You read that title correct. We didn’t go to Hawaii or the US Virgin Islands or any other myriad of lush tropical locations for our 25th anniversary. And no we aren’t crazy. Ok, maybe I take meds for that… but really I’m sure my man would have taken me anywhere around the world for our 25th anniversary but let me tell you why we picked the TexRenFest…
#1 It’s a fantasy land.
I’m pushing 50 and still love to daydream and have a heck of imagination. Ten years ago, I talked Corey into going to the Ren Fest in Todds Mission, Texas. This is just north of Houston next to Magnolia and wasn’t too far from where we were living at the time. He wasn’t too sure about the whole deal and thought it was a bit weird at first. After I was able to get him there and the kids, they all seemed to warm up to the idea. Now the kids also want to get to go each year as well and luckily we did get to take them on a family trip to the RenFest during Pirate weekend.
Of course, this is the biggest Ren Fest in the United states with 75 acres of shows, shops, good food, and more. Sooo now their perspective on what all Ren Fests should be is a bit distorted – oops! I’ve been to a couple in Missouri, Kansas, Illinois and seems like one more but can’t remember that many decades back. So taking them to the Texas Renaissance Festival is like taking the kids to all of Disney World parks for vacation and then taking them to the local rodeo for vacation. Yea, not quite the same which is fine by me because the TexRenFest is my favorite!
#2 Themed weekends.
So in this fantasy land, you can opt to dress up or not. There are 8 themed weekends each year in October and November with themes like Pirate, Barbarian, Celtic Christmas, Fairies, and more. Our favorites are Pirate and Barbarian. These also are usually the most visited weekends as well. The overall attendance for the season is 500,000+ over the 8 weekends. It’s big enough to hold all these people and is crazy to see how many people are dressed up(including this wacky author right here!).
Wondering about the different themes and dates, check out this link and scroll down a little… Themed Weekends.
#3 The food.
If you love fair food, then this is the smorgasbord Olympics of turkey legs, funnel cake, kettle corn, hot dogs, and so much more. Not only are there all of the regular fun food but there are foods harkening to different type of cultures and time periods. I always grab baklava and other Greek dishes at the Greek Agora area. And we also stop at the Queen’s Pantry a couple buildings on the right when you go through the main gate. There are also snack carts or little setups along all the walking paths through the stores and entertainment. This year I tried some roasted almonds and we always stop at the pickle carts. Both usually have some people hocking their foods and announcing inappropriate (albeit hilarious) double entendres loudly when peddling their snacks.
This year though for our anniversary we finally splurged and decided to go to the King’s Feast. It’s a dinner and show type event and was AWESOME! I’ve been wanting to go for 10 years and just never got around to it and am so glad to have gone this year! We laughed so hard throughout the performance and the food was what I would think would be served during medieval times. There were many acts and several courses in the meal(see below). There was a play which was mixed in with musicians popping in to preform a song or two who are usually playing on other stages throughout the faire. Plus, there was even a cameo of The King! If you have the means (cost a pretty penny), it’s totally worth it in my book.
Wondering about all the different foods available (don’t worry there is a coffee shop!), check out this link… TexRenFest Food and Drink.
#4 The shows.
There are so many different shows to see, you need several trips to catch them all. We have been going for 10 years and still have not seen all of them! There are favorites on our list though – the belly dancers – Global Dance Theatre and also Shunyata Fusion Dance. Their stages are actually close in proximity but their dances are much different. Shunyata are a bit more comical and GDT includes fire. Birds of Prey is such a cool show to watch and learn about wildlife. Of course, the jousting is a crowd favorite in the big arena. Also at the big arena they have sword fights (and in a small arena towards the very back of the festival) and every Saturday and Sunday there is an AMAZING fireworks display. The first time we stayed for the fireworks they initially started with medieval styled fireworks which were interesting but nothing huge and we were a little let down until they started the full on actual fireworks show. It was like a big 4th of July show of a decent sized town! They do these every Saturday and Sunday and we were blown away. No pun intended heh heh.
TIP: If you bring your kids to the renfest, a major amount of shows are great for all ages but there are a couple that have inappropriate jokes and such. Some even have a “R” next to the stage if it is not appropriate for kids.
Other favorite shows that we enjoy are Wyrmwood Public House and a place you can try out absinthe.(This show is R rated so nooo kids.) One the other hand, the Fire Whip Show which is CAAARAZY and funny in a top notch dad jokes kinda way and awesome for kids to see. The star of the show is the 30-time Guinness World Record holder for whip cracking. It’s SO COOL! Check out his Facebook here – Adam ‘Crack’ Winrich. There are so so so many shows to see at the festival. OH, I almost forgot we finally got to attend The Knight’s Revel which is a venue near the camping gate on the camping grounds. It started I think around 6:30pm on Saturdays. Another first for us. It was SO fun. I hear that depending on the entertainment will make it or break it. They had a great show when we went and had a giant dancefloor. I can’t remember the last time we were at a “club” type dance scene! We even opted to rent one of the six booths so we would make sure to have our own space and not have to fight for a place to sit. It wasn’t the Taj Mahal but was cushy and didn’t have to share. I was being stingy since it was our 25 anniversary trip and all. If you decide to go to the Knight’s Revel just keep in mind the place didn’t really start cranking up until 8pm and then it was lit! Plus, I have a feeling that depending on entertainment is whether or not lots of people show up or not.
Wondering about all the different shows to see, check out this link… TexRenFest Entertainment.
#5 The Shopping
Ok, I could go on and on and on about the shopping. SO FUN! And I’m not even a big shopper but maybe I am when it’s for Rennie type things. If I could chose between a Louis Viton or some Ren Wear. Guess what I would pick… yes, the leather skirt that my sweetie bought me for addition to my barbarian outfit for next year! Whew that cost a pretty penny! And my man got a club to add to his barbarian garb. Yes, a club with a giant knot on the end. Our youngest got a wooden swords during our family weekend two weeks prior. If you are wanting to get your garb for your trip to the Ren Fest, then this festival is a treasure trove! There are so many garb shops for all the different themes.
With 400+ shops to choose from, there is something for everyone. Here’s just some of the types of shops… clothing like kilts or royal wear or pirate garb or wench outfits or chainmail, weapons from swords to old school bow & arrows to shields and more, food, oils and candles, hair braiding, horns, toys, knickknacks, pottery, hats, tankards, hides, walking sticks, art, your family’s crest, flower crowns, wooden swords, leather works, carvings in wood or bone, furniture, sculpture, and I’m sure I’m missing lots more. It’s hard to see all 400+ shops in one day. That’s just one more reason we like to try to go at least two weekends each year. If you’ll only be able to visit the festival for only one day be sure to map out all the must see things before you go.
Wondering about all the different shops to patron, check out this link… TexRenFest Shoppes
#6 The Camping
Ok, there are many reasons we love to hang out at the campgrounds. The biggest factor for us when we started to camp verses not is the fact that we don’t have to wait in traffic for an hour just to get to park to get in. We also like that we save money on gas and somewhat save money on spending the night although this year they have charged $25 per person for the weekend to camp which was a pretty penny on Pirate Weekend when our kids were with us (5 people x $25 = $125; still cheaper than 2 nights in a cramped hotel). It’s VERY important that if you bring kids, you want to steer clear from some parts of the campgrounds at night. There are three main areas – the family area which is where you’ll also find overpriced glamping, the middle lands which is where there are some families and some people that might like drinking and still for the most part family friendly, and then there is where the group called Naughtyham and other “medieval clans” that can be anything from the pyro group who are pretty cool to watch with their fire whips and other crazy juggling to groups that are drug specific like the mushroom or pot group to groups that thankfully have tarps around their camps (only a couple of these thank goodness).
Also in the non family friendly area are shenanigans like the two guys Corey and I found trying to scare me with a fake snack on a fishing line. I almost picked it up because I’m weird about snakes as I think they are cute. I was a little disappointed but then delighted when we realized there was one guy on the side of the narrow gravel road with a fishing line and his cohort pulled the snake back into place for the next batch of people walking by. We hung out a little out of the way as a group of 20 year old tipsy women walked into their trap. Shreeking ensued and they took off. We laughed so hard. Camping is just all fun and games and the campfire has a cool drum circle going most nights.
OH, and don’t even start me on the camp food that my husband cooks. YUM!
Plus we’ve made acquaintances and friends along the way especially last past year when we met Shirtless Steve, TomaHawk(he is a national axe thrower), and James and his lovely wife Jaimie. They ended up camping in the same spot as we all did last year and now I guess we have started a bit of a tradition. They actually only are able to get together once and year and James and Jaimie just met all of us last year too. Is that what serendipity is? Either way camping is a great way to make friends and have a good laugh and just chill or in camps like Naughtyham apparently you can get flogged. To each their own. (def too weird for us! LOL)
We usually stay in the middle lands or family friendly. I heed a warning that if you bring young kids stay deep in the family friendly area and away from any RVs in that area so your little ones can get sleep not disturbed by loud music or loud generators.
Wondering about the campgrounds, check out this link… The Fields Of New Market.
#7 The Rennies
I’ve been a closet rennie since my college days when I attended a local meet up and fought with “swords” against Medieval Barbie. I gave her that nickname and thought she was so cool with the perfect long blonde hair. Eventually she moved from Arkansas to California and we lost contact. Anywho, so you might be wondering what is a rennie – a participant at a Renaissance festival or faire whether it be the largest ren fest in the US (ahem the TexRenFest) or meeting up at a local park with a couple other enthusiasts. It’s just us nerds that want to have a good time in make believe while wishing the best for each other. Although I do wish I could have defeated Medieval Barbie, I’m happy she hopefully enjoying her new found land.
Rennies come in all shapes, ages, and sizes. We’ve made some new friends last year camping and saw them again this year. I feel like we’ve known the group for years. And really, people that I’ve have met in passing at the festival such as perusing shops, swapping trinkets, or just standing in line. There is just a camaraderie that is unstated with most people visiting that are actually all-in with the RenFests. Good times.
#8 “Lift up your cares!”
This isn’t actually the #8 reason why I wanted to go to the RenFest for our anniversary. The main reason for our getaway weekend to this specific spot on the Earth is that we seem to leave all our cares at the gate and just feel free of any burden or stress as soon as we step inside. We don’t have to worry about bills, no thoughts of needing to do laundry or other household chores, no worries about making sure our kids are ok(they generally stay with grandparents on our special weekend so we know they are in good shape). You get the idea… Being at the Texas Ren Festival = Lift up your cares! And what better place to be for a 25th anniversary!
If you ever get the chance and you love festivals, I highly recommend trying out the festival! Do your research and figure out if this is right for you. We’ve loved it for 10+ years. This past year was our favorite yet.
It’s good to be the Queen!
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