A Tour of Grand Prix Village
Some girls dream about Cinderella’s castle, but I dreamed of ponies and a beautiful barn to keep them in. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was dreaming of Grand Prix Village in Wellington, Florida.
This large loop right next to the horse show grounds holds the prettiest hunter/jumper barns I’ve ever seen. Imagine a neighborhood in the burbs, but instead of houses they’re horse farms. Not wide and expansive like in Kentucky, but condensed and beautiful.
Each farm is very unique in style and size, but they have some things in common. All are very private. Tall hedges, fences, secure gates. Also, all have at least one ring of beautiful jumps. Jumps that are nicer than most of the ones where I horse show!
I wish I could take a tour of all these amazing places, but I was lucky enough to be able to stay a the barn where my friend works at Grand Prix village so I got the insider golf cart rides to the show grounds and could walk around and leisurely take pictures.
Probably the coolest thing about Grand Prix village is the bridle path. Around the entire property there is a perfectly manicured trail with amazing footing that winds through the farms and to the horse show. Every day you’ll see grooms walking horses to go show,people riding back from a class or even trainers/riders taking their horses out for a nice hack.
I really want to take a ride down that bridle path one day 🙂 So what about y’all, farm in the country or barn in Grand Prix village?
31 thoughts on “A Tour of Grand Prix Village”
Ugh me want!!
Same here. Merrylegs South is my favorite.
I love it back home! My old barn is now situated in the new facility with the huge covered ring thats off of Pierson, so they have access to all the nice trails and walkways.
Oh cool! I probably drove past it.
SO beautiful. I think I would like to be a fancy barn for some time, but you can’t beat a quiet farm in the country. 🙂
Yeah I guess we all need one of each!
Farm in the country, all the way. Those are lovely and I’d kill to take a tour of them, but I couldn’t live there! Too close together, and I’d always be worried that I stepped out the front door in something less than perfectly fashionable and clean. (And even if I did, it would be filthy five minutes later. I can’t even keep white breeches clean when I put them on 2 minute before I get on the horse.)
That’s a valid concern. They definitely aren’t riding around in jeans and plastic schooling helmets, ha.
I guess it would depend upon what kind of turn out situation the horses have. I am totally against barns where horse are kept in most of the day. If my horses were able to have the room to get turned out daily for several hours then I would go with Grand Prix village because those barns look amazing and it would be really cool to within walking distance to a horse show!
Most show horses don’t get a ton of turn out in general, but it really depends on the place. Where I stayed, the horses got turned out in individual sodded paddocks for probably 5ish hours a day.
I’m with Sarah. It looks fab, but is it truly horse-friendly with plenty of space for turnout?
Think it depends on your definition of plenty of turnout! Some places are better than others.
I am moving there. I am moving there now.
Gtg pack bags, c ya
Meet you there! 🙂
Oh it’s heaven!!! SO pretty!!! Lets all move there… and become grooms lol
If I wasn’t married I think I would, lol.
Amen – if I didn’t have a daughter/husband id so be down!
While I completely appreciate the beauty of the place I don’t think I could handle actually living there. I’m a jeans and t-shirt kinda girl and while I can play “dress up” for shows, etc, I’m just not interested in playing dress up every day. Plus after reading this: http://www.horsenation.com/2013/03/29/news-trouble-in-paradise/ from horse nation, uhmm no thanks! lol. I would definitely like just a nice, quiet barn where I can enjoy my horses without having to worry so much about “keeping up with the Joneses” at least no more than I already do. Honestly, it sounds like it could be exhausting there.
The fighting over Wellington is nuts! There’s also a really good, in-depth article about it on the Boston magazine website.
Drooling! I want to live there so badly.
Right? 🙂
How beautiful! As long as we’re dreaming, I’m gonna dream big. Make mine a lovely country farm AND a fancy Grnd Prix Village barn! I’ll winter over at the GPV!
I think that is an excellent plan! Most of these farms are only occupied during the winter anyway 🙂
GORGEOUS!!!!!!!!
JEALOUS.COM!!!
What an amazing set up! Love the horses have right of way sign, that should be the law!!
I’m going to have to go with barn in Grand Prix Village….!
I know in Aiken there’s some horse communities similar to this. Not as nice, but more affordable ha. I’d love to live in a horse community one day 🙂
Have to say, I love the name ‘Merrylegs South”. Admittedly, though, i’d choose kentucky farms over these any day. I prefer a vast expanse of space and ‘real’ hacking…plus I think i’d get claustrophobic with all those people around. Of course, if someone offered me to board there for a month or two, I wouldn’t say no…
It’s pretty…for a short visit…but, I’ll keep my ranch in the middle of nowhere ;~) Thanks for stoppin’ by!!! But, my husband and I really want to visit Austin someday…love the music!
As much as I’d love to be able for tons of people to see my gorgeous horse walking around and being able to show him off, etc, etc, etc, I’ll take a farm in the country any day…There’s something about being alone with your horse and going for a nice, long, calm trail ride. 🙂 This barn is gorgeous though. Florida is really my second home, tons of family there, we are there at least twice a year maybe more depending on what kind of year we have, and I really wanna go visit this barn now!!!
Kalin from Sittinginthesaddle.blogspot.com
Grand Prix Village is the life for ME! Who wants to go in on a barn with me?! 🙂 I promise I’ll only have a few of my own horses. It’s the tack that might be the problem- I’m completely obsessed! I wonder how many tack rooms these come with….hmmm…
Well I’m ready to move in with you! And I’m obsessed with tack to, we’ll just have two huge tack rooms