Hoggetowne Medieval Faire returns to downtown

A girl uses a staff to fend off her opponent during the Living Chessboard tournament.
A girl uses a staff to fend off her opponent during the Living Chessboard tournament at the 2024 Hoggetowne Medieval Faire.
Photo by Megan V. Winslow

The annual Hoggetowne Medieval Faire is back for its 38th year, once again holding an abbreviated version at Depot Park in Gainesville, instead of its traditional three-weekend event. 

The Faire will run 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Jan. 25-26 with free admission. 

Rain or shine, Depot Park will be filled with artisans and craftspeople, old-world demonstrations and stage combat, as well as medieval music and dance, a living chessboard, ceremonies and food. 

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EZ Event Rides will provide round-trip shuttles from Gainesville’s Downtown Parking Garage at 220 SE 2nd Ave., and the Southwest Downtown Garage at 105 SW 3rd St. The last tram will leave Depot Park at 6:20 p.m. 

The Hoggetowne Medieval Faire is organized each year by the city of Gainesville Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs. In 2024, the event moved downtown as a single-weekend festival with free admission because the city cannot control entry at Depot Park. 

The event used to take place at the former Alachua County Fairgrounds, then a vacant land parcel off Archer Road, but the city has been hunting two years now for a permanent location where the Faire can stretch three weeks, with admission costs that pay to keep it running. 

This year’s Faire will be the last that the city can afford to pay out of reserve funds. 

More information about the event is available at hoggetownemedfaire.com

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