Renaissance Faire returns this weekend in Escondido

Shine your armor and get out your best gown, because the Escondido Renaissance Faire is coming on Saturday and Sunday as well as Saturday, April 30 and Sunday, May 1.

Visitors can enjoy a wide variety of merchants and vendors, as well as entertainers ranging from pirates to kings and queens.

The faire runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on both Saturdays and Sundays and will be held at Felicita County Park, 742 Clarence Lane in Escondido.

Entrance is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors 62 and up and $8 for children for a single day, or $26 for adults, $20 for seniors and $12 for children for a weekend pass. Active military with ID is $12 for a single ticket or $20 for the weekend.

Tickets are available online at oldetymeproductions.com for a $1.50 fee per ticket, or at the park the day of the event for no additional fee.

Parking is $3 and must be paid at the gate.

Visitors are welcome to bring food and soft drinks to enjoy at the fair, but alcohol is not allowed to be brought into the park. Leashed pets are welcome, though horses or other large animals are not. The park is handicap accessible.

Visitors are encouraged, though not required, to come in an Elizabethan period or pirate-themed costume.

The faire will offer all kinds of activities, including entertainment on three themed stages, period music, battle pageants, renaissance arts and crafts vendors, children’s games and an assortment of food and drink.

The entertainment on the stages begins at 11 a.m. both days.

One of the main attractions of the faire is the queen’s court. The queen’s arrival will be at 11 a.m., with a church service on Sunday, and the queen’s parade will be at noon.

The queen’s justice event will be at 12:30 p.m. on the Pirates Cove stage, and the royal court will receive visitors and knights questers at 1 and 5 p.m.

Any young person wishing to embark on a quest for knighthood should inquire at the royal court and speak to any courtier to receive an invitation.

Battle and weapon demonstrations will be held throughout the day, as well as battles themselves.

At 2 p.m. each day will be a battle pageant. Visitors are welcome throughout the day to join the queen’s questers; visit the pirates in Pirate’s Cove; watch the archers tournament at 4 p.m., where visitors can also get archery lessons and much more.

For a full list of vendors and a schedule of events, visit oldetymeproductions.com