Carriage Tours Of Savannah

Three companies in Savannah specialize in providing carriage rides through the Historic District. Other tour companies also offer carriage rides as part of their services.

You can either take a public tour or hire a private carriage. Most offer some sort of historical narrative to go along with the ride, and last about 40-60 minutes. Most public tours do not require a reservation; you can pay at the company’s carriage stands (see below for locations).

Carriage Tours Of Savannah

Book online or call 912-236-6756. Carriage stand at Jefferson and West St Julian Streets, City Market. Website

Public History Tour, 45-50mins. Morning and early afternoon narrated carriage tours. Availability varies by season. Adults $25, children (5-11) $13, young children (0-4, riding in adult’s lap) free. More details

Public Ghost Tour, 45-50mins. Evening carriage tour with ghost stories. Availability varies by season. Adults $25, children (5-11) $13, young children (0-4, riding in adult’s lap) free. More details

Private Tour, 40mins or 1hr. Private ghost, history or sightseeing tours available for up to 6 adults. 40-minute tour: $135 for first two people, $20 per additional adult, $10 per additional child. 1-hour tour: $160 for first two people, additional adults $20, children $10. Pickup available for additional fee ($15-$50 depending on location, if schedule allows), call for information. More details Private group tours also available, call for pricing and other information. More details

Historic Savannah Carriage Tours

Book online or call 912-443-9333. Carriage stand in front of the Hyatt Regency Hotel off Bay Street. Website

History Tour, 45-50mins. Narrated history tour. Available morning through evening daily. Adults $25, children (5-11) $12, young children (0-4, in adult’s lap) free. More details

Private Tour, 45-50mins. Customized pick-up and drop-off available. $135 for first two people, $15 per additional adult, $12 per additional child (5-11). More details

Plantation Carriage Company

Book online or call 912-659-9005. Carriage stand at Barnard and West Congress Streets, Ellis Square. Website

Historic Tour, 1hr. Narrated history tour of downtown Savannah. Tours available daily. Adults $25, children (6-11) $12, young children (0-5) free. More details

Specialty Private Tour, 1hr. Private narrated history tour of downtown Savannah in a 4-person vis-a-vis carriage. Two passengers $135, up to two additional passengers $15 per person. More details

Romantic Private Tour, 30mins-2hrs. Evening carriage ride (no narration) through downtown Savannah. 30 minutes $50, 50 minutes $90, 1 hour 30 minutes $135, 2 hours $185. Full evening rentals also available, inquire directly for details. More details

Other Carriage Tours

Private Carriage Tour, 1hr. Savannah Dan Walking Tours Private carriage tour for 2 adults, $250. Reservations required. Call 912-398-3777.

Horse Welfare

The American public is beginning to question the ethics and safety of urban carriage tours, with several cities banning horse-drawn carriage rides altogether.

Supporters of a wider ban on carriage tours, such as the Humane Society of the United States, argue that the traffic and noise of city streets are stressful to horses and that the heavy work and air pollution cause unacceptable levels of injury, ill-health and discomfort.

Others, including the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, think that the carriage horse industry can be acceptable if strict regulations on the care and working condition of horses are enforced: adequate veterinary care, stabling and feed; access to water while working; maximum loads and working hours; a full stoppage of carriage rides if the weather is too hot or too cold for the horses to work comfortably.

Savannah’s carriage tour industry meets some, but not all, of these standards. Its city ordinance on Horse-Drawn Carriages For Hire obliges carriage tour operators to meet minimum standards of veterinary care, harness upkeep and off- and on-duty treatment of the horses. It also restricts the number of people a horse can pull.

The city currently also imposes some restrictions on the temperature in which horses may work, and does not allow horses to work in temperatures exceeding 98°F (36.7°C). More information here

This is one of the highest maximum allowable temperatures employed in the United States, with other cities such as New York limiting carriage rides to temperatures below 90°F.

What this means in practice is that Savannah’s carriage horses are not permitted to work in conditions that will be excessively dangerous to their health (and it would not be to the advantage of their owners to allow this – horses are a valuable asset) but they are obliged to work in conditions that may be very unpleasant for them.

If you can, before reserving a carriage tour take a look at the horses at the carriage stands if you pass them and at the horses that go by in the street, to see whether they seem calm, well-kept and willing to work.

If you don’t feel good about what you see, strongly consider taking another kind of tour instead. Welfare problems are particularly likely to arise in the summer, when Savannah can get very hot and humid.

Savannah has numerous motorized trolley and bus tours, some with air conditioning, that can provide a comfortable ride. You could also take a bike or segway tour, or a walking tour at a cooler time of the day.

– See details of alternative riding or walking tours.

More Savannah Tours

– Architecture tours
– Black history tours
– Boat tours
– Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil tours
– Civil War tours
– Food tours
– Ghost tours
– Bonaventure Cemetery tours
– Haunted pub crawls
– Helicopter tours
– Trolley, bike and Segway tours
– Walking tours

See also:
– Savannah museums
– Historic house museums
– State parks and wildlife refuges near Savannah
– Kayak tours near Savannah
– Savannah events