HUZZAH! Who doesn't love a good renaissance fair visit? This is my third time going but my first as…read morean Arizona resident. Each and every time has been great. It's a hit or miss with the weather, you might get 70° and you might get 100° but that's just the look of the draw and the season. Pro tips: arrive early to avoid crazy traffic, bring an umbrella for some sunshade, you can bring one sealed bottle of water per person, and wear shoes that you're not afraid to get dusty. There's plenty of food & drinks for purchase (cash only), lots of shops with great trinkets & garb, tons of shows like the main joust and fire whip, a petting zoo area and lots of walking. It's fun for all ages! Don't be afraid to dress up & live your full on fantasy.

Huzzah! I attended the Houston Renaissance Festival three times over the years. It's one of the…read morelargest in the world and there's even an HBO documentary about it. So, I was excited to see how the Arizona Renaissance Festival compared. I stopped by with two friends on a Saturday close to 1 p.m. The start of the experience wasn't great. We hit bad traffic on the way there which extended our commute time by about 45 minutes. From what I've read, this seems to be the norm. I wish there was someway around that. But, once we arrived, things got a lot better! Since it was our first time, we spent a good amount of time walking around and taking it all in. We drank some mead (which is obligatory at ren fest). We had some good food. I had a sausage on a stick. I'll get to the rest lately. Also grabbed a refreshing smoothie. You have a good variety of food options with all that you would expect including turkey legs. The highlight for me was stumbling across chimney cakes. If you've never had them before, it's a must. They're a famous Hungarian/Romanian dessert which I wasn't expecting to come across here. This dessert has been a thing for hundreds of years and they will make them fresh for you. I had a S'mores one. Prices for food and drinks are reasonable by festival standards. Outside of food and drinks, there's plenty to entertain you. There are vendors selling everything under the sun. A lot of people dress up (which makes for elite people watching) and they have themed weekends (Celtic Weekend when we attended as it was close to St. Paddy's Day). A bunch of performances at various stages throughout the park. They have three jousting performances daily that are held at their biggest arena. We attended one of them. While it was quite hot when we were there, we still had a great time. You can bring in an unopened water bottle and a backpack. There are water fountains outside of the bathrooms. Lines for food and drinks tend to be too long. That's one of the only downsides of the experience. Also, if you get your ticket from Basha's, you'll save less than a dollar compared to the price of buying your ticket online. So not really worth it unless you're already planning to shop there. Parking is sponsored by Basha's and it's free so that part is appreciated. While I don't think I would go to ren fest every year, it is a cool experience that I'd check out every other year or so. I'd definitely love to check out some more of their performances. And continue to get into character by referring to everyone as my lord or your grace.

This year I went to the Arizona Taco Festival early on the second day Sunday. I accidentally got a…read morebetter parking space but most people did park a mile away. It wasn't busy early on Sunday and I didn't have to wait in line at most places. General admission was around $15.00 but they had a half price special on Groupon but you still had to purchase the tacos and beverages yourself. Most tacos ran around $3.50 with tax and water or soda ran a little over $4.00. They also offered other activities but most required extra admission pricing. For me the problem was that I didn't get to taste one very good taco. Nearly all the tacos were served with un-grilled tortillas. (we only got one cooked tortilla. The majority of the proteins were tough...or if they were good then the tacos were made without vegetables/herbs. One place served cold dry food. Another place served their taco on a tortilla that was exposed to a lot of air that became air-crisp. We received smelly shrimp from one place. One place almost served very good tacos but for some odd reason they squirted in a big spoonful of mayonnaise into each taco that was gross in the mouth. The worst taco was from a place that must of accidentally dumped a container of salt into their taco mix and just didn't care about what they were serving. It seemed like most of the vendors were out of their element and were putting out whatever. Getting beverages was difficult. We were NEXT in line and they spent a good 20 minutes with the people in front of use messing with ID's and stuff. We didn't get beverages there and waited for the next tent. Of course it was impossible (stomach-wise and money-wise) to try every taco there and I could have missed a good one or two? In the end we spent a lot of money for food that wasn't good. I doubt I'll ever try this again.

Honestly, all outdoor events held during the middle of the day in Phoenix/Scottsdale should be held…read morelater in the year. We were excited that the event was held at WestWorld this year but holy crap - parking was so friggin far. Not that we're out of shape or anything but walking about a mile from your car to the entrance of the festival in 90 degree weather sucks. Sucks a lot. Expect to sweat! Thankfully, we escaped the sun to watch some lucha libre in a huge tent. Some relief is better than none. Waiting in the lines was almost unbearable. There were times that I skipped a booth because I didn't want to wait in the heat. You could see some vendors sweating from running around their booths and cooking up the food. I tried to not think about that when I ate my tacos. You wouldn't think some of the best tacos came from the Scottsdale Community College booth but they were so darn good. They even had a ghost pepper salsa that had a great kick. We sampled the chicken and pork tacos there. They actually won Best Beef Tacos this year! Bummer, we didn't try the beef. I know we got tacos from them the last few years and enjoyed them as well. Last year alone, they won so many awards. Seemed like the organizer for the event this year didn't think things through. Does it make sense to pay $20 for a parking space and then $15pp to get in? Nope. Luckily, our admission was paid for by friends. I thought I was going to preferred parking but ended up in the free parking lot so that saved me $20. We had fun but not an event we would pay to get into.

We've been going to the fall festival for years now. It is the same thing every year. The kids…read morestill love it. My 6yr old just became big enough to go down the slide and was ecstatic to go down after waiting for like 3 yrs. Definitely buy tickets ahead.

What a great time!! Plenty to do for the entire family. Pumpkin patch area in the front if you…read moredon't opt in to do the Fall Festival - no entry fee required for that and pricings are very reasonable! We got a giant pumpkin for our toddler to carve when we went on the weekend and there were way too many people for our liking. We came back during the week and it was much better so I would suggest going during the week right when they open at 3pm so you've got plenty of time to enjoy all the festivities. Admission: $12 general admission $10 with donated canned goods $6 for one-day pre-sale Kids 2 and under are free :) Free parking! I love that admission includes so many activities for kids to keep busy for hours. This year they added in a photo booth at the entrance which is so cute to help capture memories - often time it's hard to get a picture of the entire family if one person has to be the photographer so I hope this stays for the years to come! Corn maze, pallet maze, jumpers, train ride, petting zoo, slides, etc. are included. Food for petting zoo ($2) and pony rides ($5) are extra. Some things to keep in mind: They do not enforce mask policies here - you can wear them if you want to. Very dusty from all the dirt so maybe masks would be a good idea :) I would recommend wearing close toed shoes because of all the dirt/dust so you don't end up with brown feet... unless you're into that!

I like chocolate. I like chiles. I also have a paid membership to the botanical gardens which means…read morethe event was free for us. So, it was a match made in chocolate-chile heaven! We got here on Sunday around 3:30-4 so while the weather was absolutely gorgeous unfortunately there weren't a lot of samples and vendors left. The most memorable sample I tried was from Xocolatl who sells a divinely nuanced Oaxacan hot chocolate from Mexico. In addition to chocolate there were booths with pepper jelly, dried peppers, and there was a vendor that was selling roasted Anaheim chiles for $3.75/lb. (I thought this was odd since the entire booth was covered in poblano peppers which made me think the roasted peppers were actually going to be poblanos). There was also live music to enjoy and a cash bar. While I was disappointed there weren't more booths to browse through it might be because we came so late in the day on the last day of the festival. If I go again in the future I'll go earlier on the weekend. 3.5/5.

Our family loves going to the pumpkin patch every year! The lines are relatively short and I…read moreappreciate that many of the attractions are included with the entrance fee. Things continue to improve year to year! Would definitely recommend to anyone looking for some fall fun!

Marana Pumpkin Patch is located in a beautiful location. The park is super clean with lots of…read morethings to do for the whole family, and if you are or know a train lover you have to see the train depot and go for a ride. I wish I would have taken the train ride first to better plan where I wanted to go. There is plenty to do that are included with the admission, but there are several things that have an extra fee such as the zip line, paint ball and rides. So it is really upto guests to determine their budget. There are options for food with plenty of seating. Overall, I think this is a good value for an afternoon of family fun while getting fresh air, but it can get costly if guests choose to add on things.

Boyce Thompson was a quick drive from the Phoenix valley! It was such a beautiful park. Plenty of…read moreparking and they do charge an entry fee but well worth it for the trails. We will be back to visit for sure! Xo -BB

A lovely place to walk around and enjoy varied desert plants and nature…read more We stopped here on a Sunday during a food festival event and had a nice time. They have many paths to walk around, some with a little shade and others completely exposed to the sun. They had a few fun food trucks and vendors on that day. There are also volunteers in various areas open to chatting and answering questions, some very loquacious. They're open even earlier in the summer which is essential to avoid the inevitable heat. A common spot for engagement or wedding photos, on this day there was surprisingly a group that got a little tipsy and were gently and firmly encouraged to leave. If you and another come here twice a year at least, it's worth an annual membership at $79. You also then get guests in for $5 and a 10% discount at the store. And it's a cute little store. You also get reciprocal membership to some other places and special events throughout the year.

Such a chill and friendly farmers market! Everyone was super kind which made us feel right at home…read more We grabbed some coffee from the cutest little truck (bless it, because I was running on zero sleep thanks to my sick baby ). If you're in town and looking for something lowkey and relaxing, this is your spot!

Small but great farmer's market in downtown Show Low, AZ. It is in Historic Downtown Show Low in…read morethe "Festival Marketplace" on Cooley Street between 9th and 11th by the by the Cardplayers"statue. They have all sorts of arts & crafts, home decor, soaps & creams, plants, local fruits and vegetables, as well as, cooked and prepared foods. It's fun to walk and look at all the stands and see and smell what they sell. Every stand seems to have something I would use but I really go there for the fresh local organic vegetables. I love the Hi~Vibes Farm Microgreens. They are so fresh, tasty and impossible to find anywhere else in town. My new fav is the tortillas & tortilla chip stand. The chips look better than store but when we tasted them-wow, fresh tasting & delicious! The owner uses fresh sweet corn to make her own masa! Then, makes her own tortillas and chips!! The tortilla chips are cooked in olive oil at the proper temperature so they're not greasy. We bought a huge bag for $6. Because they are fresh, you can refrigerate or freeze them.We also found fresh, ripe peaches that come from Colorado. They smelled delicious before you even went in for your first bite. They were so juicy!! I will definitely go back for these!! I will definitely be back as many Saturdays as I can. It is one of my favorite things to do and you get to enjoy your purchases all week long! I recommend it highly!

Had a day off from work and decided to visit this hidden gem. It's a small, intimate botanical…read moregarden that is absolutely beautiful. My only negative is that I wish there were more areas to sit down and take in the scenery.. I was happy to discover a shaded area with a table and some chairs near a chicken coop where I was able to enjoy Mother Nature. There also are stations to get food to feed the animals like the chicken, duck and fish. Also, when you enter the botanical garden, they give you a wristband that allows you to leave and re-enter for the day which is great especially because there are a couple of fun places with activities and restaurants right in the same area as the garden!!

Beautiful, relaxing, and peaceful. After the garden, we went to eat at the BBQ restaurant and it…read morewas DELICIOUS! Loved it!

Had a lot of fun! The decorations were beautiful, and they had informative signs that taught me a…read morelot about Chinese culture. It was also nice to watch the martial arts stage performances.

Petting zoo, food vendor market and uhaul all in 1 place…read more Nice folks run this place chickens and goats available for pets. You can walk around get some yummies while enjoying this little gem. Great place to bring the Littles!

Kiddo loved the animals and I think it's cool that all the animals are rescues! Some of the…read moreenclosures could use some love though and I thought there were some enclosures with too many animals. A cheap and fun activity though.