One of the main attractions in Jerez, apart from the Sherry Bodegas, is the Andalusian horses.  You can visit the Equestrian centre, the Royal school of Equestrian Art, where you can see the horses being trained and walk around the extensive grounds.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays there is s show (more frequently in summer I think, best to book with their website if you want to make sure of catching one). 

I went on a Wednesday, because I wasn’t so bothered about the show; I was afraid it might be like a circus with animals (or in this case just horses) performing tricks for people to ooh and ahh at.  I planned to just wander around and look at the horses, take a few pictures and that would be that done.  However on the day I went they had a special show for the school students and sold the remaining tickets to the few passing visitors, so I impulse-purchased a ticket and went to see the espectaculo. 

Admission to everything costs €21 (if you don’t want to see the show and just want to look around it is much cheaper). 

This buys you a walk around the grounds where you can watch the horses being trained.

The school grounds

Practicing in the school grounds

Also included is a museum, where you can see carriages, harnesses and such and visit the horses in their stables.

Getting close and personal with the horses in the stables

The highlight is to see the show where the horses ‘dance’.  This is basically dressage moves to Spanish flamenco music, with the riders dressed in copies of 18th century costumes.  Their literature calls this the ‘horse ballet’. 

‘the horse ballet’

The show was actually excellent, even if you’re not a horsey person.  This just proves that I should do my research more before I dismiss things.

The horse and carriage section.

Sarah’s useless fact of the day: Carriages come from a Hungarian town called Kocs. This was the origin of the Spanish word coche (meaning car) and from that we get the English word coach