Minnesota Renaissance Festival 2026

Minnesota Renaissance Festival 2026 runs August 22–October 4, on weekends, plus Labor Day, September 7, and Festival Friday, October 2, at the Festival Grounds, Shakopee, Minnesota. The event celebrates its 55th season with jousting, more than 16 stages of entertainment, artisan shopping, themed weekends, food, games and a full 16th-century village atmosphere.

The festival is one of the best-known Renaissance events in the United States, with a large open-air marketplace, costumed villagers, royal court characters, daily contests, live shows and family attractions spread across the grounds. Visitors planning a Midwest faire route can also explore other Renaissance and Medieval Festivals in Minnesota and late-summer events listed among Renaissance Faires & Medieval Festivals in August 2026.

🕒 Opening Hours

The festival is open 9:00 AM–7:00 PM, rain or shine, on each scheduled festival day.

⚔️ Main Attractions

The Minnesota Renaissance Festival recreates a lively 16th-century European village with a strong entertainment program and a major artisan market. The grounds feature stages, food booths, games, rides and roving performers who interact with guests throughout the day.

Highlights include:

• Tournament jousting
• Royal court appearances
• Daily parade and Royal Tribucade
• More than 16 stages of live entertainment
• Over 250 artisans in the marketplace
• More than 50 games, rides and attractions
• Food and beverage booths
• Costume contests
• Dog-friendly festival days, with registration rules
• Themed weekends across the full season

This event fits naturally within the wider calendar of Renaissance Fairs, especially for visitors looking for a large-scale outdoor faire with a long-running tradition.

🗓 2026 Themed Weekends

• August 22–23: Once Upon a Time
• August 29–30: Highland Fling
• September 5–7: Woofstock
• September 12–13: Bold North Adventure
• September 19–20: Wine, Chocolate & Romance
• September 26–27: Art Affair
• October 2: Festival Friday
• October 3–4: Oktoberfest

⚔️ Daily Program Highlights

• 11:00 AM: Tournament jousting at the Joust Track
• 1:00 PM: Tournament jousting at the Joust Track
• 1:00 PM: Daily Parade and Royal Tribucade
• 3:00 PM: Tournament jousting at the Joust Track
• 5:00 PM: Tournament jousting at the Joust Track

🎟 Admission and Tickets

Advance online festival admission is listed at $26.95 for adults, $24.95 for seniors aged 65+, and $16.95 for children aged 5–12, plus taxes and fees. Gate admission is listed at $29.95 for adults, $27.95 for seniors, and $19.95 for children, plus tax. Children aged 4 and under enter free.

Weekend passes, season passes, family packs and other ticket options are also available. Tickets can be purchased online through the official ticketing provider: Buy tickets online

🅿️ Parking and Park & Ride

On-site parking requires a date-specific parking pass. Advance parking passes are listed at $15 plus fees, while same-day on-site parking, when available, is listed at $30 plus tax. Parking is limited, so visitors are encouraged to plan ahead.

A Park & Ride service operates during festival days, offering direct round-trip bus transportation to the grounds. The listed round-trip fare is $6, with free parking available at participating Park & Ride lots. Buses run from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM, with travel times depending on traffic and crowd levels.

📍 Venue

The Festival Grounds are located at 12364 Chestnut Boulevard, Shakopee, MN 55379, southwest of the Twin Cities metro area. The setting is an outdoor village-style festival site with performance areas, marketplace streets, food zones and dedicated spaces for major events such as jousting and parades.

🧭 About Shakopee

Shakopee is a city in Scott County, Minnesota, with an estimated population of 47,158 as of July 1, 2023. Located along the Minnesota River, it has deep roots in Dakota history and 19th-century settlement. Chief Sakpé’s village stood in the river valley before European-American development, and the city was later shaped by river travel, trading posts, railroad access, brickmaking, agriculture and regional commerce.

Today, Shakopee is part of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area and is known for major visitor attractions, entertainment venues, parks and convenient access to the southwest Twin Cities suburbs.

🚗 How to Get There

By car: Shakopee is reached via major regional routes including US Highway 169, Highway 101 and nearby connections from the Twin Cities metro. Festival traffic can be heavy, so arriving early and checking the latest parking instructions before departure is recommended.

By bus: Park & Ride buses operate from several regional lots, including locations in Shakopee, Eden Prairie, Chanhassen, Chaska, Carver and Burnsville during the season.

By train: There is no direct passenger rail stop at the festival grounds. Travelers arriving by Amtrak typically use Saint Paul Union Depot and continue by car, rideshare or regional transit connections.

By air: The nearest major airport is Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport (MSP), approximately 25 miles from Shakopee depending on route and traffic.

📏 Approximate Driving Distances from Shakopee

Major cities in Minnesota

Major cities in the United States