Equus Silvania is now part of Travel Carpathia, an ecotourism initiative focused on connecting visitors with Romania’s natural and cultural heritage through responsible travel. Located in the village of Șinca Nouă at the foot of the Transylvanian Carpathians, Equus Silvania offers a mix of horse riding, nature exploration, and comfortable accommodation in a peaceful rural setting.
Founded in 2004 by Barbara and Christoph Promberger—who lead major conservation efforts in Romania through Foundation Conservation Carpathia—the centre supports the protection of the Southern Carpathians and the creation of a new national park. Since moving to Romania in 1993, they have been deeply involved in large carnivore and forest conservation, playing a key role in advancing nature protection in the region.
While horse riding is central, guests can also enjoy hiking in virgin forests, wildlife watching from a bear hide, and locally sourced food and wine. Equus Silvania welcomes both riders and non-riders looking to experience the region’s nature and traditions.
As part of Travel Carpathia, we encourage guests to explore beyond Equus Silvania. Visit the Travel Carpathia website to discover a range of nature-based experiences across the region, including newly launched 7-day guided packages focused on wildlife, trekking, and culture.
Catherine Cords
Manager and Guide
Catherine originates from Germany and studied Biology before becoming a part of the Equus team.
She has always been a passionate horse rider and worked as a guide in Spain before. The two things that draw her to Equus are working with the amazing horses in this still very open and free landscape as well as exploring the nature with it´s wild touch just around the farm and in the Carpathian Mountains. She would love to take you on a little journey into the Transylvanian landscape in the best way possible – on horseback!
Helene Flatau
Guide
Helene is from Germany and has a passion for horses since her childhood. After graduating from school, she took a year off and has been part of the Equus Silvania team since January 2024.
She is fascinated by the beautiful nature of Transylvania and the feeling of freedom you have in this almost untouched landscape. She would love to accompany you on adventures on horseback.
Samuelle Ulrich
Assistant manager, horse and nature guide
Samuelle (Sam) originates from France and has worked with the Equus Silvania team as Ecotourism intern and riding guide since the summer season 2019. Sam is passionate about biodiversity and horses, and is keen to show you the amazing secrets and curiosities of the wild Transylvanian landscapes.
Anne Schoenewald
Guide
Anne comes from Germany and has been part of the Equus Silvania team since February 2024.
Ever since she took part in our Transylvania Trail as a guest herself a few years ago, she has dreamed of getting to know the country, the horses and life as a horse guide in depth. She has now fulfilled this dream by taking a break from her work as an engineer at a shipyard in northern Germany.
She is looking forward to guiding our guests on horseback through the picturesque hills of Transylvania.
Marius Ursaciuc
Culture and Nature Guide
Marius has a passion for culture and wildlife and is an incredible source of information on your trips to the villages in the Transylvanian Hills. Very knowledgeable especially about birds, he always loves to share his stories and will make your excursions anything but boring.
Anne Querfurth
Guide
Anne is from Germany, where she studied Medical Engineering. After riding her first trail in 2017, Anne knew she wanted to work as a guide one day. Now that she completed her studies, she is finally able to fulfil this dream and share her passion for horses with others. She is looking forward to giving you equally unforgettable experiences with our horses in the breathtaking nature of Transylvania.
Our local team
Our local team includes Mimi and Georgie, our talented chefs who create culinary delights for everyone. Veta, Lily, and Alina ensure the guest house is spotless and well-kept. Ionel and Tuca take care of our horses, animals, gardens, and yard, while Gita and Gheorghe maintain cleanliness for the horses’ welfare. Ionel, our yard manager, is the perfect handyman for anything that comes up on the farm. Marius, our Swiss army knife, keeps everything well-stocked, well-maintained, and ensures the trail rides run smoothly. After the booking team, Alex or his team will be your first contact, greeting you with a smile at the airport and handling your transfers.
Conservation
Contribution
As a member of the Travel Carpathia network, Equus Silvania actively supports the work of Foundation Conservation Carpathia, which is working to create a world-class wilderness reserve in the Southern Carpathians. Șinca Nouă lies on the eastern edge of this future national park, making it a meaningful location for both nature-based tourism and conservation. To help protect these valuable forests and grasslands, we kindly invite our guests to contribute with a donation that directly supports ongoing conservation efforts in the region.
Animal
Welfare
We place great importance on the wellbeing of our animals and are committed to giving them a high quality of life. To ensure this, we provide:
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Plenty of space for free movement
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Regular social contact with other animals
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Clean, comfortable shelters for the night
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Access to natural food
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Prompt veterinary care when needed
Our horses live in two groups in open stables with sand paddocks, giving them the freedom to move and interact naturally. They also spend regular time in large pastures, where they can graze and roam freely.
Animal
Keeping
Not only is Equus Silvania home to numerous horses, but also to a variety of other animals such as cats, dogs, chicken, ducks, geese, turkeys, rabbits, pigs, and a donkey. Even though we do keep some of these animals for food production, it is our strong concern to allow all our animals a proper life. Conditions for that are:
- sufficient space to roam
- social contacts with members of the same species
- cosy and clean shelters for the night
- sufficient supply with natural food
- medical treatment
Our horses live in two groups in open stables with sand paddocks, that allow them to move freely and complies with their need for social interactions with members of the same species. In addition, they are regularly turned out on large pastures
Our Environmental Policy
Equus Silvania has the premise to act in a responsible way in all its activities with regards to environmental impact. We are always open to new ideas of how we can maintain the integrity of the natural environment around us.
Education and Information
Our visitors get a first-hand experience and extensive information about flora, fauna, and sustainable land-use systems. We are attempting to make your holiday not just a relaxing and enjoyable experience, but also an interesting one.
Energy and construction
During the construction of all our facilities, we endeavoured to use environmentally friendly materials. Wood, free of non-natural wood preservers, has been our main construction material as it is a renewable resource. We heat exclusively with renewable resources and have our guesthouse insulated with a thick layer of rock wool. We recently installed an electric heat pump that is power mainly using solar power. As a tourism enterprise, we are not able to fully avoid the consumption of fossil energy, however we still choose sustainable alternatives whenever this is feasible from an ecological and an economic point of view. Detergents used in our guesthouse for example are 100% biodegradable.
Food
Here at Equus we use mainly locally produced organic food in our kitchen. People in Sinca Noua generally do not use pesticides or artificial fertilisers, and the livestock is still kept the old way: outside on the pastures. Our own garden delivers fresh onions, salad, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers, berries, peas, beans, and many more vegetables and fruits. Other food such as milk, eggs, honey, potatoes, lamb, and pork is bought from the farmers in the neighbourhood. We use certified organic veal from Grey Cattle raised at the Cobor Biodiversity Farm, where traditional grazing practices are maintained. All cold cuts are from our own production. We are particularly proud of our home-made hams, sausages, and bacon.
Route selection
When we select the routes for our excursions, we take great care about conservation concerns. We avoid sensitive areas such as wildlife day resting areas or seasonally important areas such as those created by red deer rut. We also take care to not cause soil erosion and stay outside of wetlands, where the hooves of the horses may cause damage. In summer, we of course respect the farmers’ needs and stay on the cart tracks when we ride through hay meadows.
Guest
Feedback
We offer our guests keen and well-trained horses to experience unforgettable journeys with, while the fantastic surrounding landscape, abundant with unique flora and fauna, makes Equus Silvania the ideal base to explore from – not only on horseback
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