EQUESTRIAN TRADITION

Both Portugal and Escola de Equitação de Alcainça have a long equestrian tradition starting with the Lusitano horse, which is itself a Portuguese national treasure.

The Lusitano is a Portuguese horse breed, closely related to the Spanish Andalusian horse. Both are sometimes called Iberian horses, as the breeds developed on the Iberian peninsula.

Originally bred for war, dressage and bull-fighting, Lusitanos are of Baroque type, with convex facial profiles, intelligent and generous natures, with agile and elevated movement. Nowadays, they are highly appreciated as sport and leisure horses in nearly all equestrian disciplines.

At Escola de Equitação de Alcainça, all our school horses are «Puro Sangue Lusitano» or «Cruzado Lusitano». And, in the tradition started by the school's founder Antonio Assunção Duarte, we follow the principles of the classical equitation.

Firmly believing that a good school horse is the best teacher, we school our horses with thought, compassion and patience according to the classical principles over many years, to develop great schoolmasters for our students, offering tuition available from novice through to high school dressage.

By riding highly trained schoolmasters, our aim is to provide every rider with inspiration and learning to bring back home.