‘PLACE OF MAGIC’: 47th annual Texas Renaissance Festival celebrates final weekend

Published 5:00 pm Saturday, November 27, 2021

TODD MISSION – One of the largest festivals in the nation, the Texas Renaissance Festival recently held its final weekend of events with a Celtic Christmas theme.

Father Christmas, Mother Christmas and all the Christmas elves welcomed children of all ages and their families to its final three-day celebration of the coming season. The kingdom was transformed into a Christmas wonderland where holiday music filled the lanes.

The event, which began Oct. 9 and ran every weekend through this past Sunday, offers a unique experience with shows, costumes, activities like wood working, drum making, axe throwing, elephant rides and more.

Lords and ladies, vikings and knights, elves and fairies roamed the festival grounds where more than 500,000 festival-goers attend each year.

The festival’s Chief Marketing Officer Cory Brock said the festival began in 1974 and has been an important part of the community ever since.

“We’ve had generations of families as vendors work for the festival for more than 40 years. For example, Ligia Giles has been coined the ‘Empanada Queen’ of the festival for her delicious empanadas gaining popularity and evolving into a festival staple since her beginning with the kingdom in 1976,” Brock said.

“The Texas Renaissance Festival is the largest in the nation. The carefully crafted kingdom has succeeded in the challenge of evolving throughout the last 47 years, all while remaining the same,” he said.

“It’s a place of magic, merriment, romance and adventure for all; offering those who wish to visit a place to ‘Lift Up Thy Cares’ as they step through the gates and enter an enchanted world filled with kings and queens, knights and nobles, fairies and elves, pirates and peasants, and a plethora of other fanciful delights. The kingdom is a place where anyone can escape, to forget the drama and take a break from everyday life,” he continued.

Mother of two Rachel Gill said the festival has been part of her family for a long time.

“My mom used to bring my sister and I to the Renaissance Festival when we were kids; now I bring my own children,” she said. “It is a magical, one-of-a-kind experience, a fun outing for the whole family that you can’t find anywhere else. Even as an adult, I got my face painted, bought a flower crown and tried on medieval robes.”

Gill’s son Mason, 9, said he loved the whole experience but had a few favorites.

“Definitely getting to ride the horse,” he said. “And, the axe my mom bought me is really cool.”

Brock emphasized that while the festival was a great way to have fun, it also has a tremendous positive economic impact on the community.

“The festival has a huge economic impact on the area by employing hundreds of people from the Houston area each festival year, and as a result of the employment and visitors, surrounding cities and communities benefit from the festival,” he said. “The Renaissance Festival also has a national impact by supporting hundreds of small businesses from around the country who participate annually as vendors.”

For more information, visit www.texrenfest.com.