Travel agents and local ranches can arrange guided horseback rides. Rancho Palma Real, Carretera Vallarta, Tepic 4766 (tel. 322/221-2120), has an office 5 minutes north of the airport; the ranch is in Las Palmas, approximately 40 minutes northeast of Vallarta. It is by far the nicest horseback riding tour in the area. The horses are in excellent condition, and you enjoy a tour of local farms on your way to the ranch. The price ($62; AE only) includes breakfast and lunch.

Rancho El Charro, Av. Francisco Villa 895 (tel. 322/224-0114; cell 322/292-0122; www.ranchoelcharro.com), and Rancho Ojo de Agua, Cerrada de Cardenal 227, Fraccionamiento Las Aralias (tel./fax 322/224-0607), also offer high-quality tours. Both ranches are about a 10-minute taxi ride north of downtown toward the Sierra Madre foothills. The morning and sunset rides last 3 hours and take you up into the mountains overlooking the ocean and town. The cost is $39. The ranches have their own comfortable base camp for serious riders who want to stay out overnight.

Rancho El Charro offers an exclusive "Fly-away to a Hide-away in San Sebastián" day trip from 9:30am to 5pm. A 15-minute flight takes you to the 17th-century mining town. A bilingual guide meets you at the airstrip, well-tended horses in tow; after a short ride to the Hacienda Jalisco, you'll get a light breakfast and a tour of the hacienda. The ride continues into town along a riverside trail used by the locals since mining days. A thorough tour of the town touches on the historic buildings, church, carpenter shop, and coffee plantation, before heading back to the hacienda for a gourmet lunch. Overnight stays can be arranged. The cost is $278 per person, minimum four people, and advance reservations are required.

Rancho El Charro also organizes a "Horseback on Mexico's Hacienda Trail" tour. The 3- to 7-day journeys by horseback into the mountains are offered November through April. There's a four-person minimum and a 15-person maximum. The cost ($270 per person per day; no credit cards) includes food, horses, camping en route, and stays in centuries-old haciendas. For details, contact Pam Aguirre of Rancho El Charro .