Hermanns’ Royal Lipizzan Stallions

This was a nice change of pace.
Attended an event here on a Sunday that was to benefit the Myakka Historical Society. It was a little more expensive than a training day viewing, but it was worth the cause. By the way, the venue was completely filled to standing room only.
The audience was treated to some pre show activities as well as being able to meet the newest foal to the family, Jagger.
The overall show did not disappoint although I think some of the training may have been a little lacking. This is not to say training was improper in any way whatsoever. These beautiful animals are treated extremely well and anyone can see in their temperament these horses have a wonderful existence here in Myakka City.
This is a great place to bring the children for a change of pace from the beaches or the big amusement parks.

Looking for something different to do while in the area or of you are a local and want to avoid the beaches.
Truly amazing animals.
During the winter months you can stop and see a training show — very inexpensive $ 5
Remember it is training so be prepared to see some of the younger stallions acting up every once in a while.
The family is so friendly, personable and happy to talk about their history. The grounds are nice — plan on being outside and getting a little dusty– you park on the field and walk over.
Have a great hour or so away and support a tradition of these stallions

This is a great way to spend an afternoon, especially if you love horses. It is in an out of the way location but that is part of the charm really.
For a small donation ($ 5 is the suggested donation) you can go out on a Thursday or Friday in the afternoon or on Saturdays in the morning and view one of their training sessions. You can also view and feed carrots to the horses in their stables before the show. I recommend you get there early as the bleacher seats in the shade fill up quickly and there is a surprisingly large attendance for these shows.
They also have a small concession stand with hot dogs, fresh lemonade and snow cones. You can purchase t-​shirts if you wish to remember your visit by.
Watching the riders work with the horses to perform their signature moves including the amazing jumps they do is simply amazing. We really enjoyed our visit and I recommend this for children of all ages.

I remember seeing this show when I was a kid in Seattle.
As soon as I realized we were within driving distance of the training center, I had to go.
What a great way to spend a few hours. And all for $ 5 a person.
If you arrive early you can go in the stables to see/​visit with the horses. They also have a small concession stand.
It was real interesting to see a bit of how these beautiful horses are trained.
Highly recommend it.

Good luck getting these folks to answer the phone, let alone call back. I left them FOUR messages on our trip last week for a lesson and they did not have the courtesy to call back. Not once. So we passed on the Thursday training day figuring that would be just as successful.

The Original Lipizzan Stallions of Austria are AWESOME and they are in Myakka City. I used to live in Myakka for a number of years and, a few years in, discovered that these amazing horses lived here too. I knew had to pay a visit to their 200 acre spread to see them in all their glory. And glorious they were!
First off, the history of these horses dates back to 16^th century Austria (wow)! Not only that, the Hermanns’ (father and son, both Colonels) were helped by THE General George Patton to save them during World War II when the Russians were advancing. A Disney movie was even made about their furtive escape out of Austria too (Miracle of the White Stallions). The Hermanns’ (two generations in now) maintain the homestead in Myakka City with the express purpose of preserving the Lipizzaner breed. The horses themselves basically perform a sort of ‘horse ballet’. Their moves were actually created for battle and they really are a sight to see in action when they are fully trained. As always with me, things get an extra Unilocal!star for having a cool history.
Doings at the ranch may have changed somewhat since I’ve last visited, but I recall parking in a large pasture and finding a place on the bleachers facing the performance area. Don’t wear your best shoes. You will mostly see some of the younger horses practice their moves. Since they later perform in front of bigger crowds, the environment prepares them for that later on when they start touring, etc. This truly is a family endeavor and the direct lineage of Hermmanns’ (and those related) will be the ones presenting, riding and teaching the history of these fine animals. They showed the horses in different stages from babies to adults. One interesting thing I found out was that these horses are not even white when they are born, they are dark, dark, dark! As they get older they get lighter and lighter, until they are white from mane to tail.
There is no entrance fee per se, but there is a suggested minimum donation of $ 5…and donate you SHOULD. They do offer things like t-​shirts and coffee mugs for purchase to raise additional monies. I can’t recall if they had concessions though. I did very recently check out their website (just to make sure they still existed in MC before I wrote the review) and it looks like the family has ventured other moneymaking endeavors trying to keep these magnificent beasts going for all time. In addition to touring, they offer things like weddings at the ranch, clinics that allow you to stay and interact with the horses there for a week, lessons, hiring themselves out for corporate events, etc.
Training sessions are held during the winter and you can also bring lawn chairs if you can’t make it up into the stands. I would imagine kids would find the horses enjoyable as well. Oh, and be prepared for a TREK out into straight-​up country.
You can check what these babies are about before you decide to go in the link below (although there’s nothing like seeing the Lippizzans live and in person):