A Day at the Maryland Renaissance Festival

Every Fall, I put visiting the Annapolis, Maryland Renaissance Festival on my to-do list. This year, we finally made it! Huzzah! I’m documenting my experience here for you and also for my visits in future years.

As always, this is from a mom’s perspective of visiting with 3 kids, each with their own opinions of what they want to see, do and eat. And of course, the great people-watching!

Maryland Renn Fest Basics

• Buy tickets directly from the https://rennfest.com/ website
• Tickets might vary by year, but for my family of 5, we paid $90. Children 7 and under are free (yay!)
• Buy your tickets early as they do sell out!
• Kid backpack carriers and strollers are allowed
• Cash only. They do have ATMs inside, but the lines are usually really long.
• Gates open at 10 a.m.
• The festival is a “go” rain or shine. If it rains, remember the ground is dirt so wear boots! If sunny, the jousting arena has no shade.
• Parking is free, but the lots get filled quickly
• Port-a-potties (“Privies”) only. I did see at least one changing table with the port-a-potty area.

Our Day at the Renn Fest

We went to the Renn Fest on the last day of the 2022 season. We showed up at 9:30 a.m. to have time to park and get to the gates for the opening ceremony at 10.

Even before you enter, you’ll notice that attendees wear their own costumes. It really is a “wear whatever you want” type of place. Perhaps because we were there right before Halloween, but people were wearing all sorts of costumes besides Renaissance clothes: Brave Heart, Cinderella and Prince Charming, big foot, Addams family members, giant blow-up dinosaur, Ramen noodles, Sponge Bob, a gorilla, a bottle of Ranch dressing, Harry Potter and even a large boat costume.

Throughout the day, there are a number of different stages around the festival where you can watch a variety of different shows for free. The shows are so creative: slapstick comedy, musicians, play sword fights… I even saw a woman shoot a bow and arrow WITH HER FEET and pop a balloon on a bullseye!

For additional costs, there are other activities:

• Get your hair braided or face painted.
• Ride down the giant slide.
• Rock climbing up the side of a castle.
• Ax throwing, archery, stars throwing, knife throwing, rat toss (rubber rats)
• Drench the wench (think dunk tank)
• Reptile world (hold a snake, etc.)
• Jacob’s ladder climb

Remember to bring your cash!

If you need to let your kid run around, there is a free kid’s playground. Note: the nearest potty is up a giant hill next the slide entrance, so plan accordingly if your kid is potty training!

There is so much to do in so few hours, I try to avoid the playground or sitting at one of the few food tables. We eat while watching a show or sitting in the jousting arena!

Oh and the food… not exactly food from the Renaissance times, but there are plenty of options to choose from. At the Renn Fest, you will find “ye old”:

• Turkey leg
• Mac and cheese on a stick, bacon on a stick, pork on a stick
• Soup in a bread bowl, pretzels
• Meatball wrap, crab cakes, chicken gyro, roast chicken
• Ice cream cones, cookies n’ milk, cheesecake on a stick, funnel cakes, crepes
• Fried green beans, scotch eggs, sweet potato fries, deep-fried pickles
• Soda, water, beer, wine, cider, coffee, tea
• Fruit cart
• And so much more!

The lines get longer as the day progresses, so it’s really helpful to have at least two adults. One can stand in line while the other gets a seat at the nearest stage.

Beyond what’s listed above, we watched a glassblowing demonstration, watched dancers around the Maypole, and heard the “King” speak. In the joust arena, we watched an archery demonstration, and in a past year saw a falconry demo.

There really is so much to do. It’s impossible to do everything in one day!

Renn Fest Tips:

• Allow for time to get in and out of the parking lot. It gets quite backed up. However, I find getting there before 10 a.m., there’s little traffic.
• There is a handicapped parking section if you have a pass (and it’s not full).
• There’s no running water in the fair. Bring hand sanitizer (although they had stations everywhere) and bottles of water.
• If your kid wants to wear their Disney princess dress or really anything, let them!
• If you bring an empty water bottle or need a refill, you can get hose water from the First Aid stations.
• Food lines get REALLY long at lunchtime. Get food before 11:30.
• Beer/alcohol lines are long all the time.
• If you’re going to the joust, snag your spot ~30 min in advance.
• The fair gets more crowded as the day progresses, so if there’s something you really want to do, try to do it earlier.
• They have a Will Call if you need to leave a ticket for someone who’s meeting you there separately.
• There are port-a-potties outside of the entrance gate.
• Since the ground is dirt and hilly in some spots, I highly recommend avoiding sandals or heels.
• As you enter, make sure you snag a Renn Fest map, which also has the performance times of all the shows throughout the day.
• If you want to go more than once in a season, they do have a season pass you could buy, but there’s a limited amount.
• Unless you’re inside a shop, it’s entirely outside.
• There is a smoking area. I know because I walked right into it before I saw the sign, “You can only smoke between these 4 posts.”

While I don’t dress up beyond a fake flower headband, I still thoroughly enjoyed my experience. And I like to think my kids got a unique yet educational experience out of it.

I’ve never been to another Renaissance Festival but the one in Maryland feels like such a unique experience. Of course, it isn’t truly all Renaissance time period, but it is just pure fun. People dress up or don’t. You can spend all day watching shows or sitting at a pub listening to music. Everyone just seems so happy to be there and be themselves that it was just so much fun.

Want more info? Go to the https://rennfest.com/ website.

Have you ever been to the Maryland Renaissance Festival or wanted to go but haven’t yet? I’d love to hear about your experience or if you found this blog helpful. Please comment below!