Medieval Times is based upon authentic medieval history and is the true story of a noble family with documentation dating back to the 11th century.
Medieval Times began with two dinner/entertainment complexes located in Mallorca and Benidorm, Spain.
The first North American castle opened in Kissimmee, Florida in December 1983.
We have entertained more than 60 million guests. Each year, we attract 2.8 million guests to our 4,000 shows, and over 1 million raving fans from social media keep coming back time and time again to experience the excitement.
Each castle features a Hall of Arms where guests can admire the coats of arms for many prestigious families and a spectacular array of medieval weaponry.
The Grand Ceremonial Arena seats over 1,000 guests. Meeting spaces and private party areas are available for groups.
Our two-hour live show features authentic jousting and sword fights, games of skill, the flight of the royal falcon, magnificent pure Spanish horses, and a four-course medieval feast.
The relationship between the horses and trainers is a powerful one. This bonding can take weeks or months. But once the bond is made, the rider and the horse become one in the performance — expressed in grace, strength, and speed.
The Master of Horses ensures the health and happiness of the horses —who can serve a Knight for 12 years or more — and tends to the castle’s stables, ensuring all the horses are comfortable, clean, and fed with the finest hay and grains.
The beginning of life for our horses starts at our 230-acre Chapel Creek Ranch in Sanger, Texas with simple steps in training and the best veterinarian care. Around the age of three, the horses move to their new homes – one of our 9 royal castles – where they find clean, comfortable, and secure stables.
The Chivalry in Action movement was born in 2014 when Typhoon Hayian devastated the Philippines. Medieval Times raised $80,000 and sent our Knights to help deliver relief funds and rebuild schools. Chivalry in Action has since grown to be part of the Medieval Times mission —to be involved within our communities, help those in need, and to provide random acts of kindness. It is vital that Medieval Times gives back to our neighbors. Some of our latest efforts include our February food drive — in which our castles collected a total of 72,256 pounds of food to be donated to local food pantries — and our October breast cancer awareness fundraiser — in which our castles raised a total of $62,000 to local breast cancer awareness chapters.
All Knights begin their training as Squires — just as they did in the Middle Ages — learning horse care, sword fighting, and weaponry.
It takes a minimum of six months of training to become a Knight.
The knights fight with genuine titanium and wooden weaponry and wear authentic armor. They require hours of intense daily practice with trainers and horses prior to going before a live audience. During battle scenes, real titanium swords create sparks.
Knightly competitions, contests and duels enacted during a performance are authentically choreographed to match the medieval traditions of knighthood.
Every shield must be repainted after every show.
When jousting, the Knights charge at speeds of approximately 15 to 20 miles per hour and reach an impact velocity speed of about 30 to 40 miles per hour.
Each year, 25 foals are born at Chapel Creek Ranch, where they spend two years training.
Our horses enjoy retirement at the ranch after 15 to 20 years of performing.
125,000 gallons of soup are served each year.
400,000 gallons of Pepsi are consumed each year.
Each arena is filled with about 4,455 cubic feet of sand — about the load of 10 dump trucks.
- Medieval Times is the North American leader in preserving the thousand-year-old pure bloodline of Andalusian horses, a Spanish breed that served royalty in the 11th century. One of the most rare breeds in the world, the Spanish Andalusian Stallion is the pride and joy of Medieval Times.
