Renaissance Fairs in Illinois

Lords and ladies, listen well to the tale I tell of rousing medieval adventure and excitement! Sensational swordplay, enticing foods, exquisite crafts, and more await you at renaissance fairs. And there are a number to attend in Illinois.

Springfield Highland Games and Celtic Festival - Located in Springfield, Illinois at the State of Illinois Fairgrounds. This event will be held May 19^th from 8:00 am - 10:00 pm. Tickets will be $10 for adults. Visitors can enjoy competitions for Highland dancers, individual pipers and drummers, bagpipe bands, and more. Many interesting demonstrations will also occur throughout the day. Special features include a large children's area. There will also be fascinating storytellers, enchanting music, and more. Merchants will be offering finely crafted wares, food, and drink, especially Scottish and Irish goods. More information can be found on their website at http://www.central-illinois-celts.org/Highland Games.htm.

The World of Faeries Festival - Located approximately 40 miles west of Chicago in South Elgin, Illinois. This fair will be held August 4^th - 5^th from 10:00 am - 9:00 pm on Saturday and 10:00 am - 5:00 pm on Sunday. Tickets will be $10 for adults, $8 for seniors, and free for kids ages 12 and under. Those who wish to dress in costume will not be allowed to carry weapons. Entertainment will include beautiful music and exciting sword fights. Vendors will be selling exquisite clothing, jewelry, art, leather goods, and more. Additional detail is available on their website at http://www.theworldoffaeries.com or their Myspace page at http://www.myspace.com/the_world_of_faeries.

Illinois Renaissance Faire - Located approximately 119 miles east of Springfield in Danville, Illinois. This fair will be held at Ellsworth Park August 25^th - 26^th from 11:00 am - 7:00 pm on Saturday and 11:00 am - 6:00 pm on Sunday. Parking will be free. Tickets will be $10 for adults, $8 for seniors ages 60 and older, $6 for kids ages 6 - 12; and children ages 5 years and under, Active Duty and Veterans with military ID admitted for free. There will be special activities for kids ages 12 and under. Visitors will delight in jousting, a living chess match, juggling, music, magic, and more. Merchants will entice attendees with handcrafted clothing, leather goods, jewelry, and many more items. For more information, visit their website at http://www.illinoisrenfaire.com.

Four Kingdoms Renaissance Festival - Located approximately 100 miles northwest of Peoria in Rock Island, Illinois. This fair will be held September 29^th - 30^th from 11:00 am - 6:00 pm. Tickets will be $10 for adults, $5 for kids ages 7 - 13, and free for children ages 6 and under. Those who wish to dress in period attire will need to keep weapons sheathed and peace-tied. There will be rousing entertainment for all ages on various stages throughout the site. Vendors will be offering jewelry, art, weapons, period food and drink, and many more items. At the time this article was written their website http://www.fourkingdoms.com had not yet been updated for 2007, but does have information from the previous year.

Lincolnshire Renaissance Faire - Located approximately 35 miles east of Springfield in Decatur, Illinois. This new fair will be held Oct 13^th - 14^th from 11:00 am - 6:00 pm at the Decatur Conference Center and Hotel with a special discounted student education and senior citizen's preview day on the 12^th. Parking will be free. Tickets will be $10 for adults and $5 for kids. Those wishing to dress in costume must keep weapons sheathed and peace-tied. More detail is available on their website at http://www.festint.com/lincolnshire/index.shtml.

So grab your medieval garb and prepare for merriment when you step back in time at an adventurous renaissance fair in Illinois!