The Michigan Renaissance Festival may be over but there are still several seasonal activities taking place at its Hollygrove medieval fairgrounds through the end of the year. First off during weekends through the end of October in celebration of Halloween will be a Phantom's Feast held within the Michigan Renaissance Festival's Blackstone Castle. This event takes place on October 13, 14, 20, 21, 27 & 28 starting at 7pm. Buy tickets in advance at michrenfest.com.
Join the Pumpkin King and his Court for a delectable five course meal starting with warming pumpkin soup and a main course of Beef Tenderloin. Enjoy song & dance, costume contests and wicked amusements for all to share. It’s the season of the witch, so beware!
Tickets for Phantom's Feast are $90 per person. Blackstone Castle is located on the Hollygrove fair grounds in Metro Detroit's Oakland County at 12600 Dixie Hwy Holly, MI 48442. Get into the Halloween spirit with this festive night out feasting with the Pumpkin King and his Court.
Following the Phantom's Feast, Hollygrove will come alive with holiday magic with the Michigan Renaissance Festival's annual HollyDazzle Christmas celebration that takes place in November and December. So, while the jousting may be done for the year there is still fun to be had during the remainder of 2023 at the Hollygrove fair grounds.
Tickle Thy Fancy With A Great Day At The Michigan Renaissance Festival!
Join the villagers of Hollygrove as they invite one and all to the magical 16th Century European village featuring 17 stages of exciting entertainment including: musicians, magicians, jugglers and jousting. Over 100 artisans will fill the Festival marketplace to display and sell their handcrafted goods for a truly fabulous and endless shopping experience. Patrons will interact with memorable characters and enjoy full-contact live armored jousting, 7 theme weekends, and fabulous food fit for royalty!
Normally during the summer and fall months the fairgrounds in rural Oakland County, Michigan known as Hollygrove which is home to the Michigan Renaissance Festival are filled with the sounds of merriment and music. It has been quiet this year though as the festivities were cancelled due to the pandemic. That was until recently when rumors started circling among local townsfolk of eerie sights and sounds emerging from Hollygrove after dark as Halloween approached. Whoa!
My inner Ghostbuster couldn't resist going to see if there were any spooky spirits haunting Hollygrove. If my family couldn't enjoy cheering on the jousters and laughing at the jesters at this year's Michigan Renaissance Festival, maybe we could have ourselves some Halloween fun in the Village of Hollygrove. So off we went looking for a terror-ific time!
From now through Halloween, adventure seekers can make their way through a 3/4 mile maze of illuminations and decorations trekking through the twists and turns of the Michigan Renaissance Festival grounds. Are you brave enough to walk these paths after dark when monsters may be lurking in the buildings and forest around you? If so a limited number of guided tour time slots are available on October 17-18, 22-25, and 29-31.
Tickets are $25 for adults and $17.95 for children (5-12 years old). Social distancing guidelines will be recommend and masks required during this primarily outdoor event. Time slots will be restricted to 40 people maximum. So make reservations and purchase tickets online at halloweeninholly.com in advance to make sure you get a chance to experience A Haunting in Hollygrove.
Thanks to the Michigan Renaissance Festival for inviting this dad blogger and his family out as their guests and letting us be some of the first people to experience this Halloween event. With us staying close to home for most of this year we needed to get out for an adventure. We had a spook-tacular good time!
A GEEK DADDY RECEIVED COMPLIMENTARY ADMISSION TO THE RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL
It is that time of year again when the Michigan Renaissance Festival rides into town for its annual appearance. Adventure awaits during weekends filled with jousts, sword fights, and mythical creatures. On Saturdays and Sundays from August 17 through September 27, the festival grounds in Holly, Michigan are transformed into a realm filled with royal courts and knightly heroes, bandits and pirates, as well as bards, jesters and Shakespearean actors. Join in the merriment and festivities of the 2019 Michigan Renaissance Festival.
Your adventure begins with a walk through a wooded path leading from the parking lot to the gates of the Renaissance era village of Hollygrove. As you begin your trek to the Renaissance Fest it starts off as a leisurely nature hike with no sign of modern life around you and the sound of birds and the wind whistling through tree leaves drifting in the air. Eventually the woods begins to fill with the sounds of festivities taking place as you emerge from the forest and come upon the gates to a realm of entertainment and excitement. Let your adventure begin!
Take in shows that include sword battles with comedic flair, dancing and musical performances and acrobatic feats. They even have a Birds of Prey presentation that provides audiences close up views of these raptors as trainers have them fly through the crowd. Stages with a variety of activities taking place throughout the day are spread out across the Renaissance village so there is always something going on as you wander around.
Discover mythical creatures with Pegasus, Mermaids, and Unicorns calling the Renaissance Festival home. We even came across some trolls that seemed friendly despite the menacing spiked teeth in their grins as they sang ballads along side a path. Transform into a magical being yourself by having some wax ears affixed to your head turning you into an elf or fairy. If feeling a bit naughty you can choose to have horns placed on your forehead to show others that you are a little devil.
The Renaissance Fest is a family-friendly experience with activities dedicated specifically to keeping young lords and ladies amused. There are pony rides and carnival games just for the kids. Plus medieval thrill rides like the Flying Dragon!
My favorite part of the Michigan Renaissance Festival though are the live armored jousts. Knights in shiny suits of metal compete on horseback in games and jousting battles to be honored as the Queen's champion. The jousting tournaments are held three times per day at 1pm, 3pm and 5pm. Get into the spirit of the day by shouting out Huzzah! to rally the knight representing your seating section to victory.
They didn't have the sweets and treats of modern civilization during medieval times, so being that the Renaissance Fest is meant to transport you back in history this dad blogger snacked on some delicious pickles during the jousting tournament that vendors were selling. They were really good! I highly recommend you stop by one of the carts selling these on your way to the jousts.
Stick around after the jousting concludes because the knights will approach the crowd for pictures and to allow their horses to be petted. The cast of knights is great at staying in character and their boisterous attitudes are invigorating at getting people into a festive attitude. Interacting with the festival's cast of characters allows visitors whether or not they dress in cos-play to really immerse themselves within the Renaissance Festival experience.
Get into the action yourself trying out the weapons of the time. Give archery a shot! Show off your inner Robin Hood with a bow and arrow on the Michigan Renaissance Festival archery range.
Other options include throwing axes and spears at targets. While they weren't used in Europe during Renaissance times, you can also toss Ninja throwing stars there too. Be a weekend warrior shooting bows and arrows and throwing weapons at the Renaissance Festival.
Or you can Pester a Jester! Throw tomatoes at some obnoxious jesters while they hurl insults back at you. If you are easily offended you either need to walk away or have great aim because they jesters are really mean though their intent is to provide fun and amusement through rude repertoire.
Please note that there is limited use of credit cards at the festival, primarily accessible for select food vendors. Cash is king at the Renaissance Festival! So come prepared to have some spending money for activities and vendors as well as to provide tips to performers.
Oh yes! An adventure does await you at the Michigan Renaissance Festival. Huzzah! For more information, go to MichRenFest.com.
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