Sunshine tour travelling horses to spain

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horseyyy321

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Just wondering if anyone has travelled to sunshine tour Spain as I’m planning to for the next winter. Was just wondering what the overall average price was with stabling travelling classes and any extras? Thank you!!
 
horseyyy321 said:
Just wondering if anyone has travelled to sunshine tour Spain as I’m planning to for the next winter. Was just wondering what the overall average price was with stabling travelling classes and any extras? Thank you!!
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It will cost you £1500 a week. Add in around £500 for the human and it’s expensive. You will also need to factor in £3K for travel and customs. It’s good to dream big though. Maybe buy your horse first….
Also sunshine tour doesn’t have 90cm tracks…. It pretty much runs at 1.10+ unless you have age classes running.
 
horseyyy321 said:
Just wondering if anyone has travelled to sunshine tour Spain as I’m planning to for the next winter. Was just wondering what the overall average price was with stabling travelling classes and any extras? Thank you!!
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I was planning to send one this year for the last 4 weeks of the Sunshine Tour in Vejer. The estimated cost was £10,000 on a shared load with two professional drivers and a groom. Maybe chepaer if you drive yourself but do not forget your lorry needs to be approved - maybe taken to Belgium/Ireland for this. You will need three overnight stabling each way, plus all the health/export import papers etc. Qute complicaed since Brexit and absolutley essential to employ a shipper to get the paperwork correct.

You can look at the results every day online - go to www.worldofshowjumping.com and click on the relevant show. That will give you an idea of the classes on offer.
 
Can I ask some numpty questions please? (this is what my old boss used to call them) What is the sunshine tour, exactly? Is the five week series of competitions in Spain totally different to the thing that runs at Hickstead? I had always assumed it was a very high level competition, but it looks like there are smaller classes too. What is the purpose of it (other than, if SJ is your thing then a month in the sun at a fancy venue sounds glorious)?

Answers in small words on the back of a postcard please 😆
 
Widgeon said:
Can I ask some numpty questions please? (this is what my old boss used to call them) What is the sunshine tour, exactly? Is the five week series of competitions in Spain totally different to the thing that runs at Hickstead? I had always assumed it was a very high level competition, but it looks like there are smaller classes too. What is the purpose of it (other than, if SJ is your thing then a month in the sun at a fancy venue sounds glorious)?

Answers in small words on the back of a postcard please 😆
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Completely different to Hickstead!

Yes you tend to take horses over, base yourself there for a period of time and they have a number of shows at a variety of levels.

Another option is Villamoura in Portugal which do similar on a smaller scale.
 
Thanks! I think I'm starting to understand. It sounds like great fun if you have the money and the horse(s) for it.

It looks like the Hickstead "thing" (www.sunshinetour.co.uk) is pitched at giving amateur riders the chance to ride at Hickstead, which (as you say) is entirely different to the big winter Spanish / Portuguese competitions. I wonder why Hickstead call theirs a "sunshine tour"? Given recent British weather, it's hardly realistic....
 
The Hickstead Sunchine Tour is an unaffiliated national series. The Sunshine Tour in Vejer in Spain is an International series (FEI) with a big variety of classes foreverything from 5, 6 & 7 year olds, 1.10 to 1.60m. The Invitational Grand Prix the final week is an Olympic qualfiying class and many countries use it as a viewing trial for their top teams.
 
Widgeon said:
It looks like the Hickstead "thing" (www.sunshinetour.co.uk) is pitched at giving amateur riders the chance to ride at Hickstead, which (as you say) is entirely different to the big winter Spanish / Portuguese competitions.
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This is exactly what it is - and the beaming smiles on the faces of the competitors slightly makes up for the lack of beams of sunshine! 😂

Widgeon said:
I wonder why Hickstead call theirs a "sunshine tour"? Given recent British weather, it's hardly realistic....
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Back in the good ol' days when it began, it was sunnier... ☀️

It's not actually organised by Hickstead though, it's an independent organiser who hires the ground/facilities at Hickstead.

I really do recommend going, for anyone that doesn't really 'compete' but would like the opportunity to be a part of a big show.
 
We were in holiday a few years back in the Algarve and stumbled across the showjumping tour. If you had enough money, you wouldn’t necessarily need to be jumping anything that big to go there. I can remember we were chatting to a chap whose son was competing and the guy was some sort of kitchen magnet - not in what you put on a fridge but as in posh kitchen. His son did ride really well but no idea if he went on to do it professionally.
 
The Vilamoura Tour in the Algarve is sadly no longer running. The centre has been purchased and is in the process of being redeveloped - wiat and see!
 
ecb89 said:
I was in a tent at hickstead last year. It was 2c, definitely not Spain 😂
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I love Hickstead. I think because even though I’m a show rider as my younger years were showjumping so Hickstead was the place. We’ve been towed out of there in July and also had it so hot the dust stuck to the sweat.
 
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