Best Renaissance Faires in
San Francisco Bay Area 2021
Hollister Faire in mid September-October
Dicken’s Christmas Fair, Daly City, in late November-December
Renaissance Faire, downtown San Jose (8/3/19-8/4/19)
This Renaissance Faire is not as big as some but is a very pleasant “adventure.” For a start, it is easy to get to and parking is not a big hassle. Plenty of food, arts & crafts for sale and well done events too! See website.
Some tips: (1) We’ve seen 40% off discount tickets on Groupon. (2) Get there early in the day for less hassle & heat (San Jose can get hot in the summer). (3) Check out the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose which is also located at Discovery Meadow.
Dates: Weekends, 8/5/17-8/6/17, 10 am – 5 pm.
Location: Discovery Meadow, 180 Woz Way, Downtown San Jose
Admission: Adults $18, Kids free-$13 depending on age. Parking $5.
Links: website, yelp, more Faires
Renaissance Faire, Hollister CA (weekends 9/18/21-10/24/21)
This faire is a surprisingly big and good for being so far out in the sticks. For example, they have seven active stages plus a Tourney field used for jousting games (with plenty of knights, horses & lances) and, on Saturdays, admission includes a free concert which starts at 6 pm. Of course there are tons of theme-related booths and hundreds of costumed participants & food vendors all dressed up and showing off their Cockney accents.
At one booth we particularly enjoyed “medieval” falconers let loose wild hawks to fly above the Faire. These birds would then sit on high poles and come down for food or to perch on the falconer’s arm when directed. A laughing kookaburra bird was the most novel looking performer.
If you haven’t visited Casa De Fruta, located next door, before this is a good time to check it out as well. Another worthwhile Hollister area attraction is San Juan Bautista Mission.
We prefer to show up near Faire opening time when it is cooler (it can get quite warm later on) and there are fewer people (some days over 6000 attend).
Dates: Weekends 9/18/21 – 10/24/21, 10 am – 6 pm.
Location: Casa de Fruta, 10031 Pacheco Pass Hwy, Hollister, CA 95023. Park attendents will guide you from there to the Faire parking nearby.
Admission: Tickets are $30/ea and parking is about $10; kids 12 & under free. On the first and a few other weekends there are special deals which can be found on the website.
Phone: (408) 847-3247
Links: website, yelp, more Faires
The Great Dickens Christmas Fair, Daly City (Weekends, late November-December)
This re-creation of Charles Dickens’ Victorian London Town circa 1865 is a fun way to get into the Christmas spirit. It fills more than 3 acres and feels much bigger. Modern-day visitors, many of whom dress up too, circulate among 700 costumed amateur “performers” who are play different roles on the town streets or on-stage. Enjoy “authentic” food, music, shops and a wide variety of free shows.
Dates: 5 Weekends, Saturdays & Sundays, 11/23/19 – 12/22/19, 10 am-7 pm
Location: Inside at the east end of the Cow Palace, 2600 Geneva Ave, Daly City, CA
Admission: Tickets $32. Twilight tickets after 4 pm are usually less. Parking is $12 in the lot (or free on the street where we usually park, at least during daylight hours).
Links: website, yelp, more Faires
Related Pages:
- Best SF Bay Area Events
- San Jose Attractions and Map
- Hollister area Attractions and Map
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