Arizona Renaissance Festival 2025 guide: Tickets, discounts and more

Prepare thyselves for a trip back to the 16th century without leaving the Valley. The annual Arizona Renaissance Festival has returned for its 37th season with its usual mix of merriment and revelry.

And you don’t even need a time machine to experience it.

Each spring, the 50-acre attraction east of Gold Canyon transformed into the Tudor-style village of Fairhaven, a place where fairies and dragons mingle with artisans, knights, royalty and rogues. You’ll also encounter nine stages of entertainment, roaming performers, action-packed jousting tournaments, thrilling rides and games, hundreds of vendors and artisans and a sizable repast of food and drink.

St. Patrick's Day weekend is Celtic Weekend and is filled with special events. On Sunday, March 16, the festival will host an all-ages Wearin' O' the Green contest. Participants will be judged on their personality, originality and costuming. The Arizona Colleens, young women who are part of the Irish Cultural Center's heritage pageant program, will also be there on Sunday.

The 2025 edition of the Arizona Renaissance Festival runs weekends, rain or shine, through March 30. A variety of new artisans and food are debuting this year, as well as a new Pleasure Feast menu. What else awaits? Here’s our ultimate guide this year's festival, including ticket prices, discounts and more.

When is the Arizona Renaissance Festival 2025?

The Arizona Renaissance Festival is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays, from Feb. 1 to March 30. It will also operate on Presidents Day.

Here's a complete schedule for every day the Arizona Renaissance Fest will be open in 2025:

• Saturday, Feb. 1
• Sunday, Feb. 2
• Saturday, Feb. 8
• Sunday, Feb. 9
• Saturday, Feb. 15
• Sunday, Feb. 16
• Monday, Feb. 17
• Saturday, Feb. 22
• Sunday, Feb. 23
• Saturday, March 1
• Sunday, March 2
• Saturday, March 8
• Sunday, March 9
• Saturday, March 15
• Sunday, March 16
• Saturday, March 22
• Sunday, March 23
• Saturday, March 29
• Sunday, March 30

Where is the Renaissance Festival in Phoenix?

The festival is at 12601 E. U.S. Highway 60 in Gold Canyon, approximately 7 miles east of Apache Junction. Traffic is typically heavy on festival days, so plan to arrive as early as possible to avoid delays.

Arizona Renaissance Festival 2025 tickets

Tickets to the Arizona Renaissance Festival are available at the front gate or at arizona.renfestinfo.com.

Here are the daily 2025 Arizona Renaissance Festival ticket prices:

• Free for kids 4 and under
• $24 for ages 5 to 12
• $36 for ages 13 and up

Season passes are available and include admission for every day of the festival. Prices are as follows:

• $130 for ages 5 to 12
• $240 for ages 13 and up
• $300 for ages 13 and up with VIP parking

Arizona Renaissance Festival 2025 discounts

Here are two options to save on admission to the Arizona Renaissance Festival:

• Tickets are $1 off when purchased at any Food City or Bashas' location in Arizona.
• Groups of 15 or more people can get a $2 discount per ticket when purchasing online.

Arizona Renaissance Festival promo codes

Arizona retailer Hall of Frames is offering promo codes for discounted admission through the Arizona Renaissance Festival website or at hallofframes.com/az-renfest.

• Use code HF to save $26 on two adult tickets on Feb. 1 and 2.
• Use code HFC5 for $5 off admission for kids 5 to 12

Arizona Renaissance Festival bag policy

Patrons can bring bags of any size — including purses, backpacks and diaper bags — into the festival. They do not need to be clear. All bags are subject to search by festival security upon entry through the front gate.

Can I bring water to the festival?

Yes. A single 16- or 24-ounce factory-sealed bottle of water is allowed.

What else is allowed at the festival?

You can bring in any sort of sun protection, including hats, sunglasses, umbrellas and sunblock. Comfortable shoes are also a must, considering all the walking you’ll be doing. A bag or backpack is a good idea, as is a certain amount of cash (it’s always faster than plastic). It gets a bit dusty at times, so consider bringing a dust mask or bandanna if you have any issues.

What can't you bring?

Any sort of real weaponry, drugs or related paraphernalia, dragons or anything else that might be considered dangerous. Outside food or drink is also forbidden.

Jousting schedule

The festival's three jousts are some of the most popular attractions at the festival. Here's when they occur:

• Noon: The Joust for Royal Favor
• 2:30 p.m.: Tournament of Champions
• 5 p.m.: A Joust to the Death

Arizona Renaissance Festival theme weekends

Here’s a rundown of the theme weekends at the Arizona Renaissance Festival 2025:

• Feb. 1 and 2: Opening weekend
• Feb. 8 and 9: Chivalry and Champions Weekend
• Feb. 15 to 17: Royalty Weekend
• Feb. 22 and 23: Time Traveler's Weekend
• March 1 and 2: Pirates Invasion and Brew Fest Weekend
• March 8 and 9: Artisan Appreciation and Wizards and Wonder Weekend
• March 15 and 16: Celtic Weekend
• March 22 and 23: Viking Invasion Weekend
• March 29 and 30: Closing Weekend
  

Food and drink

More than a dozen different food and drink stands are located throughout the festival grounds and offer different options, from appetizers to desserts and everything in between. The biggest stands (both in size and offerings) are the King’s, Queen’s and Joust kitchens, as well as the Pirate's Kitchen and Pub. Each features an enormous menu of items such as sandwiches, bread bowls, fish and chips, chicken strips, pizza and calzones. Soft drinks (soda, lemonade, iced tea) and harder beverages (beer, wine, cider, mead) are available for purchase.

Here's a complete list of food and drink stands at the Arizona Renaissance Festival:

• The Cottage Crepe Shoppe
• Crown Pub
• Dancing Pig Pub
• Joust Kitchen and Pub
• King's Kitchen and Pub
• The Cappuccino Inn
• The Cottage Bakery
• The Chocolate Maker
• The Gelato Guys
• Lancer's Pub
• The Mediterranean Fare
• The Piazza Pub
• Pirate's Kitchen and Pub
• Queen's Kitchen and Pub
• Rovin’ Throughout the Realm Pathway Carts
• Transylvanian Treats
• Tudor Rose Pub
• Ye Olde World Sausage Maker

Arizona Renaissance Festival entertainment

A cornucopia of live entertainment takes place across 16 different stages each day of the festival. That includes a variety show-like mix of music, comedy, dancing and other performance artistry.

There are perennial favorites, of course, like Don Juan and Esmeralda, Ded Bob, The Tortuga Twins and Hey Nunnie Nunnie, all of whom have been around since the festival’s earliest years.

Other popular acts include the "Ancient Art of Falconry” shows (which are held throughout the day and feature birds of prey and other noble feathered creatures), as well as the mud-caked buffoonery of The Wyld Men and the attention-grabbing spectacle of Adam Crack’s “Fire Whip Show.”

Elsewhere, you'll encounter musicians and minstrels (Bathos the Muse, Lady Prudence), comedy acts (Mother Redempta and Sister Philomenia), daredevils performing feats of skill (Gypsy Geoff, Barely Balanced), and dance troupes (Jamila Lotus, Fairhaven Morris Dancers).

Various street characters roam the grounds and interact with patrons, including sword-fighting bandit Daniel the Fox, the curious beast Fireflicker the Dragon and a ginormous walking tree known as Green Man.

Closing festivities

A drum circle is held at 5 p.m. each day of the festival. Musicians will gather near the entrance of the festival grounds and launch into a freeform and improvisational drum circle that keeps going until the final cannon goes off at 6 p.m.