The two week anticipation of my first riding lesson in over 20 years made me wake up 1/2 hr before my alarm this morning. I rolled my boyfriend out of bed like an excited little girl and we made our 40 minute drive to the facility all for them to tell me that I wouldn't be riding today due to the instructor being ill, but if I put a mask on I could walk around the barn. Just swell. I have not received a call back to reschedule or apologize. read more

I called several local farms for 2 days and Spruce Meadow was the only one that answered! I was looking for a lesson for my 4 year old, and for some time just around the horses and teaching her about the farm. It was a wonderful date night with my little lady! Everyone was pleasant and encouraging. We were able to eat picnic dinner and play on their playground after and watch the other horses. We stayed for about 2 hours, with 1/2hr being the one on one lesson. She loved it! She was scared for a moment when the horse sneezed and asked to get down. Nikki handled that situation perfectly and encouraged her to get back up there. She did, and finished the lesson with pride! We can't wait to go back!! read more

Spruce Meadow Farm - Horseback Riding Near Me - Clarence, New York

See all

I came to Spruce Meadow twice in 2013 - once was part of a "date lesson" they sold my husband (birthday gift) and one was under a groupon I had happened to buy the same week (for less than half the price). Our first visit we used the "date lesson" which was intended to be romantic I suppose but really just ended with a small gift bag with soap petals and 2 boxes of conversation hearts. Whatever though, I was there for the horses! Scheduling was very difficult but when someone did manage to answer the phone they would be apologetic and pleasant. It took several calls but we finally got the date. When we arrived we were greeted by 2 young girls, teenagers, and they proceeded to show us how to clean the horses. We spent about 30 minutes of the lesson cleaning and grooming alone. I didn't see an "adult" the whole time we were there (a liability nightmare, might I add) but the girls were very sweet and seemed to know their stuff. I got to ride Lucky, a beautiful older girl who was a good horse for a first-timer. We spent a while walking, turning, and stopping, and by the end of the lesson I was trotting with Lucky and having a wonderful time. Had that been my only experience with the farm, min. 4 stars for sure, like Erica S.'s experience. BUT We came back for the groupon lesson a few weeks later (again, after a tough scheduling process). There was an older woman present there this time, but she was the only instructor there for 2 riders (despite the fact that we were each supposed to have an instructor). We again went through the grooming process and then went out to ride. We had informed her several times that we had been there before, but it seemed to go one ear and out the other, and she kept treating us like everything was brand new. We also asked for the same horses, as we both had a great experience the first time, but that was ignored as well. The horse I was given to ride was not feeling well that day, but I was still supposed to learn how to ride on him (I heard the girl helping around the stables quietly mention that he was sick and wasn't the best choice, but he was the choice anyway because the "good horses" were off somewhere else). He was miserable and wouldn't walk, even when lead/yanked/yelled at by the instructor. She kept telling me to "squeeze harder" and came over and physically pushed my legs into the side of the horse - still nothing. She left me and the horse parked under a tree for 10+ minutes while she attended to another rider. I felt bad for the horse - he clearly did not want to be out. The other horses were happily walking around. She kept claiming that it was me, which was embarrassing, frustrating, and NOT AT ALL HELPFUL for a new rider. I don't mean to say that if I were more experienced the horse would have acted exactly the same - but there was clearly something wrong. When I mentioned I had gotten to a trot on Lucky, the instructor scoffed and said that I shouldn't have been allowed to do that. It was the first time she recognized my comments about having already been there. Like Donna H., I too was interested (BEFORE the 2nd lesson) in continuing and paying for some regular lessons, but all my comments and questions about it were answered with something like "oh that's nice." Really, the whole time, we felt like we were nothing but a huge bother that day and like we didn't belong there at all. They clearly weren't interested in making us new regular customers. It was all very weird. I appreciate the Farm and what it does to help/rescue/treat "unwanted" horses, but it really needs to improve its business model and customer service if it's going to be in that realm. One star for the first lesson, one star for the horses. It's not their fault. :) read more

What a great place! I met the owners and they clearly love and care for their horses and the people that ride them. The grounds are well kept and clean. It's easy to find, and once you're there, you feel like family. They had a "date lesson" that I couldn't resist. My fiancee has never been on a horse but always wanted to. Their prices are very reasonable. I would highly recommend this place if you are looking for something fun to do or even serious about getting into riding. Will definitely be back! read more

My daughter has been riding here for 6 years starting at 5 years old and absolutely loves it there. Her Trainer, Erin, is an experienced competitive rider herself and clearly loves and cares for all of the horses. She is a firm no nonsense instructor who clearly and quickly corrects each rider on their errors while being generous with praise when they do well. After 6 years of observation I've learnedwhat I believe are the two most important rules of riding. 1. It's always the riders fault if the horse fails to complete the task. The rider failed to use leg, reign or command in one way or another and 2. MORE LEG, MORE LEG, MORE LEG. Erin was wonderful with my daughter, when after riding for 2 years, took a fall that caused her to be terrified to ride again especially with other horses in the rink. Terrified, but such a passion to ride insisted on going each week to sometimes start weeping as soon as she would get on the horse. Erin was very compassionate but also very firm with her that she cannot cry as the horses will react to her mood while reminding her that she knows how to ride and will do great if she can settle down. It was exactly what my daughter needed to overcome her terror. It took almost 18 months for my daughter to regain her former confidence and Erin was just wonderfully patient with how she worked with her while always pushing her to her full potential. Karla and Al are warm wonderful people whose love for their horses is plain to see. Their hearts and souls help rescue so many horses from terrible fates and as just about every horse there loves to snuggle their face on some part of your face, arm, whole body, some loudly demanding your attention when entering the barn, the love is clearly returned. Bring out some apples and every head pops out the stalls and loudly complain if you do not get to them quick enough. Obviously spoiled sweethearts! Lol. There are many horses for beginner, moderate and advanced riders. Very young children will meet Mattie, who at 29, knows what to do even if her rider doesn't and always at her own slow pace comfortably introduces little ones to riding. She is the diamond of the barn and responsible for making my daughter fall passionately in love with horses and riding. Only negative I give is sometimes a little disorganized with times but this farm is run as a big family, not as business looking to get bigger, faster or richer.(although richer is always good when running a business) It is a project of love and Karla and Al make you feel as your daughter(or son or yourself) are a part of the whole. They truly care for their riders and have always made my family feel welcome and comfortable. The regular long term riders are encouraged to spend time at the farm and I'm comfortable with my daughter spending whole days there so she can help with cleaning the stalls, assist trainers during their lessons, moving horses, tacking up horses while earning some free riding time before or after a lesson. This also helps the riders to form a comraderie with each other and teaches them good old fashioned hard physical labor. They are made to feel that they contribute to thefarm, taking care of the horses they absolutely adore. My daughters only complaints are that she doesn't get there enough days of the week to suit her needs and ,of course, she wants her own horse. read more

See all

My BF knows how much I love animals so he suggested that we try a horseback riding lesson here. I've been on a few horses here & there but don't really have much experience with them; actually I had a very bad experience as a kid (a horse fell on me...long story!) so I was a little bit nervous to 'get back on that horse' so to speak. Anyhow... Calling to make an appointment was no problem, we spoke to Carla who was super nice. On the day of our appointment, the place was easy to find and there was plenty of parking. We were greeted by a very sweet black barn cat who loves to be petted. Then we met Allie, our instructor. She had us groom the horses (Lucky and Springer) and give them a treat before she saddled them up and helped us to get onto them after she fitted us for safety helmets. We rode the horses from the inside of the barn into an indoor arena-type structure. It was super hot outside during our visit and this arena was nice & shaded for the horses (and us!). The arena was very clean - no animal droppings whatsoever, except any that were created during our ride. After walking around the area Allie had us try 'trotting' which my BF loved but made me a bit nervous (remember - a horse fell on me once). I had told Allie ahead of time that I was nervous and she was really great about it; the second I said that the trotting was too fast for me, she slowed down the horse for me. If you're a first timer or just nervous about horseback riding in general, this place totally gets it. Then we rode outside for a bit; all in all we were there around an hour. After our ride Allie offered to take a photo of us on the horses, but our phones were in the truck. She was kind enough to take them with her own phone and text the pictures to us. Side note - they have around 40 horses and most of them are rescued horses. This place has a big heart and they really know their stuff! I highly recommend them and I will definitely be back. read more

My husband and I went to Spruce Meadow farm for an hour riding lesson for two. He had gotten a Groupon for me as a Valentine's day gift. Allie was our instructor. She was very friendly! We got there a little early so we got to pet all the horses. We rode Beau and Aries, both great horses. It was a lot of fun and everyone was friendly. read more

I have been trying to reach them by phone since last summer. Not one call returned. I tried all different times. When the sign went up again I started calling again. Again not one call returned. Reading your other reviews this seems to be a big problem. Why bother to post a number and not return the calls? Just plain rude. Tells an awful lot about whoever is in charge. read more

This is based on a Groupon one-hour grooming + riding lesson in their barn & indoor arena, which I used for my college-age son and me. Scheduling wasn't easy, since it took several tries to establish contact, and the first few days I requested were blocked by the stable's other activities. We arrived and were handed over to a teenager and a preteen instructor. One horse, named Beau, looked nice, so I gave him to my son. That left me with Star, more of an oversized pony, with a sway back and a mean temper. I should have asked for a different mount. This tired older horse was full of bad habits -- lots of head tossing & angry neighing. It was about 20 minutes of riding followed by 20 of grooming, but that was plenty for me. My son fared better with Beau, but he was embarrassed by how young the instructors were. The pièce de résistance was the adult manager making a loud thinly-veiled plea for us to tip them at the end ("These girls work SO HARD!") While I was glad for the English riding instruction (my previous experience was all Western), this stable is for kiddies only, and even then I'd think twice about putting children on horses with bad temperaments like Star. read more

I spent many years at this barn as a lesson student, leaser and boarder. I wouldn't reccomend it to anyone for any of those services. The horses aren't taken care of as there is no turnout and verg irregular feeding and stall cleaning schedules. The staff is irresponsible and you can't rely on them for anything. They label themselves as a rescue but only have one thing on their mind, MONEY! They are manipulative liars and it hurts my heart when I see they "rescued" another horse because any horse deserves better. They continue to use horses in lessons when they have been told by the vet not to, just to make money. Last but certainly not least they don't vaccinate properly and have had strangles twice in the past couple of years. It takes serious skill to put horses lives in that much danger twice. So many quality barns with reputable trainers and healthy horses in the WNY area. read more

Awful... Won't return phone calls to schedule a lesson...I was owed one more on my package...teenage instructors which you get a different one each time...staff is unprofessional...and lessons are disorganized and crammed together with many others in the same time slot as you. Never going back...switched barns already where I get more personalized attention, consistent instructor and times! read more

Well worth the wait to get a one hour riding lesson in using a Groupon. My personal instructor, Kaycie, was excellent. I was instructed in the basics of riding English style: how to mount, control the reigns, walk and trot, dismount, and groom the horse afterwords. A short tour and intro. to their other rescue horses followed my session. Very nice kept horses and grounds for riding, both indoors and outdoors. Jumping is next, lol. Seriously, I will revisit. read more

I have never rode a horse before and thought to give a try for horseback riding when I saw the Groupon deal for an one-hour + grooming lesson. I booked my lesson on a weekday and I gotta say it's very great experience. Very friendly staff and they are very knowledgeable about horses. One less star was only due to the difficult to make the appointment. I'd recommend to email them to schedule any appointments instead of phone calls. My overall experience was great!! I give thumbs up to the staff. read more

Took two 11 year olds for a one hour horseback ride and grooming lesson. They were VERY knowledgeable and nice! The girls had a blast!

Awful experiences here! Bought a package of private lessons...it was a deal for get 4 lessons for the price of 3...received the 3 poorly given lessons but called many times to schedule the 4th I am owed yet with no call back...also to start my first lesson a terrible storm was rolling in (thunder & lightening) and I know that horses are flight or fight animals...so I called my instructor I had a lesson with that day to see if we could cancel but she got all argumentative and said that our horses ride in all weather they're used to it...and you can't cancel now it'll screw up scheduling yada yada...so I went event though I didn't feel comfortable on the horse in that weather...even if we were in the indoor arena...second lesson I had scheduled with the same person as last but when I arrived she had forgot I was coming and asked another girl to give me my lesson, which was ok but she was too young to be giving lessons if you ask me...third lesson, I had yet a different instructor again so I had to explain to her what I had learned the last time or worked on, etc. also this time I was put into the indoor arena with two young children on horses, horses that the instructor said didn't get along with my horse and those children weren't any good at controlling their horses if they got too close to mind which a couple run-ins happened throughout the lesson where I felt my safety was at risk...oh and there was another girl just practicing around us while the three other lessons were going on plus the 2 instructors equaled way too many people and horses in a small arena...it wasn't even productive...horrible! Oh and did I mention one of the instructors said out loud to the other girls where they should put their tips if they get any...really? how rude...frankly I don't think they deserve tips for their poorly run barn...switching to a barn I trust and where I know I'll get exceptional attention that is conducive to my learning of riding. read more

We originally came to Spruce Meadows because of a Groupon that they offered. My daughter fell in love with the farm. The horses are beautiful and well cared for. The staff has been wonderful with her as a 7 yr old beginner. She has become very passionate about horses and riding, and we will definitely be returning! read more

I do not recommend this place to anybody. Countless bad experiences. Horses stalls are constantly a mess, and the outdoor ring has horrible footing or lack there of. Staff is immature and disrespectful. read more

I checked out Spruce Meadow Farms after buying a Groupon for three private, one-hour lessons, which I thought was a pretty good deal. Scheduling the lesson, however, was an ordeal. We were given no instruction, left waiting (another day, a new student was left waiting for thirty minutes and finally told to reschedule), left unattended to groom a horse which my son had never done before. If I hadn't been able to teach him (I used to be a riding counselor), he would have been standing there for twenty minutes with nothing to do. The riding instruction was fine, and the instructor patient, but she took phone calls repeatedly during the entire lesson. What makes this particularly ironic is that I was unable to reach her to schedule a second lesson, and once the Groupon lessons were over and I told her we wanted to continue, I've been unable to reach her! Presumably, the Groupon is to help bring in new students, but there has been no follow-up or return of my phone calls. It's clear the instructor knows her stuff, but the place is so ridiculously disorganized that even my twelve-year-old son remarked about how unprofessional it is. I'm trying to find another place to continue his lessons. Amazingly, the farm still has Groupon offers continually, which I don't get since they clearly weren't even in retaining an interested, established, paying customer. So completely disorganized--a big turnoff. read more