The Ohio Renaissance Festival is Ohio’s biggest Renaissance/Ohio festival made up of a permanent village that offers 24 stages, over 100 shops, plenty of food, games, fun and more.
2025 DATES
August 30- September 1, 2025
September 6-7, 2025
September 13-14, 2025
September 20-21, 2025
September 27-28, 2025
October 4-5, 2025
October 11-12, 2025
October 18-19, 2025
October 25-26, 2025
Location: 10542 East State Route 73
Waynesville, OH 45068
Website: https://renfestival.com/
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This post documents my experience on September 13, 2024.
You can visit HERE for my earlier experience in 2010.
Just beyond the castle entrance of the Ohio Renaissance Festival…
…there were more than just pirates on this pirate themed weekend…
…there was royalty…
…vikings…
…an occasional murderous clown…
…and all sorts of great characters…
…who flew on in to visit the festival.
And for those festival fans who felt out of sorts in only a tee shirt, shorts and sneakers…
…there were over 100 shops and vendors…
…with all sorts of costumes…
…hats…
…and even arms…
…and the kids were covered too.
But vendors also offered jewelry…
…animal tails…
…glassworks, candles…
…and everything from perfume to pewter…
…including decorative copper mushrooms.
They also offered services that included Tarot readings…
…professional massage…
…and the chance to ask a curmudgeon a question (for charity).
If a vendor wasn’t selling a goblet or shield, it was some type of food or drink…
…whether in the form of giant turkey legs…
…the Queen’s Crepes…
…and offerings that included everything from tofu wraps and salads to Cajun dishes…
…from cheese curds and nuggets to haggis bowls…
…and perhaps the occasional pickle…
…Dole Whip…
…or Boozy Cake.
If you preferred to drink your alcohol, there were stands for hard cider, beer, and mead…
…not to mention various pubs…
…equipped with bars…
…and live entertainment…
…which was all very enjoyable.
But this, of course, wasn’t the only type of entertainment offered at the festival…
…as there were stages all about the festivals grounds…
…with shows specializing in stunts, comedy…
…classic literary tales and more…
But no matter where you walked around the grounds…
…you were bound to see something of interest (Wheel of Death)…
…from a children’s maze to the Dungeon of Doom…
…and even some sword play to the delight of all.
And there were falcons you could hold…
…all sorts of primitive thrill-seeking rides…
…and a Royal Gaming Area…
…for drenching wenches…
…testing your strength…
…shooting some arrows…
…and throwing all sorts of things…
…even tomatoes.