Brooklyn Park City Hall

Minnesota Renaissance Festival - 2026 Every late summer, a 400-acre stretch of woods and prairie along the Minnesota River in Shakopee stops being 2026 entirely. For seven weekends, roughly 300,000 visitors trade the interstate for dirt access roads and walk into a fictional 16th-century village complete with armored jousting, sixteen stages of live entertainment, and a King and Queen who hold court daily. The Minnesota Renaissance Festival isn't just one of the largest events of its kind in the country — 2026 marks its 55th season, making it one of the longest continuously running Renaissance festivals in America. Here's everything worth knowing before you go. A Quick History The Minnesota Renaissance Festival got its start in 1971, the creation of Mid-America Festivals, the same organization that still runs it today. What began as a comparatively modest gathering has grown into one of the largest events of its kind in the country, drawing visitors from well beyond Minnesot...