Nation’s largest Renaissance festival’s anniversary jubilee achieves record numbers in 2024
TODD MISSION, Texas (Dec. 3, 2024) – The Texas Renaissance Festival (TRF) closed out its epic 50th anniversary season this past weekend at the festival grounds in Todd Mission with its annual Celtic Christmas holiday finale. The three-day celebration saw 104,014 patrons enter the grounds over the long holiday weekend, including 35,718 patrons visiting the day after Thanksgiving.
The festival’s 50th anniversary season clocked in with 533,356 patrons visiting TRF over its eight themed weekends, exceeding preseason expectations and making the 2024 season one of the highest-attended in TRF’s lengthy history.
“From the turnout at the front gates to the bustling campgrounds, our 2024 campaign was one of the most well-attended seasons on record for the festival,” TRF marketing director Miranda Ramirez said. “For our 50th year, we were blessed with amazing weather and great crowds for eight straight amazing weekends and we can’t wait to welcome everyone back here in 2025.”
In addition to extraordinary anniversary year attendance, TRF also welcomed a recording setting 72,908 campers onto its storied campgrounds over those eight weekends, bolstered by clear weather and anniversary festivities around the festival grounds. In comparison, TRF registered 40,000 campers for the 2023 season. The biggest weekend for TRF camping in 2024 was Barbarian Invasion Weekend, which attracted 15,471 campground patrons.
This year, the festival’s wedding team also hosted 44 wedding ceremonies and 27 receptions on the grounds, with six wedding proposals happening across the eight-week season. According to TRF staff, there are already 20 weddings booked for the 2025 season.
The TRF team isn’t done for 2024 with several appearances lined up for December, including the King of RenFest and his royal entourage attending Dickens On The Strand on Saturday, Dec. 7 and walking in the lantern parade with TRF sponsors Haak Winery. TRF has also teamed up with Toys for Tots to raise funds for its crucial work during the holiday season. Anyone who makes a monetary donation to Toys for Tots through its online portal now through Dec. 24 and enters that the donation is “In honor of the Texas Renaissance Festival” will be entered into a raffle to win a family 4-pack of tickets for TRF’s 2025 season. TRF and the Aerodrome Ice Skating Complex have also partnered to give away five family 4-packs of tickets to holiday ice skating at the facility. Stay tuned to TRF’s social media channels to find out more!
The 2025 season of the Texas Renaissance Festival kicks off on Saturday, Oct. 11 and wraps up on Sunday, Nov. 30.
ABOUT TEXAS RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL
The Texas Renaissance Festival is the nation’s largest and most acclaimed Renaissance-themed event. Established in 1974, the event attracts more than half a million visitors annually to its 70-acre recreation of a 16th-century European village one hour north of Houston. The festival is a celebration of food, fun and artisan markets ensconced in immersive Renaissance-era magic. The 51st season will occur over eight themed weekends from Oct. 11 through November 30, 2025, including Thanksgiving Friday. For more information, visit texrenfest.com.
