5 Tips for Enjoying the Carolina Renaissance Faire as a Childless Millennial

 There are a few annual Charlotte events that I try to make a regular part of my year, and the Carolina Renaissance Faire is definitely at the top of that list. It gets me in the fall mood, it’s hugely entertaining, and I find something new to enjoy each time I visit. But talking to friends and neighbors, I’m surprised by how many locals my age have never been. It is the premier people-watching event of the year in the Charlotte area, IMO - but I know it can seem daunting for the virgin Faire-goer. So I’ve compiled a list of tips to see you through a successful and delightful Ren Faire experience.

1 - Dress up (comfortably) if you want, but don’t stress about it too much

View your visit to the Renaissance Faire as a visit to any other amusement park. You’ll want comfortable footwear, sun protection, and layers to hedge against Charlotte’s notoriously variable fall weather. Dressing up for the Faire adds an extra layer of immersion to the experience and doesn’t need to be high-maintenance or expensive. It’s easy to incorporate all three necessities while staying “on theme”. I encourage folks to keep in mind that the costumes you’ll see will run the gamut from literally just regular-ass Batman to highly-detailed historical interpretations of Elizabethan Samurai, so “on theme” becomes pretty relative. I’m the type of gal that loves any reason to wear a corset (I think we make up roughly 60% of annual Ren Faire ticket sales) so I do a version of “corset over dress” with a wrap and comfortable shoes that work well enough with the look. Some folks certainly go all out on their period costumes, but you’ll see plenty of dads in fishing shirts and wraparound sunglasses, so if you want to stick to your every day look, you’ll be far from alone. If you do want to put a sick Faire fit together, Etsy is chock-full of makers who specialize in Renaissance Faire garb and it’s easy to put together a great look if you have the money to spend. There are also plenty of great pieces for sale at the Faire itself. But your Faire fit doesn’t need to be pricey. I’m hand-dying my usual Faire underdress (a slightly beat-up vintage maxi I got off Depop ages ago) to better pair with the corset I’m wearing this year, and the remainder of my fit will all be pieces I already own. Checking your local thrift store for pieces you can style will always be cheaper than buying something new. There are no rules when it comes to Faire dressing!

2 - Go early and consider a tailgate 

Traffic getting into the festival can get harrowing fast and for me, the backup as you approach the Faire grounds can be one of the most (and sometimes only) frustrating parts of the full experience. Faire gates open at 9:30 with a short pre-opening show that diehards gather to see. Even if you don’t want to see the pre-show I suggest you plan on being at the festival grounds no later than 9:00 to ensure a solid parking spot and beat the traffic. How to kill the half-hour before the gates open? Have yourselves a little pre-festival tailgate! Food at the festival is … well, festival food. Yes, at least one member of your party is required to get a turkey leg, and I always go in for an apple dumpling if the weather’s chilly, but otherwise, it’s a little mid, as the kids say. Fueling up with some homemade sammies, cheese, fruit, or other noshes before you enter is a savvy move. The Grade A people-watching starts as soon as you park your car, so kick back with a car charcuterie (a carcuterie?) and watch the costumes roll by as you wait for gates to open. 

3 -  Gamify that thang

The costumes you’ll see change a bit from year to year with changing pop culture references, but there are several standards that you’ll see every Faire, no matter what. Woodland faeries, Vikings, mushroom people, pirates… these seem to be Faire staples. So reliable are these characters, that they make a fun foundation for your own personal group Ren Faire game. In the past, I’ve had my group place bets on how many of a few specific characters we’ll see while on Faire grounds. We keep a group count and closest to the correct number for each category wins a prize, or the simple joy of bragging rights. This year, I made up a Renaissance Faire bingo card with a mix of characters and silly situations that always seem to spring up at the Faire. You can download it for free below if you’d like to print up a batch for your own group, or of course you can make up your own! Remember to bring along writing utensils so the group can keep up on their bingo cards! 

4 - Head to the back

Carolina Renaissance Faire describes itself as a “twenty five acre theme park, filled with charming cottages and castles, kitchens and pubs, and a most unusual collection of people-powered rides, games of skill, and immersive entertainments” and yet, everyone always seems to get jammed up at the very first turkey leg and booze vendor you encounter. And I get it, everyone’s been dreaming of that turkey leg the whole ride up to Huntersville. But you’re not everyone, and that’s why you’re going to breeze right on past that first vendor, past the alluring shops and other sundry vendors, past the jousting arena, past the mermaid tent, all the way to the turkey leg and booze vendor in the back of the Faire, where the lines are significantly lighter. It’ll be tempting to stop and poke around, but furnishing yourself with vittles before backtracking to the things that piqued your interest is the savvier move here. There is a LOT to take in at the Faire, especially if you’ve never been, and it’s easy to get distracted. Any characters you see will be milling around the grounds or performing all day. This thing is a marathon, not a sprint. If you’re going early in the season, the sun can be depleting when you’re on your feet nursing pumpkin ales and steak-on-a-steaks for hours. Which brings me to my last tip. 

5 - Go again, later in the season, in the afternoon

Hear me out. Yes, the morning shift is technically ideal due to the crush of families who couldn’t get their shit together early all trying to go around lunch. BUT once the temperature drops and the leaves in the 325-acre forest surrounding the Faire start to change, the vibe gets somehow more Renaissance Faire-y, and an afternoon at the Fair becomes a more pleasant experience. The best reason to stick around the Faire in the afternoon is the bawdy shows. While delightful vaudeville-style shows happen continuously throughout each Faire, only PG versions are performed early in the day. Later in the afternoon, once most families with small kids have headed home, the shows take on a more adult tone, with raunchier jokes and antics. These shows are always a highlight of the Faire (Knotty Nauticals is a personal, pirate-themed favorite) and the later, more raucous versions are more fun for both audience and performers alike. So, while you'll want to mentally prepare for a slower trip into the grounds, an afternoon visit in the cooler days of the Faire is a highly enjoyable way to round out Renaissance Faire season in the Carolinas.