🏰 Canadian Medieval & Renaissance Events — Scholz's Master List 2025
Ontario
🧝 Robin in the Hood Medieval Festival — Elmira, ON (Early May)
This is one of Ontario’s earliest annual medieval fairs. Started in the late 1990s by local teachers and theatre folks, it’s a Robin Hood–inspired charity event. The festival became a community classic — archery, knights, and even a “Ye Olde Food Court.” The founder once said they aimed to “teach through play,” echoing medieval morality pageants.
👑 The Royal Medieval Faire — Waterloo, ON (Mid September)
Running since 1998. It’s held in a park that becomes a fantasy kingdom for one day. Waterloo’s Faire has a soft spot for Shakespearean improvisation and tends to feature local university drama grads — a nice bridge between academia and performance.
🦅 Oxford Renaissance Festival — Woodstock / Thorndale, ON (~June 14–16 2025)
Fun fact: their “siege weapons” demos come from engineers at Fanshawe College. Started small but has grown to full jousts and falconry. Occasionally pulls in performers from the Michigan Ren Fest — cross-border cultural pollination at its best.
⚔️ Upper Canada Village Medieval Festival — Morrisburg, ON (Early June)
Set inside one of Canada’s largest 19th-century living history sites — a bit of an anachronistic backdrop for a medieval event, but that’s part of its charm. The festival’s status has fluctuated, but sword-craft and pageantry linger on in smaller summer events there.
🎭 Country Renaissance Festival — Milton, ON (Early June)
Defunct but legendary — late 2000s to mid-2010s. Some of its crew later migrated to help found Ontario Pirate Festival and Oxford Ren Fest. It was one of the first to combine country fair vendors with historical combat.
🧚 Faery Fest’s Enchanted Ground — Guelph, ON (Mid June, defunct since 2016)
Part ren-fair, part fae gathering. It blurred the line between Celtic folklore and cosplay long before Comic-Con culture took off. The original founders also organized fantasy writing workshops and druid-inspired ceremonies.
🪙 Treasureventure — The Adventure Festival — Rockton, ON (Mid June, defunct)
Think “renaissance fair meets scavenger hunt.” The event encouraged visitors to solve historical riddles for prizes. Conceptually ahead of its time — something between LARP and escape room culture.
⚜️ Kingdom of Osgoode Medieval Festival — Osgoode Village, ON (Early July, hiatus since 2019)
This one was pure community magic: volunteers built an entire “kingdom” with its own lore and yearly story arc. Their motto was “Where History and Fantasy Meet.” In 2017, their “Dragon Quest” storyline even made local CBC coverage.
☠️ Pirate Festival (a.k.a. Ontario Pirate Festival) — Guelph region, ON (Aug 2–4 2025)
Originally in Milton, later Guelph. A pirate haven for rogues and history buffs alike. Features sea shanties, fencing demos, and rum tastings. Interestingly, several Ontario ren-faire bands (like Oromand’s Torch) first performed here before touring the U.S. circuit.
🛡️ Glengarry Renaissance Festival — Maxville, ON (May 31–June 1 2025)
Advertised as “a trip to a Scottish village in the 1500s.” Founded by a group of historical reenactors who wanted something halfway between the SCA and a tourist fair. Fun fact: Glengarry County has actual Scottish heritage — so the accent isn’t just for show.
⚖️ Barony of Ben Dunfirth (SCA) — Hamilton/Brantford/Burlington area, ON
Not a public festival, but a reenactment society dedicated to pre-17th-century crafts, combat, and calligraphy. They trace their name to an old Scots translation meaning “fort of the fortitude.” The group has been active since the 1970s — practically living history in its own right.
🏰 Black Creek Pioneer Village Medieval Weekend — Toronto area (June 20–22 2025)
Black Creek’s roots are 1800s, but for one weekend, it pretends it’s the 1400s. The juxtaposition of red-brick Victorians and chainmail is charmingly off-beat.
🎺 Fergus Medieval Faire — Fergus, ON (July 26 2025)
A smaller town faire that leans toward community pageantry. Fergus has long Celtic ties, so expect pipes, tartans, and bardic storytelling.
🌊 British Columbia
BC Renaissance Festival — Langley, BC (Late July)
Started as a small reenactment weekend in the mid-2000s. Had a “merry anarchy” vibe — closer to early Burning Man than a polished fair. Currently semi-dormant, with rumoured revivals every few years.
⚓ Nova Scotia
Privateer Days — Liverpool, NS (July)
Historical rather than pure fantasy — marks Liverpool’s 18th-century seafaring heyday. One of the oldest maritime heritage festivals in Canada.
Pirates of Jeddore Festival — Mitchell Cove, NS (September)
A more modern, family-oriented event celebrating pirate folklore along Nova Scotia’s Atlantic coast.
🇺🇸 U.S. Fairs within ~200 km of Canada
Michigan Renaissance Festival — Holly, MI (Aug 16–Sept 28 2025)
Huge and deeply theatrical. Dozens of Ontario performers cross the border each year. Fun fact: One of their original jousters later became a fight choreographer for Game of Thrones.
Sterling Renaissance Festival — Sterling, NY (July–Aug 2025)
One of the oldest continuously running ren fairs in North America (founded 1976). Its Elizabethan village was hand-built over decades, giving it unmatched authenticity.
Vermont Renaissance Faire — Stowe, VT (June 21–22 2025)
Smaller, cozier, and surprisingly philosophical — local reenactors pride themselves on “edu-tainment.” Good mix of Roman, Viking, and Celtic displays.
🏺 Pre-1700 / Classical Notes
No major Roman or Greek-only public festivals in Canada yet — but several SCA groups, historical fencing schools, and archaeology clubs do reenactments. Ontario’s Legio XX Valeria Victrix reenactment group sometimes performs at museum events.
Closest full-scale “ancient world” fairs are in the U.S. Northeast (New York, Pennsylvania).
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