THE NEW GOLD STANDARD FOR RIDING SAFARIS
OVERVIEW
A safari like no other, brit Bertie Alexander and local Taimur Noon have created a dazzling, sporty, wild and romantic ride through glorious Pakistan.
You will have exclusive access to Taimur’s ancestral family home and country on the back of some of the fittest and most forward horses you’ll find anywhere. Live the aristocratic life of a time gone by.
This itinerary perfectly blends action and adventure with a three day mobile safari following the hoof-prints of Alexander the Great and his horse Bucephalus. You’ll then enjoy a luxurious stay at Nurpur Noon Estate and a top hotel in Lahore.
Let’s Ride
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS
Hunting with the Peshawar Vale hounds
Three nights at exclusive Nurpur Noon Estate
Three day mobile tented safari
Avail of the family’s personal protection guards
Cross the River Jhelum as Alexander the Great did
Play chukkas at the Noon’s private polo pitch
Ride camels and drive mini ponies in the rose garden
Incredible private pool complex
Stay in one of Lahore’s best hotels
Explore Lahore including the Old Fort and Mosque
OVERVIEW
RIDE GUIDE
Duration: 8 Days / 7 Nights / 6 Days Riding
Cost: £4,950 per person sharing
Operator: The Nurpur Bandobast Pvt. Ltd
Guide languages: English
Max Riders: 12
Min Riders: 6
Non Riders: Welcome
Departing: Arriving to Islamabad Airport, departing Lahore
Riding Level: Advanced. Many years riding with a natural seat. Comfortable riding at speed over uneven ground and jumping ditches if participating in hunting.
Weight Limit: Maximum of 100kg/220lbs/15.7 stone
Time in the saddle: 2 to 7 hours a day
HORSES
The Noon family estate has a polo pitch and the entire family are avid players. While not full size, the polo pitch is perfect for a casual or more serious chukka or two. The horses moonlight as safari horses, making them extremely fit, forward and responsive.
You’ll ride in polo saddles covered in a sheepskin fleece for comfort. No need to bring a seat saver from home. Bridles are mostly double reined polo bridles though these can be adjusted if not comfortable for you.
You will ride the sandy banks of the River Jhelum giving you the chance to let the horses really go, galloping along the river plain and then swimming with the horses in the river to cool off. You can play beach polo on the river islands where games are more casual and relaxed with a softer landing - good for polo beginners.
ACCOMMODATION
Three nights are spent in individual rooms at the Nurpur Noon Estate. Each room has two double beds and a large shower room and ample closet space.
Two nights are spent in large safari tents that you can stand in, sharing two to a tent. They have real beds, rugs, lamps and bed side tables for very comfortable sleeping arrangements. There are two short drop loos at camp but no showers.
Two nights are spent at a top hotel or private members club in Lahore. Each guest will have their own room.
WHAT'S INCLUDED
All meals, accommodation, horses, guides, personal protection, road transfers, entry for landmark sights, drinks and surprise entertainment.
WHAT’S EXCLUDED
The price does not include international or domestic flights, mandatory travel insurance, or staff tips (which are optional but appreciated).
We suggest a tip of £25 a day (£175) paid directly to your guide at the end of your holiday.
RIDING
You will be riding fit and forward polo and hunt horses and therefore need to be confident and capable. If you have ridden in Africa, hunt regularly, or own and event your own horse you will enjoy the riding in Pakistan. If you are not sure if you are up to it please ask and we will help you discern so.
Not suitable for beginner or intermediate riders or those that exclusively ride in arenas / schools.
TRAVEL & VISAS
You will require a visa based on an invitation from the Noon family. We will share instructions on how to obtain your visa with your booking confirmation.
TRANSFERS
All transfers are included. You will travel in SUVs with personal protection guards in convoy with you to help with traffic etc.
MEALS
One of the best catered safaris in the world, be prepared to be wow’d by the variety and deliciousness of Pakistani cuisine.
Most meals are catered for by the Estate team, ensuring quality and freshness even when taking lunch in the humble farms you pass through while travelling on safari.
As a Muslim dominant nation, the cuisine follows its religious guidelines, so chicken, mutton and beef are the meats of choice. Spices are heavily used in the traditional cuisine and meals usually involve curried or barbequed meat, rice, lentils, cooked vegetables and potatoes.
The Estate sits amongst kilometres of orange groves that yield the brightest and most flavourful juice you can imagine.
Vegetarians and gluten free diets happily catered for.
WHAT TO PACK
Refer to our FAQ for what to pack on a horse riding holiday.
Riding hats are not provided, please bring your own.
Riding boots / Chaps, Sun hat, Riding helmet, Trainers / walking shoes, Shoes you don’t mind getting wet, Swimming costumes, Warm jumper / Jacket (evenings and early mornings will be cold), Light waterproof, Water bottle, Rucksack, Casual wear, Smart casual for evenings at the house though dresses are very welcome too. The beautiful house warrants at least one night in a long dress or dinner jacket, Personal medication, Sunglasses, Mosquito repellent, Sun hat and glasses, Head torch, Portable phone Charger
INTERNET
There is good cell reception on all parts of the ride. Download an e-sim from Airalo and install before you arrive to be connected at all times.
Use our code BLACKS3976 to receive $3 off your e-sim credit.
DEPARTURE DATES
Each safari is £4,950 per person for seven nights.
The season is open from October to March. In 2025 the Estate will be closed in March for Ramadan.
Join an exclusive Black Saddle departure or as a private group with a minimum of six guests.
BLACK SADDLE DEPARTURES
09 - 16 OCTOBER 2024
07 - 14 JANUARY 2025
21 - 28 JANUARY 2025
Fill in an obligation-free Rider Form with your preferred dates and we will get back to you with availability.
PAKISTAN
Currency + cash: bring GBP or USD with you for spending at the little shop at Nurpur Noon and tips. If you do need local currency your hosts will arrange for your cash to be converted.
Time Zone: Pakistani Time - GMT +5
Climate: October has highs around 30-35°C and lows of 15-20°C. November and December has highs averaging 20-25°C and lows falling to 5-10°C. January and February bring the coolest temperatures, from 15-20°C to 0-5°C. By March, temperatures gradually rise with daytime highs increasing to 20-25°C and nighttime lows hovering around 5-10°C.
Attire: Pakistan is a muslim country, so care should be taken to dress respectfully by wearing loose fitting clothing and keeping hair and shoulders covered in public places. Ladies should avoid wearing ‘clingy, tight or suggestive’ attire, and will sometimes need to cover their hair. There is no need to bring your hunting attire from home, better to dress as the locals do.
PESHAWAR VALE HUNT
For those wanting a faster and more furious experience on horseback than a normal estate hack you can follow the Peshawar Vale Hunt, a pack of English foxhounds that were first established in Pakistan in 1863.
The hounds spend much of their season kennelled at Nurpur so hunting can be easily organised on request during your stay.
ITINERARY
This itinerary is intended as a guide only. Your hosts may change the itinerary to take advantage of weather conditions. Those not interested in hunting will instead enjoy countryside hacks and beach polo.
DAY 1 - ARRIVAL
Your guides will be at Isalamabad airport to meet you and whisk you away to Nurpur Noon Estate (2.5 hour drive). Here you will have breakfast and be shown to your rooms. There is time for a tour of the Estate before lunch is served in the dining room.
After lunch your horses will be waiting for you on the lawn. The first stop is the polo pitch for a quick chukker. The locals will likely be watching from the sidelines, cheering on the most flamboyant riders so don’t hold back!
Afterwards you’ll ride out around the estate, through the orange groves, and down the country lanes finishing with a ride through the village where from horseback you can peak over the fences into the inner courtyards of the family homes where buffalo, camels and donkeys are relaxing.
Relax in the sitting room with tea served at 6:30pm. Around 8:30pm dinner will be served in the dining room.
1 - 2 Hours riding
Overnight at Nurpur Noon with wifi and cell reception.
DAY 2 - JHELUM RIVER
After a leisurely wake up and breakfast, you will mount your horses on the lawn around 10 am. Today the three day adventure begins as we set off towards the Salt Range mountains. Our first camp tonight will be on the banks of the Jhelum River.
Lunch is at a simple, authentic local restaurant on the way where the walls are painted in bright yellow advertising local tea and you have a panoramic view out onto the street for people watching.
Once at the river you will swim (or boat if you’d rather) the horses across to your camp located on a river island. Here you can race the horses across the sandy flats and play some beach polo. There will be camels you can also ride if you wish.
The evening will be spent on the island with dinner and dancing around an open fire to the beat of local drummers.
The hounds and horses will be with you on the island for the night ready for a hunt along the riverbank early the next morning. Don’t miss the chance to watch them coming across to the river on the local flat boat.
4-5 Hour Riding
Overnight in tents.
DAY 3 - THE SALT RANGE MOUNTAINS
You will wake as the sun rises, with both horses and hounds ready waiting for you at camp. A morning’s hunting will be had from our camp along the reed beds of the river flood plain.
Once the sun is out, you’ll leave the hounds to go back to the kennels and continue your ride across the river plain towards the Salt Range mountains.
Lunch will be taken on route at a local farm that feels almost biblical with the table surrounded by donkeys, goats, chickens and maybe a camel or two.
Camp will be reached in the early evening as the sun sets. Situated at the base of the Salt Range mountains, you experience a vastly different landscape from the day before.
5 - 7 Hours Riding
Overnight in tents.
DAY 4 - THE HIDDEN WATERFALL
Wake up and breakfast at camp. You will then ride up into the salt range mountains stopping on route to see a working rock salt mine.
A short ride further on into the mountains you’ll reach a cross road where you dismount and leave your horse with the grooms. After a short hike you board a little boat and row to a rocky bank for a quick scramble. A hidden waterfall reveals itself and you relax here to have a refreshing swim and a cold drink.
You will then continue along the base of the mountain range for 3 hours stopping for a light lunch on route.
Your ride will finish in the late afternoon where cars and trucks will be awaiting us and the horses, to be taken back to Nurpur for a relaxed evening at the house.
5 - 6 Hours Riding
Overnight at Nurpur Noon Estate
DAY 5 - TRADITIONAL GAMES
After a leisurely wake up and breakfast. This will be a relaxed day where you can enjoy the house and gardens at Nurpur. You’ll be introduced to the snake charmers who live far south from the Estate in the desert. They conjure cobras and mesmerise them with the melody of their flutes.
Your hosts will give you a tour of the local village and local crafts giving you an insight on the ways of life in these rural areas of Pakistan.
A tent pegging competition will be held on the polo ground, you will have the opportunity to have a go yourselves and view this amazing flamboyant spectacle that’s so very popular in Pakistan.
Drinks and dinner will be held at the main house in the evening.
Miniature horse driving and have a go at tent pegging.
Stay at Nurpur Noon Estate
DAY 6 - THE PESHAWAR VALE HUNT
A morning hunt meet will be held on the lawn in front of the main house with the Peshawar Vale hounds. You will ride around the Noon estate for three hours. Be prepared for fast riding and some ditch jumping.
There will be a post hunt breakfast before packing up to go to Lahore, a 2 1⁄2 hour drive.
Once you arrive in Lahore, a busy, bustling city with a population of over 11 million, you’ll enjoy a late lunch at Lahore polo club.
Check into your top Lahore hotel. After some time to freshen up, you will drive to the old city to have dinner at one of Lahore’s oldest and most traditional restaurants located within the walls of the old city looking over Badshahi Mosque.
3 Hours Riding
Stay at a top hotel in Lahore
DAY 7 - EXPLORE LAHORE
Breakfast at your hotel before heading into the chaos of the city to do some shopping in the traditional markets and shops where you can purchase beautiful handmade rugs, fabrics and jewelry.
You will then enjoy lunch either at the polo club or at a restaurant in Lahore.
After lunch you will have a private guided tour of the old city of Lahore, viewing the old fort and Mosque as well as other prominent sites whilst walking through the hustle and bustle of the markets interconnected with narrow busy streets where you will get a real feel for the colorful culture of the wonderous city that is Lahore.
Back to your hotel to rest and freshen up before heading to the airport for your departure flight if leaving early morning.
No Riding Today
Stay at a top hotel in Lahore
DAY 8 - DEPARTURE
Transfer to the airport at any time today. The guards and drivers are available any time. Many flights leave very early in the morning.
No Riding Today
PRICES & AVAILABILITY
Each safari is £4,950 per person for seven nights.
The season is open from October to March. In 2025 the Estate will be closed in March for Ramadan.
Join an exclusive Black Saddle departure or as a private group with a minimum of four guests.
BLACK SADDLE DEPARTURES
09 - 16 OCTOBER 2024
07 - 14 JANUARY 2025
21 - 28 JANUARY 2025
Fill in an obligation-free Rider Form with your preferred dates and we will get back to you with availability.
YOUR HOSTS
For the duration of your stay, you will be hosted by Taimur Noon and Bertie Alexander, two friends who studied at the Royal Agricultural University in England together and have now set up business at Taimur’s ancestral home in Pakistan.
Taimur is a skilled horseman and polo player as well as passionate horse breeder who has immersed himself in farming and social welfare in Pakistan.
Bertie Alexander is from England but spends much of his time in Pakistan. He has spent the last two years exploring Pakistan and integrating himself into the life and culture of the country. Bertie is also master and huntsman of the Peshawar Vale hunt and a keen horseman with a passion for hunting.
ACCOMMODATION
NURPUR NOON ESTATE
Nurpur House, owned and loved by the Noon family for the past few hundred years, is built in a traditional Mughal style with beautiful interiors that have a strong equestrian and colonial theme.
The house is made up of 20 ensuite, air conditioned rooms, a large formal dining room and elegant sitting room with two open fireplaces.
The house has an expansive veranda that wraps around an inner courtyard giving you views of the beautiful garden in front where a herd of miniature ponies that live free on the grounds will often be seen grazing.
SAFARI CAMP
Two nights are spent in large, stand up safari tents with real beds, bedside furniture, lamps and two shared short drop loos. There are no showers while safari though there is fresh water for washing your face and brushing your teeth.
Meals will be catered for by the Estate kitchen or nationally renown chefs.
You’ll enjoy evenings around the bonfire, surrounded by the light of a hundred lanterns. Camp has a bar and meals are served at a dining table or around the campfire.
TOP LAHORE HOTEL
Lahore is a busy and bustling city with a population of over 11 million. There are a small handful of superb international hotels and private members clubs.
Each guest will have their own hotel room to enjoy during the final part of your tour of Pakistan.
