Spanish Riding School

Why the Spanish Riding School in Vienna is special
For 430 years, the Spanish Riding School's famous white Lipizzaner stallions and their skilled riders have performed in graceful precision.

Spanish Riding School tips and insights
Training period
It normally takes 6 or more years of training before a stallion is ready to perform in a public show. Ditto for the riders.

The public show
It takes place indoors (see photo) and lasts 80 to 100 minutes. The riders and their mounts go through a series of set drills paced by classical music.

The biggest audience pleasers are drills where the horse powerfully yet elegantly leaps through the air. On another popular drill, the horse rears high with his rear knees close to the ground.

Seats
The lower-tier boxes (see photo) cost twice as much as the balcony standing-room areas above them, but are well worth the extra money. They provide better vantages. And unlike from the balcony, the horses and riders won't appear foreshortened to the eye.

Training sessions
An alternative to the formal public show is seeing the horses train in the morning. Admission is less expensive, but there's no guarantee you'll see all the elaborate drills.

Name
The school picked up its "Spanish" name because the Lipizzaner (a mixed breed) is descended mainly from a Spanish breed.

Location in Austria