I've been having a wonderful time taking lessons here. This beautiful place is tucked away in a quiet corner of the park that I'd never seen- it's a little retreat away from city life. Many of the donated polo ponies are quite a bit posher than I was expecting. They have various things going on depending on the age, commitment, and ability of the rider. The complaints I've read from a few other reviewers seem to come from very entitled and inflexible people. If you want to take lessons, you have to accept that variables may arise. There are perfect days, but there may also be unpleasant weather or some less than great chemistry with a particular horse or person. Next time will probably be different, so stay for the long haul. Success is not necessarily instantaneous. It's expensive because the place and animals are beautiful, but that doesn't mean you deserve handholding or slavish "customer service". The people running this place are helpful but they are not your butlers. read more

This place is a hidden Philly gem. Tucked away in Fairmont park is this little equestrian center that has dozens of beautiful horses. There's an area of picnic tables to eat lunch, but be aware that the friendly cat will greet you and inquire what you're eating. They also have Adirondack chairs to sit near the horses. The staff is really friendly! They gave us a tour and took our photos with my phone. The kids had a great time. Best of all ... it is completely FREE! read more

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What can I say about this place? It is amazing! They care! I have been to numerous stables, and my daughter has grown leaps and bounds. Her confidence and horse knowledge has increased. I can not speak to the other reviews, to only say, it sounds like snobbish privilege. I would say, do your research about what , how and why this stable does as a whole. A whole is what they have given my daughter and we benefit from the work they do. Also, I drive out of state, passed 5-10 stables , pay a toll to come for an hour lesson. If that doesn't speak volumes, then I don't know what does. read more

Not terrific for beginners. I sent my daughter for a week of summer camp. She had no previous riding experience, but I was given the impression that this was a beginner camp. She was screamed at by the instructors and lost all interest in learning riding. She loves horses and is a good listener and follows instructions. She's only 8, though, and could not possibly have been expected to have everything memorized after one lesson. Plus, berating her did not help so she lost confidence. A shame - it's a beautiful place. But I would not recommend that a beginner start there. read more

This happened over a year ago, but I'm going back and adding reviews since I realize how many non-horsey people are looking for places to get started. I had a horrible experience here when purchasing a couple lessons in advance - I believe it was for $130. I showed up on time for my first lesson and no one had any record of me coming, despite extensive communication with Chamounix in the days prior. No problem, this happens. I was assigned a horse that I tacked up and tried to ride towards the ring...and the horse immediately started crow hopping. I managed to wrangle into the arena with someone else's help leading me through. At this point the instructor asked one of the girls there (I think a working student) to go tack up another horse for me. While I got off and stood in the arena holding the first horse...and the rest of the lesson was carrying on without me. At this point I should mention I had ~10yr riding experience and this all seemed very unusual. I didn't get back on the horse until everyone was done cantering to warm up - wasting a significant chunk of my lesson. Later, while putting the horses away, one of the girls admitted that horse was having "issues" and had reared and thrown another one of the working students the day prior. I didn't bother coming back for the rest of my lessons. read more

I was given a 4-lesson package at Chamounix Stables as a birthday gift this year. My trainer Elise was great, as were all the other riders in my lesson group. The Executive Director, Lezlie Hiner, was fine initially and communicated with me as to what lesson group would be the best fit for me and the forms I needed to complete. However, I had a big customer service issue beyond that and wanted to inform other potential riders and Chamounix customers of my experience. The first three lessons I had went well - I arrived half an hour before each lesson as my trainer instructed me to do, and the first lesson was paired up with a girl who had been riding at Chamounix for some time and was able to show me around, where the grooming equipment and tack was kept, etc. The stables are very nice, my horse was fun to ride and well-tempered, and the lessons were structured well. The morning of what was to be my fourth and final lesson, it was raining heavily. I checked Chamounix's website and social media pages for any weather-related updates that morning (there were none) and called their phone number. I didn't reach anyone, but the voice message states that lessons are held rain or shine. Having heard nothing from the director or instructor, I went ahead to my lesson as planned and arrived 30 minutes early, as before. This gives me time to get settled and begin grooming/ tacking up my horse by quarter of. When I arrived, the place was deserted. There were no riders in the corrals outside, no riders or stable hands inside, everything was closed up. I stayed for a few extra minutes to make sure I wasn't missing anyone, but left after determining they were closed. I emailed the director telling her about my experience (and mentioning the $27 round-trip Uber ride the morning cost me). Lezlie was unapologetic and said the stables were indeed open but that I had arrived too early (I arrived the same time I always had, and early is what my trainer had encouraged me to do) and that she would allow me to have my last lesson the following week at my usual 9am time slot, despite that being something she 'never offers.' I was mildly unhappy at her unapologetic tone, but figured she was doing the best she could so I accepted rescheduling my last lesson to the next Sunday and figured I'd just have to eat the Uber fare. The next Sunday, I arrived at the stables at quarter to 9, and they were open with people there. However, I quickly discovered that I had been placed in the 10am class, not my normal 9am, which meant I had to sit around in the cold for over an hour waiting for my lesson because I had been told the wrong thing, again - and that I would miss an appointment I had scheduled for after the lesson. I wrote an email to Lezlie explaining this and requesting a refund for my final class due to the inconvenience she had imposed. She didn't write me back, but when she arrived at the stables a short time later, she came up to me, thrust a check into my hand for the final lesson amount, and said: "You're an asshole, and I don't mind losing your business." I was shocked that someone would think it was OK to speak to someone in that manner, let alone someone who is a customer. As a small business owner, she should know that is it NEVER OK to name-call or be blatantly rude. I have ridden horses for many years and I know that 'horse people' are often not the friendliest of folks, but I'd never encountered someone as belligerent and unaware of the role they played in this. I told Lezlie I would be sure to include this in my review of Chamounix, at which point she became angrier and accused me of not being able to write anything about her and her company truthfully that would also be accusatory, since she refunded me the final lesson amount. I told her, as I write now, that I would include every detail about our interaction. Yes, she agreed to move my last lesson. Yes, she refunded me that amount after. But she also was callous initially and grew to full hostility, and she refused to acknowledge the inconvenience she caused me. Other customers and potential customers need to know the way this small business director treats people. read more

I scheduled a last minute private riding lesson during a business trip and had a stellar lesson ( it was my first time). My horse was patient and so was my instructor ! I'll be back next time I'm in Philadelphia read more