I absolutely love EVERYTHING about Switch Willo! I have been riding here for 20 years, alongside my mom and also sister, and we have nothing to say but positive things. Switch Willo took me from my first lesson, all the way to Maclay and Medal finals, to continuing to show after college in the 3'6" AOs and 1.40m high Amateur Jumpers. Glenn and Phoebe (the owners) are classy, caring, and VERY EXPERIENCED! It is a blessing to be trained by such iconic riders. Kirk Berlin is the BEST in the whole world, and puts his heart and soul into the business and SWS's clients and students. The other trainers at the barn are amazing as well, and are very motivated to help train anyone at any age and level. The barn is absolutely gorgeous, well taken care of, and in the BEST location in Austin. There is no where that even compares! If you want to train with a barn who has been in business over 60+ years and is amazing in every way, this is your place. Glenn, Phoebe, Kirk, and the rest of the SWS staff are dedicated to the happiness and development of everyone and it's a blessing to be here. read more

See all

Instagram-worthy stables. We are talking chronically gorgeous. 80 horses on the premises. I'm told these are the largest stables - 23 acres - in Texas. This huge and picturesque facility sits where the town of Duval once existed in the 1800s, nowadays known as "just north of Duval, nestled between Mopac and US-183." The city has simply mushroomed around it. The stables appear to be clean and the horses well cared for. My girls spent two weeks at summer camp here. There were many teen counselors and while they were sweet and fairly knowledgeable, they didn't share information with each other, so it was necessary to repeat my requests over and over and over. Unfortunately, I find the service, communications and the organization sub-par. They don't return calls. Their voice mail fills up and days can go by before they clear it. They promise information and don't follow up. I even told the owner myself that the number provided on Yelp is wrong, but they haven't bothered to update it. That was several weeks ago. Oh well. read more

Switch Willo Stables - Horseback Riding Near Me - Austin, Texas

My 7 year old loved horseback riding camp at Switch Willo. Fridays were especially fun because they decorated the horses and had a show for parents/friends/family, and Kona ice if they brought money for the truck. read more

Switch Willo Stables - Horseback riding at switch willo - Horseback Riding Near Me - Austin, Texas

The place is quite beautiful and clean, but that's about the best we can say about Switch Willo. I concur with most of those here that say communication is pretty poor. The staff wasn't rude, but they certainly were not friendly. When we arrived on day 1 of the camp, the camp house was full of kids doing some arts and crafts. Our daughter can be shy and we exepcted a counselor to welcome her and help her find a seat - there were at least 4 counselors standing around with one on her mobile, madly typing away on Instagram (I know becasue I glanced at the screen). What we got was one of them pointing to a wall of shelves and telling to put her bags there. We had to find her a spot and introduce her to the other kids at the table ourselves. We were also surpised at at the small amount of time they actually get to ride and spend with horses. By day 3, our daughter had only been on a horse twice for for just a couple hours. We're giving it 2 stars, and not 1 star, because our daughter got sick and missed some days, so maybe the final days would've been better. With the camp being one of the most expensive summer camps in Austin, we did expect more. read more

If you live in North Austin, you're probably unaware that nestled in what is now a largely residential area, there is a cozy 25-acre horse farm called Switch Willo Stables. Switch Willo holds a special place in my heart, as it is where I grew up riding horses and where I spent many summers squinting into the hot sun while sitting on a horse's back, feeling the heat radiating off of his sleek skin. The owners of Switch Willo have spent years grooming Switch Willo into an immaculate botanical garden that happens to also have horses inside of it. There are koi ponds and fountains at the edge of each barn, and beautiful landscaping meets the eye at every turn. Switch Willo has a large herd of lesson horses that are safe for beginners but also great for the hunter student who has had more training. The facilities for lesson rider are wonderful -- there are cross ties and a full tack room and now tack shop to purchase horsey goodies. They offer a summer camp as well, and attend local and national horse shows. If you enjoy aesthetic beauty, attention to detail and learning a discipline, Switch Willo will not let you down. read more

Switch Willo Stables - Switch Willo Stables - Horseback Riding Near Me - Austin, Texas

My daughter, age 8, went to a friend's birthday party here recently. At first, my daughter was apprehensive about this whole riding a horse thing. Sure.... she's ridden ponies and donkeys before. But horses??? "They're so much bigger!!", she expressed. I've never been to this stable before. When I looked at the direction to this place, I was in disbelieve? Really?? A stable this close to town? In fact, we have a friend who used to live a block away. We went to our friend's house several times, but I never noticed this stable. The stable is preceded by a gravel dirt road. There is a huge gate covered with luscious vegetation. As you drive though the gate, you'll turn right to go to the main part of the stable. There's a small 6-8 cars parking space, horse stables, a large gated area where horses roam. There are well manicured gardens all around. Everything is lively and the plants look like they are happy to be there. I didn't stick around to watch the girls rode their horses. But when I picked up my daughter, she had completely changed her mind about riding horses. She had so much fun that she declared this was where she wanted to have her next birthday (10 months away). I watched the girls walked the horses to the stables, turned them around so the horses faced outside. The horses were very beautiful, tame and well behaved. Where the girls were having cake and snacks after the riding lesson was this small house near the entrance of the property. Inside this house were a big huge wooden table, wooden chairs with high back, antique furniture, horse and riding artifacts everywhere, of course. It was just a lovely place for a birthday. read more

Hidden in a cozy residential neighborhood just outside of downtown is Switch Willo Stables. I've been in Austin for almost 2 years and had no idea it even existed. It's a gorgeous property that makes it easy to forget the city is right around the corner. I purchased a groupon for 2 riding lessons and just completed my first one. I hadn't ridden english for years, so was a little nervous, but by the end of the hour-long lessons, I was completely comfortable. The instructor was great, she let us ride according to our comfort levels and the facilities were impressive. Out of four in my group, 2 were beginners. That slowed things down quite a bit and is the reason I gave a 4-star rating. read more

Switch Willo Stables - Oscar - Horseback Riding Near Me - Austin, Texas

I'm on the fence a bit. I REALLY wanted them to work out. The good: awesome location, beautiful area, it FEELS prestigious, and the horses are well cared for. Logistically, this place is a dream come true. The bad: the human factor and customer service. My experience: My daughter went to summer camp for a week. The counselors are all VERY young. This is fun for the kids as long as there isn't a problem and the counselors can keep them on task. This is bad, however, for kids who need a bit more guidance and reassurance or, like my daughter, have trouble focusing. She had a great time but she wasn't comfortable communicating her concerns and when she did, they just brushed it off like "oh, you'll be fine". When we arrived we were not greeted, we didn't know what we were supposed to do or where to go. It was chaos. I realize camp is a different beast: corralling that many kids is crazy. What DOES leave a lasting impression is my experience with them over the phone. They answer the phone with "hello?".... "Uh, is this Switch Willo?" When asking them for more information it's like I had to pry it out of them. I have the distinct impression that they are trying to weed out the folks who aren't SUPER serious about riding. The website: I'm a web developer so I'm a bit of a snob when it comes to websites. However, some of the information is confusing or buried. Take their lessons: what they have listed sounds pretty reasonable. Upon calling I found out that they have a completely different rate for youngsters (my daughter is 7). And camp: after signing up I didn't get a confirmation or a link to the required equipment until a few days before (and we were out of town). There's a link to the information on the site but it is a link at the VERY bottom of the page and wasn't obvious at the time. Let me point out that we didn't sign up for lessons so I cannot comment on their instructors or their regular day engagements. Their lessons were disappointingly expensive for only 45 minutes a week. I know horses are expensive but I felt like the price was a reflection of how many horses they have to care for instead of the lessons my daughter would receive. read more

I was extremely disappointed in the staff and the communication. I signed my children up for a day of the winter break camp. I received an email reminding me to bring lunch and water bottles for my children -- it did NOT say anything about bringing a helmet. So the morning of the camp my children were turned away because they didn't have helmets (are you supposed to buy helmets for horseback riding before you know if your children like it?) and they REFUSED to give me a refund. They were very defensive and unpleasant to deal with. If you want to horseback ride go to Hutto or Del Valle -- it's worth the extra time in the car! read more

I have been boarding here a long time, having taken some breaks between horses, and my daughter has attended summer camp with several of her friends for a few years. They had a great time, enjoyed the riding, activities, swimming and the kid jumps in the back. Emphasis is on safety, with beginners receiving a lot of individual attention. My niece also attended and learned a lot. As a beginner, she finished the week doing quite a good posting trot and participated in the fun day on Friday. More advanced riders can jump and ride bareback, which really helps develop their leg and balance. read more

See all

Just my favorite place in earth.. I haven't rode in a while since I moved across the world and I'm glad I got to spend half my summer there and now I'm in the lesson program and I love it - sasha read more

My youngest has attended many summer camps at Switch Willo Stables two Summers in a row now. She really enjoyed her time at the camps and always came home excited to share what she did with the horses. If she could change one thing about the camp, I am pretty sure she would have the campers spend more time actually riding the horses. Even though she felt she didn't get enough time riding horses ( I can't recall the amount of time the campers spent riding horses, but it did seem rather short at the time), however, she is always talking about returning to camp. My one complaint about the camp is that the "counselors" are older kids(12,13 and up) who have been riding at Switch Willo for a while. While I did find some of the "counselors" completely competent, others left me wondering if my 7 years old was more mature than her "counselors", which was obviously disconcerting. Fortunately, I never heard of any dangerous situations ( and I know I would have heard about any if they occurred because my daughter takes her "reporting" very seriously.). All in all, my daughter always left camp happy and exhausted, just the way we want her. ;) read more

My 6 year old daughter went to summer camp for two weeks at Switch Willo and she had a wonderful experience. There were indeed some young counselors, but when asked, the director explained that they were mostly young adults (i.e. 20's) and that there were always at least 8 adults (not including the teenager assistants) with the kids at all times. There was a much bigger emphasis on safety (horses were always led at first, no riding without helmets and boots) and proper horse care than I remember when I was a kid learning to ride. My daughter still treasures a picture her that father took of her with one of the camp horses, and will be returning for Winter Break camp this year, in addition to summer camp next summer. Everyone was always pleasant and the staff seemed sincerely happy to see the campers and genuinely fond of the school horses, which was wonderful to see. The only thing that I found at all difficult about the camp experience was the parking lot, which does get very busy at drop off and pick up times, but it was really only a minor annoyance. read more

I sent my daughter here for a few lessons and it was good. Pretty much what I was expecting it would be, which means I don't plan on going back but I'm not complaining. Atmosphere can be a little more "typical" than I would care for, but everyone was polite enough. It's definitely a barn that is catering to girls who want to show jump, which my daughter does not. We're looking for a more relaxed experience. I'd recommend to someone wanting to show. The location is phenomenal and it looks like their summer camp program is put together really well, although I haven't personally send my daughter to SW for that. Check out groupon offers. read more

I am extremely disappointed with Switch Willo customer service. We enrolled our two kids for camps in summer 2020 and then withdrew them due to the covid emergency. They did not refund us but stated we could have credit for future camps (no expiration date for credit mentioned in their email). We have paid the camps in full for about $ 800. This summer (2021) I contacted them to enroll my kids in camp. They said it was possible but unfortunately my confirmation email for camp dates went to the wrong email address ( my mistake). Because I didn't confirm, they did not lose any spot or money, but I wasn't able to get my kids in any of their camps. When I reached out to request to keep my credit for another future camp they stated that they put on their website that credit cannot roll over to 2022 (which was not mentioned in the email i received about the credit I could get). Now all camps are full for this summer and basically they are telling me that I will just lose my credit. I don't think this is the way to treat clients. They took payment in full and provided no service at all. read more

My 8 year old daughter loved this camp. It is a very well run camp, and all the people there are so friendly and helpful. I expect we will be going there for years to come. It is like a country oasis hidden in the residental area. read more

The only good thing about this stable is the location. The place is full of snobs and a riding instructor that thinks she knows everything. I would not recommend this place. They are unfriendly, treat you like crap, they significantly overprice their horses, and the horses aren't even that great! I took one lesson here and it was a complete waste. For the money I paid I think I should have been taught more. I even purposely started doing stuff wrong just to see if she would say anything to me and she didn't. The riding instructor, just stood in the middle of the ring and gossiped with one of the other boarders while I trotted around in circles. Horrible horrible place and I definitely DO NOT recommend. Maybe if they got a new instructor it MIGHT be a decent place. But I doubt that... read more

My 7 year-old daughter attended 2 weeks of summer camp at Switch Willo. I do not recommend it. There are many junior counselors, but they are very young and seem to have no experience with children and very little supervision from the very few older counselors. When I saw the counselors each day they were mostly grouped off chatting with each other. In fact, the 10 days she was at camp no counselor ever welcomed my daughter or said good-bye to her at the end of the day. My usually bold daughter was hesitant to approach and did not feel comfortable asking the counselors questions. On two occasions my daughter told me about girls fighting and I asked her what the counselors did and she told me that they were not present when it happened. In sum, this camp is not living up to it's potential. It's a beautiful place with a great program but the there's a very bad lack of positive role models and direction. read more

This is my daughter's favorite summer camp by far. She has done it two summers in a row. She enjoys the riding lessons as well as the rest of the time in and around the stables and the swimming. It amazes me how much riding she learned in such a short time. I was a little nervous about the safety of the riding, but they have many junior counselors in the ring at riding time, so lots of extra supervision. The riding itself seemed very calm and controlled. Yes, it is hot, dusty, and smells like horses, and my daughter adores it. read more

I have been boarding horses and taking lessons at Swith Willo for nineteen years. It is my home away from home. I am very happy with the care my horses receive. All of their needs are met, and when I travel I never have to worry about them. As boarders, we have our choice of five instructors to work with, and while each one brings a unique perspective, their overall approach is cohesive. Whether you are taking weekly lessons or participating in nationally-rated shows, the training you receive will be excellent. My daughter also rode at Switch Willo from age six until she left for college. The caring instructors, the community of riders, and the horses themselves helped shape her and prepare her for life in very positive ways. The property itself is gorgeous, an oasis tucked away in a neighborhood very close to central Austin. I always feel good when I pull into the barn's parking area, ready to start my riding for the day. As you can see, I am a loyal Switch Willo team member to the core. read more