Biggest & Best Renaissance Festivals In The USA! Huzzah!!

If you’re wondering where the best renaissance festivals are held in the United States, look no further because this article will list all of the best and biggest renaissance celebrations in the country! Huzzah!!

Do you want to escape the mundane? Then step back in time to an era where kings and queens ruled the lands, where knights fought to the death, and court jesters entertained royalty and peasants alike. A place you can enjoy a cornucopia of food and free-flowing mead.

There are literally dozens if not hundreds of renaissance faires across the country where you can do just this! Some of these festivals are so grand they are totally worth planning a trip around!

Has thy never attended a renaissance faire before? Here’s what you can expect; streets lined with vendors selling extraordinarily unique items including period costumes, jewelry, art, and of course weaponry. Costumed characters roaming around fictional villages (usually set somewhere between the 14th and 16th centuries) addressing guests as my lady, my lord, duke or dutchess. And a host of performances such as Shakespearian plays, fire breathing, juggling, acrobatic arts, and more.

Almost every renaissance festival features full-armoured jousting just as it was done over 400 years ago by real knights in shining armor.

The majority of these renaissance celebrations focus on the period during Queen Elizabeth The First’s reign, although some go back in time to Medieval Times or the era of Vikings. Some are even location specific, for example set in olden day Scotland, France, or Italy.

For the most part it’s a giant costume party! Die-hard renaissance fans wait all year long to whip out their fantasy garb so they can be admired by fellow fantasy hounds.

For those who love history and fantasy, there’s no better event to attend than a renaissance faire. So grab your medieval clothing, lances, and swords, here are some of the best and largest renaissance festivals in the U.S.!

Best Renaissance Festivals In The USA

Texas Renaissance Festival

The Texas Renaissance Festival is the mother of all renaissance festivals! Not only is it the best renaissance festival in the country, but it’s also the biggest renaissance festival in the USA! How big? Annual attendance is over a whopping 500,000 guests!! That’s half a million people every year!!!

This mammoth-sized renaissance festival is held in Todd Mission on weekends throughout October and November. The festival which began in 1974 is spread out across 55 acres, and is jam-packed with performances and attractions, offering so much more than other renaissance fairs.

There are approximately 500 costumed actors who perform on 25 stages and an astounding 350 vendors selling unique, hand-crafted merchandise including everything from period clothing to swords, pottery, jewelry, and more. The festival culminates with the Queen’s Royal Finale in the arena complete with fireworks and all!

Some of the regular performances here include a Birds Of Prey show, the School Of Sword, the Clan Tynker Family Circus, and the grandest of them all — the Hanlon Action Theater who perform an accurate reenactment of a medieval joust featuring authentic weapons, costumed horses, and armored knights. Other unique offerings include elephant rides, escape rooms, and absynthe tasting.

Unlike other renaissance festivals, the Texas Renaissance Festival offers onsite camping. You can tent camp, bring your RV, or rent a cabin. This is no ordinary campground though. At this campground children can enjoy a host of fun activities at the Apprentice Gazebo, while adults have a Saturday night adults-only bonfire where a smorgasboard of food and drinks are available.

In addition, there is a nightclub on the campground called the Knights Club which features different themed parties every weekend. This year (2023) for example, you can attend the Mushroom Rave and celebrate all creatures of the fairy forest, or attend on the night of the Ritual, a night of spine-tingling witchcraft, seductive burlesque performances, and frightening creatures of the dark! Dressing up is encouraged!!

Are you visiting from out of town and don’t want to camp? That’s okay! The wildly popular Margaritaville Lake Resort is just thirty minutes from the festival grounds and offers so much fun for the whole family. So if you’re headed to TRF, make a weekend out of your adventure!

Minnesota Renaissance Festival

The Minnesota Renaissance Festival is one of the biggest renaissance festivals in the United States attracting more than 300,000 attendees annually. It’s also one of the oldest running renaissance festivals in the country!

Now in its 52nd year of celebration, this long-standing Minnesota tradition began in September,1971 on a 22-acre field in Jonathon. More than 25,000 people attended that first ever festival which at the time was called “A Celebration of Nature, Art, and Life!”.

This incredibly fun renaissance fair features sixteen stages of entertainment, full-contact armoured jousting battles, seven themed weekends, 250 vendors providing the ultimate shopping experience, and tons of free family-friendly activities!

There are quite a few attractions at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival that sets it apart from other renaissance festivals in the country. At this fair guests can walk through a 16th century village complete with a stunning royal court and wander through a viking encampment.

Some of the entertainment available for children include sheep herding lessons, camel rides, and oddly enough llama rides too. Best of all? You can ride elephants here!

*For more information on the Minnesota Renaissance Festival — one of the biggest renaissance festivals in the USA, check out their website here.

Kansas City Renaissance Festival

The Kansas City Renaissance Festival is a long-standing fall celebration in Kansas, and one of the biggest and best renaissance festivals in the U.S. This festival began in 1977 and is now in its 46th year! Since then it has grown to becoming one of the largest renaissance festivals in the country attracting an astounding 200,000 attendees!!

Held in Bonner Springs every weekend in September and the first two weekends of October (including Labor Day and Columbus Day), this is one of the best festivals to experience all things renaissance related.

Walk amongst kings, queens, knights, fairies, elves, and everything in between! This renaissance festival is set on a large 16-acre property. Its throughfares are lined by buildings that look like they are straight out of Old World Europe, complete with castles and all!!

The park-like setting of the festival grounds make it a wonderful place to enjoy the changing season and autumn foliage. You can enjoy the wooded parklands while wandering through artisan villages, mermaid coves, a petting zoo, and more.

Kansas City Renaissance Festival has a vast amount of vendors selling unique, handmade merchandise. There are also several fun tours you can take part in such as pub crawls and wine tastings, or you could even pop into Canterbury and enjoy a spot of tea with the queen and other proper company.

*For more information on the Kansas City Renaissance Festival — one of the best renaissance festivals in the United States, check out their website here.

Read: Huzzah! Kansas City Renaissance Festival: What To Expect & Why You Should Attend

Ohio Renaissance Festival

The Ohio Renaissance Festival is the fourth largest festival in the United States. Every year since 1990, folks have been desending upon Harveysburg to rub shoulders with royalty. The festival which is in its 25th year of running now attracts 165,000 people.

Ohio’s renaissance festival is set on 35 acres of land where a permanent 16th century English village has been authentically and historically recreated. The fictional village is called “Willy Nilly on-the-Wash”.

Visitors can step back in time to an era where Queen Elizabeth The First ruled the lands and enjoy over 400 years of fun in a single day! Some of the historical figures you may see roaming the village include Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Francis Drake, Sir John Hawkins and John Dee.

Queen Elizabeth presides over the festivities as dozens of renaissance musicians, dancers, comedians, jugglers, sword-fighters, storytellers and hundreds of costumed performers entertain guests. You can also cheer your favorite knight to victory during a thrilling full-armored tournament joust.

There are several attractions that set Ohio Renaissance Festival apart from other festivals of its kind. You can watch a multitude of unique shows such as dangerous escape stunts, comedic circus stunts, and even see birds of prey take flight during a free-flying presentation.

One of the most thrilling shows here is “Equestrian Chaos”, an action packed stunt riding show that shares the bond of warrior women, warhorses, and their bows leaving their audience on the edge of their seats from start to finish.

For an additional fee guests can enjoy a Royal Feast; a five-course meal including starters, multiple course entrée, and dessert, plus fine wine and frothy ales.

Northern California Renaissance Faire

The Northern California Renaissance Faire is held annually on weekends throughout September in Hollister, California. Casa de Fruta, a fantastic fruit stand on Pacheo Pass Highway hosts the event which attracts 100,000 visitors.

All the festivities take place in a fictional village called “Willingtown” of Old World England. It is set in the mid-1600s at the height of Queen Elizabeth’s reign. The Queen’s band and other musicians fill the streets of Willingtown with magical sounds of the Elizabethan era.

Eight different stages are set up across 20 acres and feature musicians, magicians, jugglers, and fire eaters. Of course there’s plenty of jousting by knights with names like the Swashbuckling Swordsmen too.

The highlight would have to be Cy, The Sword Swallower. Witness him swallow a whole armory of swords of different shapes and sizes ranging from the smallsword to the curved scimitar. No two shows are the same. With wit and audience participation, he will thrill you and leave you wanting more.

Another standout feature at this renaissance festival is their Shakespeare production. Usually one or two plays by the famous bard are presented daily.

Read: 12 Cool Things To Do In Hollister, California

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