Hungarians trace at least some of their roots in the nomads of the Eastern Steppes and have always been revered as horsemen, so we jumped at the chance to take in an equestrian show when in Budapest.
A bit of research shows that the Lázár Equestrian Park, 35 kilometres from Budapest in the valley of Domonyvölgy, is an overwhelmingly local facility, popular for weddings and family outings. While I suppose you could make your own arrangements, TripAdvisor reviews suggest that Viking passengers predominate amongst the foreigners who manage to get here, making this another exclusive win for the cruise line.
The 20-year-old facility, set in rolling parkland and luxuriously appointed, is a passion project of the Lázár brothers, affluent Hungarian businessmen who have a passion for international carriage racing, and hold a dazzling array of trophies in the sport.
On arrival, we gathered on a broad patio overlooking verdant lawns, noble trees and a sanded performance arena. Locals served snacks and shot glasses of pálinka, Hungary’s traditional eau de vie. This was closer to the Everclear with which we almost killed ourselves in high school than the sophisticated distilling of the monks at Göttweig, but it certainly added local flavour. Jolly locals were celebrating family occasions in the adjoining restaurant.
We, however, headed across the lawns to rows of covered benches adjoining the arena. Our crew, and a group from another Viking ship, were the only people here, about 60 people in all making this an intimate performance. The show featured plenty of derring do, most notably a daredevil who stood on the backs of his team of four as he drove them around the arena and a Mongolian lad who showed off his prowess shooting from horseback at full gallop. The announcer made a specific point of saying they’d invited him to join the company because nomadic Mongolians closely resembled the people from whom modern Hungarians are descended. We saw a bit of traditional carriage racing, and solo horsemen doing impressive things with whips, plus more sedate modes of transport like a plodding oxcart drawn by nobly-horned beasts.
After the show, visitors had a chance to stroke the horses and take pictures with the performers before walking to the side of the arena where we climbed into farm wagons for a horse-drawn ride through the local countryside. This ended up at a museum where the Lázárs tell the story of the history of carriage racing before moving into a room that tells the story of the brothers themselves. You exit through a lucite-walled tunnel, on all sides of which are trophies won by the brothers. You may have never heard of the Lázárs or carriage racing, but by the time you leave you’ll be impressed with their accomplishments.
The final stop is a petting zoo, notable for a kennel full of Hungarian Puli dogs and curly-haired Mangalitsa pigs. The Hungarian breed looks like a bizarre cross between pigs and sheep, and has been trending recently in the UK … even getting a mention on The Archers. It was great fun to see one for real.
The excursion wasn’t perfect. The show was remarkably brief and the performers perfunctory; I never saw a smile. It felt like they’d done the routine so many times it was tedium to them, and they were going through the paces to get through work and home to their families as soon as possible. The wagon ride was also fleetingly brief; I would have liked to at least double the time.
But, overall, it felt like something exciting and different from what most people would do in Budapest, and it was fun. For those reasons, it became one of my top Viking excursions … even if the grumpy performers weren’t happy to see us.
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