The Maryland Renaissance Festival’s ticket release day has been a frenzy in recent years, marked by long ticket queues and frustration. But not this year.
Organizers contracted a new ticket vendor, Big Tickets, that streamlined the process. It seems to be paying off, with many Ren Fest fans praising the system.
Jules Smith, president of the Maryland Renaissance Festival, said the ticketing process has initially gone well. Some users experienced glitches or temporary pauses while waiting.
“We’re trying to work through those with people, but when you sell that volume of tickets, you’re always going to have some kerfuffle with it,” he said. “We’re just trying to mitigate that, reduce that with the switch to the new ticket company.”
The Maryland Renaissance Festival, held annually in Crownsville and now in its 50th season, draws people for its medievalesque shows and turkey legs. Organizers say more than 340,000 people attend during the season, averaging over 17,800 each day. Last year, many waited in online queues for hours, with thousands of people ahead of them to purchase tickets. Soon after, organizers promised to remedy the problem.
The smooth rollout can partially be attributed to organizers’ decision to deploy a staggered strategy for the ticket release, dropping only 75% of tickets in the first round.
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The rest will be available in stages. Each week of the festival, an additional 25% of remaining tickets will be put out for those who didn’t want to make a purchase so far in advance, Smith said. Additional tickets will be made available on Mondays.
Smith declined to disclose how many tickets have been sold but said 10 of the 19 dates had already struck the 75% threshold, pushing people into waitlists. In response, some have opted to attend the festival on a different date. People on waitlists will be notified when more tickets become available, either when more are released or from refunds.
Organizers chose to do it this way to make the fair more accessible.
“We’re trying to make it equitable for everybody throughout the run,” Smith said. “So, if they know they’re coming, they can buy in the first 75% group. If they miss that opportunity, more tickets will be available.”
In an online Facebook group called Friends of The Maryland Renaissance Festival with more than 18,000 members, participants asked questions about waitlists and shared their personal experiences with the newer system.
One woman who has been attending the festival for more than 30 years said she couldn’t snag tickets the last three years but was able to do so this week.
“I just want to say THANK YOU because I was finally able to get tickets this year,” she wrote. “The new ticket system worked great!!”
Another person wrote that the new system was worse because the line kept pausing and wait time increased. But two hours later she revised her post, exclaiming that everything had worked out despite the “frustrating experience.”
Another new feature easing the process is automatic refunds. Last year, there were some 53,000 tickets refunded to buyers that had to be manually processed.
The new vendor returns the money right away, save for credit card and processing fees. Refunded tickets then go back into the queue and are made available for purchase.
As the opening weekend nears, organizers are reviving past performances that have not recently been featured, such as Brune, a show-announcing herald. Other activities Smith said attendees should keep an eye out for include lively jousts, the journey to Venice and Hilby, the skinny German juggler and acrobat.
So to fairgoers, here’s to a splendid time. Huzzah!
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