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.

We've attended the Arizona Renaissance Festival a couple of times many years apart and had a great…read moretime. I think the ticket pricing is fair, for a full day of entertainment. It includes entry and all the shows. Food, souvenirs, and any extra entertainment, like the carnival games, are extra, but honestly, also reasonably priced. We arrived about 1/2 hour prior to when the festival opened, on opening weekend, and there was a pretty long line already formed, so definitely get there early if you're wanting to get in right at open. Parking was extremely well organized; the line to get in, not as much, but they were pretty efficient in getting people in. The shows we went to were entertaining. Most of them have multiple show times; the festival map and show schedule is posted on their website well in advance, so you can plan ahead. I'm terrible at directions as it is, but I did find the map a little challenging to follow so I was mostly just walking around until I found what I wanted. With that being said, I'd recommend giving yourself a good amount of time to get to where you're going, because sometimes it is a bit of a walk. Also, the shows get busy, so if you want to sit, you'll want to arrive early. I like checking out the juggling show, London Broil, and the Tournament of Kings. Food isn't my favorite but they have choices from the big turkey leg to bangers & mash, but also fried rice and tandoori chicken. Definitely check this one out!

Great neighborly atmosphere out there. The food trucks are good. Pricey but good. Definitely not an…read moreevery weekend thing, but worth going to. My family and I enjoy dinner there each picking from our favorites and sitting at the picnic table to eat. Table behind us was packed with a family and/or friends. About 20 of them, just having a grand ole time. It's nice when people can get together for a good time, with good food, and good music. The young guy out there singing those country hits was a nice touch. Our family isn't big into country music, but we enjoyed his playing. All in all I liked it a lot. Just wish it didn't cost you an annual bonus just to eat there. I kid, but it is pricey.

Think this is a great idea! About twenty food trucks lined up in a circle on Friday nights with…read morelive music. This event allows you to try out many of the local food trucks. Some of them offer some outstanding food. There are some benches and chairs set out so you can enjoy the food and music. I recommend you to bring your own chairs. They have a selection of pizza, BBQ, burgers, chicken, and many many more. There are desert trucks also!! We are planning to make this our Friday night event.

WOW! the hawaiian/poly culture in Arizona is on fire! -thank you to the AMAZING performers who…read moreshared their talents & the hosts who introduced each performance!!! -food plates priced right w/enough food for two to share. -drinks pricey at $15 for a 32oz.

From a foodie perspective, this is one of my favorite cultural festivals in AZ! The aloha festival…read moreputs on such a fun festival with SO MANY yummy food vendors We went on a Saturday and the lines were very long but the food was actually delicious and worth the price! Some of the things we ordered were malasadas, short ribs and garlic shrimp, macadamia nut waffle with coconut chicken, and pulled pork Mac and cheese! There were a ton more food options but some of the lines were just too long to wait in. I would suggest getting their earlier to have more time to visit the booths! There was also plenty of dancers and Polynesian entertainment on the main stage. Overall, I'm sad this is only once a year but glad I got to go this year!

Was blown away by the 4th annual Day of Play held over at Tumbleweed. Day of Play is a statewide…read morecelebration to promote health, fitness & wellness for kids of all ages. The best part....it's all FREE (except for the 5k race) - 10 or so inflatables / slides to let the kiddies jump till their eyes popped out http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/7ppWB_-VhrePMxrQDEFFtw?select=Tm2wY5z7LkJ6GPnYtSBGcA - 2 stages with performances from dance to Aikdo to Mascot Olympics: Sun Devil's Sparky Carndials' Big Red Coyotes' Howler Diamondback's Baxter & Sun's Gorilla http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/7ppWB_-VhrePMxrQDEFFtw?select=6Uc9PzmtRSHNoJ5JZFqTQg - 80+ booths from non-profit org, local biz & municipal that provided games / freebies / nicknaks / educational information to keep you & your family healthy & happy - Photo opp w/ SpongeBob & Dora http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/7ppWB_-VhrePMxrQDEFFtw?select=dj7Mt9qE6pSkV7EB4NH1yQ - Food vendor giving out free samples / certificated for free kids meals - Face painting, crafts, tug-o-war w/ NFL alumni, water balloon....etc We only played for 2 1/2 hours since they shut down at noon but the kiddies would be here all day if I let them. Next year, I need to start a little earlier or do the 5k walk/run. Even though temps were in the high 80's it got really hot towards the end. Luckily, they provided bottle waters for everyone (room temperature but can't complain). Remember to bring a hat, stroller (to hold all the freebies) & make the kiddies wear their tennis shoes in case they participate in any sports event

What a fun event! Lots of food and merchandise vendors. Plenty of parking. Live performances on…read morestage. Worth a look!

The Superstition Mountain Lost Dutchman Museum, is set on a 15-acre parcel in the shadow of the…read morebeautiful Superstition Mountains. The museum, itself, showcases the Apache origins of the land while the outbuildings include what remains of the Apacheland Movie Ranch (it largely suffered in a fire in 2004), a working 20-stamp gold mill, the chapel Elvis filmed "Charro!" in, the Apacheland barn, a historical model railroad, Western storefronts, a gift shop/bookstore, and a labeled nature trail. Things of note The Apacheland Barn houses a number of horse-drawn buggies and carts used in 17 television series, 29 full-length feature films, and hundreds of commercials filmed on the site. The buildings scattered around the land include a few Old West scenes and full-size dioramas, complete with plenty of mannequins depicting the scenes. The "crown jewel" is the "Elvis Chapel" - a mini-museum and wedding chapel dedicated to "the King" and his unique western movie, "Charro!" also filmed on site. It is a GREAT way to spend a couple of hours!

To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect, but my son and I are on spring break and I have to keep…read morethis 4 year old busy! I learned several things here... 1) it's a bit of a hike, which I wasn't prepared for 2) Always carry water in your purse (I didn't) 3) carry tweezers and bandaids (splinters happened) 4) these volunteers were the most knowledgeable and friendliest people I have ever met 5) Elvis Presley spent time in AJ. I think it is definitely worth the trip out and it was interesting enough, until my son strayed from the path and a cholla stung him. I took several photos. It was a gorgeous day in March.

This year was the 3rd annual South Pacific Island Festival and the first time visiting the festival…read morefor us. The downtown Mesa location was perfect with lots of areas to sit and it was no problem finding parking close by. The festival itself is very small and has a limited number of food and merchandise vendors but it was still fun to browse the wares and we tried out some food we had never had before. The main draw at this festival is probably the cool acts on the stage. There was fire dancing, some trivia, and all sorts of different cultural dances which we enjoyed. For the future it would be nice to see a list of vendors online and also a list of the different acts and performances so we know what time to come. We got here towards late afternoon and it looked like a few vendors had already packed up and left which was disappointing since the event was supposed to be going on until 9 and there weren't that many vendors to begin with. Some vendors I remember at the festival: - Aloha Express - Afe Mai island cuisine - Island Boba - Rohana Face Painting - Malasadas booth As for merchandise, there were a lot of island pride merchandise (i.e., Samoan, Hawaiian), sarongs, the requisite Hawaiian shirts, and jewelry. There was also a fabric merchant there selling beautiful bolts of island prints. If only I had better sewing skills I'd be tempted to get a few yards of something!

We love to festival so we walked from the apartment down to the festival. It was dog friendly so…read morebrining Bella was a fun perk. It was great to see so many people walking around enjoying the food, music, and cooler weather. The booth vendors were all friendly and served is some really tasty Filipino food (Lechon Paksiw and pork skewers) and Mexican drinks (lemon lime & Strawberry). I am sure the music and dancers were voluntary but we were hoping to see a bit more diversity in the performers. All that did perform were fantastic and provided great energy to the festival.

I didn't expect too much from this little event but I was surprising entertained…read more The Multiculture Fest highlights our cultural diversity through music, dance, art, storytelling and more. This free event was held in the downtown Chandler Library Plaza. Parking was plentiful (library garage) and lots of room to roam. The 2011 event had 2 stages. They performances ranged from Flamenco dancing, American Indian hoop dancing, Japanese Aiko, Jaguar step team, Chinese dances, & African rooted music w/ Puerto Rican dance forms. The stage was a little small from some of the performers so they did their thing on concrete. The food vendors were as mixed as the performances from Indian fry breads, Navajo tacos, tamales, beef kabob, mini donuts, crepe lunch truck, dipping dots, Caribbean cuisine & Mexican paletas. There's the usually fare of shaved ice, kettle corn, & hot dogs. There were plenty of tables to eat & sit on. Food & drinks prices were very reasonable. The arts / craft vendors were very limited. For free kiddie fun, there was 1 jumpy and climbing ring which were too crowded from my small kids. Tips: use the library restrooms if you hate the potty johns.