

Linda is a fickle mare she needs a rider who knows where he / she stands. Two hands on one belly with her mother Bonnie, a little unsure with puddles on the road but the river she finds super fun. Linda is a calm mare for those who are in need for a tranquil ride. Linda is 1 of the horses for the longer treks.

Fly(rescue)

Breed: Selle Français
Birth: 2010

New in the herd since 5 February 2016

Fly was a dangerous gelding when he arrived here in livery in May 2015… always attacking, ears flat, biting (and certainly do not come around when he is eating!). After being re-educated by the herd and João who approached Fly with horsemanship, he became a different horse. Through our faith in him, he also gives confidence to us. He is now very sweet and loves to cuddle, he is still unsure of new people but that is changing rapidly. Fly is the leading horse on treks but now also ridden by our experienced riders.

r um treino constante e consistente.

Farm Holidays Portugal by Horse

Holiday farm-Quinta da Alegria

The best of Farm Holidays are the little things, the simple pleasures that always remain linked to our memories. The things we share with our friends and family. When we discover some of these things for the first time, we are taken to another dimension of our life… the dimension of pure joy.

The Joy of finding eggs and enjoying them for breakfast, picking fruit from the trees, being surprised by the animals running around the farm and helping to feed them. Bringing hay to the meadow for the horses at the rear of the tractor, or watch the horses run across the field when you look out the window.

Farm stays bring you the Joy of pushing your children in a wheelbarrow and having a picnic in the shade at a hidden place in the valley. Meet Laurinda, the lady with the goats, on her way.

The joy of feeling the sweet summer breeze on your skin. Watching the sunset with all it´s colors and see millions of stars for the first time in your life by the campfire, while listening to all the mysterious sounds of the night you have never heard before.

Holiday farm Quinta da Alegria has the ideal setting for families. At Quinta da Alegria parents can enjoy their holidays, while children have a safe haven to play. Also for couples, we have the perfect place to enjoy your privacy and peace in nature around our social animals or close to the beautiful salt water pool that is available to all our guests.

History of our holiday farm

Quinta da Alegria was originally Quinta da Regada, as this place is abundant in water springs, it is located south of Midões in central Portugal.

It was last inhabited by pastor António Pereira who lived here with his family. He had a large sheep herd and many people came to this place to buy or exchange sheep and goats.
One day, while holding a rocket at the village party, he had an accident and ended up losing his hand. The treatment did not go very well and ended up creating an infection and died. The Quinta was abandoned, full of brambles and bushes, the fruit trees became wild and others disappeared.

It was in this situation that we found Regada in 1998. The roof of the house almost fell, the wine in the barrels transformed into vinegar, the house and its furniture covered with a layer of 12-year old dust.

What started out as just 3 hectares is now about 25 hectares of meadows and fertile land and Quinta da Alegria is very different…

Our Village Midões

Our little village Midões has quite a lot of history. This you can see from the buildings around such as the palace, the church, the houses of the Portuguese nobility and the Celtic graves.

Many of the paths around the accommodation are following the trail that João Brandão took to escape from his prosecutors. This Portuguese Robin Hood lived in the 19th century and fought for the rights of the poor. Only 130 years ago there was terror and poverty in this region.

Also you will notice the cultural impact left by the Romans with their roads, bridges and buildings which we sometimes cross on our rides. There used to be a real hippodrome in Midões they say.

This means, our guests will have unforgettable days of nothing but dazzling nature. Lots of culture, relaxation for the body and mind on a trip to never forget.