One of my favorite traditions I have with one of my friends is attending the Minnesota Renaissance Festival. We have been going since our college days. As we were reminiscing, we realized we had been going to the Renaissance Festival for ten years. That’s such a long time! There were years I had to miss including the year when me and my husband were planning our wedding and last year because we were in Europe. With that said, I always look forward to our trips to Ren Fest and many more trips in the future.

The last time I went to Ren Fest, me and my friends took a bus which helped immensely! I have addressed this before, but parking at Ren Fest was a nightmare. There were times we had to wait in extremely long lines to park a car. After Ren Fest’s event in 2022, Scott County threatened to pull Ren Fest’s event license if they couldn’t figure out their parking situation. I couldn’t agree more because it was becoming a safety issue. I didn’t go last year, so I wasn’t aware of the changes Ren Fest made to parking. When we were planning our day, she preferred driving versus taking the bus. In recent years, Ren Fest started charging to park a car. Before, parking onsite had been free. I don’t mind paying to park if it means a better experience with more staff to direct us on where to park our vehicles. Paying in advance, I paid $15 which I felt was reasonable. For those who didn’t pre-pay, it was $30 on sight with cash or card. As we approached, I was expecting the worst. I was pleasantly surprised when we got to the festival, showed our pre-paid parking pass, and parked within fifteen minutes. It was a huge improvement compared to other years we went. Additionally, it seems Ren Fest added way more park and rides. The only caveat is that most of the park and rides were in the south half of the metro. I’d love to see more park and rides in the northern or western suburbs because that would also help with decreasing car traffic.

While every Ren Fest trip is fun, this year felt extra special. This was the first year that both me and my friend dressed up. I have dressed up in the past and my friend always mentioned how she wanted to, but it didn’t work out. She made it a priority this year and her whole blue outfit was beautiful. She clearly had a fun time with it and it was great to see her having a blast. Her boyfriend took pictures of us which we would have forgotten about had he not said anything. I think we both agreed that dressing for Ren Fest is something we are going to commit to in years to come.

For my outfit, I went for a green, druidic look. I ordered this green dress as a backup to my Keyleth cosplay. I rummaged through my costume accessories and pulled out this black, faux leather belt I use in my Kylo Ren cosplay which cinched the look together. Finally, I had an autumn leaves and butterflies headband that I also ordered for my Keyleth cosplay and didn’t need. It all came together and I already had all the pieces in my closet. It helps to be a cosplayer sometimes!

Since we have gone so often, we have a few staples or things we have to do while we are there. For the most part, we don’t see any shows. Instead, we wander around the fairgrounds and do a bit of shopping. I tend to purchase new earrings, lotions, or perfumes whenever I go. This year, I stuck to a budget and I didn’t buy anything except for food. Every year, the food I eat varies except for the Apple Cider Float. The Apple Cider Float is so good. It’s Apple Cider and I always get Cinnamon Ice Cream versus Vanilla Ice Cream. It’s the quintessential fall beverage. It’s become such a classic thing for us that my friend’s boyfriend reminded us that we had to get it before we left. He kept us on track, that’s for sure.

This was a Ren Fest trip for the books. I think both me and my friend will put more of an emphasis on dressing up as something every year. As a cosplayer, I always like having an excuse to create a new costume. Here’s to ten more years of Renaissance Festival trips.