BOTSWANA
Explore the vast plains of Botswana on a four-day riding safari across the Kalahari, meeting bushmen and learning the techniques of food-gathering, animal tracking and hunting. Rides are accompanied by a "San" bushman who will track wildlife including leopard, springbok, cheetah and wildebeest. Riders should be of good intermediate level.
• The four-night trip costs £430 including accommodation and meals but excluding flights, through Equine Adventures (0845 130 6981; equineadventures.co.uk)
MOROCCO
The best way to tackle the Sahara desert is by camel, just as the Bedouin have been doing for thousands of years. Camel trekking moves at a slow place and is an ideal way to soak up the atmosphere of the desert, with six- or seven-hour treks through dunes and kasbahs and nights spent under canvas. A reasonable level of fitness is needed.
• The four-night trip costs from £535pp for a group of eight, to £1,075pp for two people, including accommodation and meals but excluding flights, through Best of Morocco (08450 264585; morocco-travel.com)
AZORES
If you've always longed to learn to ride, there are options besides a cold muddy field in the UK. Head to the Azores for a learn-to-ride week that combines lessons with dolphin- and whale-watching, alongside other excursions to explore the history and culture of these little-visited Portuguese islands. Accommodation is at a local quinta with riding school attached.
• The week costs from £830, excluding flights, through In the Saddle (01299 272997; inthesaddle.com)
LAOS
Spend a few days learning to be a "mahout" and you don't just learn to ride an elephant, but bath and feed it and become generally responsible for its wellbeing. The three-day course takes place at an ecolodge in Luang Prabang in Laos, under the watchful eye of experienced mahouts, and also includes the chance to go kayaking or bamboo rafting in the Nam Khan river
• The three-night course costs £80, including accommodation and meals, through Mahout Lodge (00 856 030 514 0525; mahoutlodge.com)
COSTA RICA
Riding adventures aren't just for adults – increasingly companies are offering family-friendly tours, where children can ride out or take part in other organised activities. Costa Rica offers breathtaking riding through cloudforest, savannah and plantation lands, with the chance to stay on a ranch where kids can also try kayaking, snorkelling, canopy tours and wildlife-spotting.
• A week costs from £1,200 (25% discount for under-12s), including accommodation and activities, through Equitour (0800 043 7492; equitour.co.uk)
