Among our favorite annual Houston-area fall festivals : there’s one that stands head and shoulders above the rest. The 51st Annual Texas Renaissance Festival, the largest renaissance festival in the nation, returns this October outside of Houston with a kingdom of entertainment for the whole family.
Every year since 1974 the town of Todd Mission travels back to the 16th century, becoming a bustling village filled to the brim with stages, shops, artisans, vendors, and no shortage of characters – from kings, queens, and knights, to fairies and elven-kind. It’s annual attendance clocks in around 500,000 visitors – making it the Nation’s Largest Renaissance Festival.
The festival will make its glorious return to Texas on October 11 with even more medieval festivities starting with a bonafide a Oktoberfest celebration. Other themed weekends are planned over the next couple months, including a ghoulish All Hallows Eve (October 25-26), the Scottish spun, bagpipe-scored Highland Fling (November 22-23) and a cheery Celtic Christmas (November 28 – November 30).
All the while, patrons can take part in the kingdom’s bountiful selection of eateries, cooking up everything from head-sized turkey legs, to Old English grub, funnel cakes, and so much more. Of course, you’ll need something to wash it all down.
In addition to King’s Brews, you can fill your flagon with mead, ciders, mulled wine, as well as wine, frozen drinks, and hot chocolate if so inclined. TRF’s featured culinary experience is The King’s Feast. A massive multi-course feast fit for royalty, with two hours of AYCE food, entertainment, and merriment.
Additionally, festival goers can treat themselves to a myriad of fun games, rides, mazes, escape rooms, petting zoos, and attractions, as well as a stunning variety of performances across its 21 stages.
Other notable experiences TRF has to offer this year include The Wyrmwood Public House, its first “multi-sensory entertainment and social experience, where the worlds of French Bohemia, retro futuristic steampunk, and copper mining saloon culture, collide with burlesque, sideshow, magic, and more”; The Green Hour world-renowned sideshow; absinthe tasting; and more.
The festival features over 200 acres of camping grounds, suitable for RVs, tents, and campers, as well as options for quiet camping for families. Camping tickets are purchased separate from the event, with prices ranging from $15 to around $32 depending on date and timing.
Tex Ren Fest tickets are now available with prices varying by date, starting around $15. Official tickets are only sold at its website or at the gates. Kids aged 4 and under are permitted free entrance every day; kids aged 5 – 12 are half the adult ticket price on Saturdays and on Thanksgiving Friday. Kids 5 through 12 are permitted free entrance on Sundays.
General ticket prices for adults start around $25 – $30. Weekend and season passes are also available. There no refunds with tickets to the Texas Ren Fest, but visitors can opt to pay a $5 fee for Ticket Exchange Insurance, permitting visitors the ability to swap their ticket for another date.
The Texas Renaissance Festival takes place at 21778 Farm to Market 1774 in Todd Mission, Texas — roughly an hour driving from Downtown, Houston. The festival hours run from 9 am to 8 pm, no entry after 7 pm.