Food Fun Family

There’s a New Queen in Town – Medieval Times’ New Storyline

Lolli — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 20:10:17 +0000

Over the years, I’ve had many opportunities to participate in fun family activities with my husband and kids, and I’ve noticed that there are some outings that are more popular than others. Medieval Times is one place that we’ve been to on several occasions but I can guarantee that my family will be excited and eager to go each time. This past week, I was invited to a media night (along with my daughter) to enjoy the new show, meet and chat with the Queen and Head Knight, and even tour the stables to meet the real stars of the show – the horses! Our meals and entertainment were covered, but all thoughts and opinions and photos are our own.

I must say – after seeing the “old” story line half a dozen times or so, I never got tired of the show. However, seeing a totally new story line this past week totally kept me on my toes! It was exciting and action-packed, and it felt like a natural progression to the show I’d seen so many times before. Don’t worry…I’m not going to spoil anything for you if you haven’t been to Medieval Times recently. Just know that the Queen is WONDERFUL (a true leader!) and there IS a twist at the end that is the perfect way to wrap up the knights’ competition.

About the New Show at Medieval Times

For the first time since 2012, Medieval Times has just unveiled a new storyline, featuring a Queen, at its castle located in Hanover, Maryland at Arundel Mills. The Maryland/DC castle is the 8th Medieval Times location in North America to roll out the new show. This new story line is a major break from Medieval Times’ 35-year tradition of casting a king in the show’s lead role. The queen is now in charge and sole ruler of the land, and inherited the throne after the passing of her father, the previous king. She is a firm but kind ruler, respected throughout the kingdom.

The decision to change the story line to feature a queen was based in part on guest feedback that they would like to see women having more significant roles in the show.

What else is new at Medieval Times?

We love Medieval Times for the hot, four-course feast (eaten with your hands!), jousting, swordplay, and the horses (of course!) – and those elements are still there in abundance. Some of the changes, in addition to the updated script are:

• More than 700 new costumes for all nine castles’ performers, including horses, all of which are custom-designed and handmade at a dedicated costume shop in-house.
• The new suits of armour, shields and helmets are custom-designed and handmade at a dedicated armoury in-house.

• Over 200 team members and 20 horses trained and rehearsed new interactions and fight scenes for three months while still presenting the former show.
• For the first time, audiences will see a Queen riding horseback in the Castle.

• New music was composed by Dr. Daniel May, composer and jazz pianist who scored “Everest” and other films and who worked with Sting, The Moody Blues and others. He directed and recorded Medieval Times’ new show composition in Kiev with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine. He directed the choir in Ukraine with lyrics written by poet and choir member, Solomia Gorokhivska, solo cellist, Gloria Caceres, and violinist, Maksym Grinchenko, concertmaster at the National Symphony of Ukraine.

Behind the Scenes at Medieval Times

I loved seeing the horses “backstage” after the show. They are so much bigger up close than I imagined they would be! We were reminded that these horses are work horses – not pets – and at over 1000 lbs each, they are not animals to play around with.

I loved the attitudes of all of the head knight and head horse trainer. They said that the horses didn’t volunteer for this job, so they try to make sure that the horses are treated very well. The horses get more “vacation” days than the people involved in the show – they get to spend a lot of time at the ranch about 15 minutes away from the castle.

Horses used in the Maryland/DC castle, as well as the eight other working castles in North America, are bred and raised on a 280 acre ranch in Texas. Did you know that all of the horses seen at Medieval Times are stallions? They start training at the castles at around three years old, and they practice and exercise every single day. They are athletes and would not be happy if they weren’t exercised regularly.

I can’t wait to go back to Medieval Times again! Have you been? What was your favorite part?

Kicking Off Spring at Medieval Times

Lolli — Tue, 31 Mar 2015 23:49:06 +0000

This weekend, my family and I enjoyed a night at Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament in Hanover, Maryland (courtesy of Medieval Times). This was our fourth visit to the Castle, and the evening was just as enjoyable as our first time.

It’s crazy how much each of the kids gets into the show!

If you’ve never been to Medieval Times, I highly recommend it as an exciting family activity. And right now (through May 3, 2015) you can buy one admission and get one admission free at the Maryland castle with a special code only available to blog readers. I’ve got all the details HERE.

And now…here’s a peak at the excitement we experienced at Medieval Times this weekend:

Spring Break at Medieval Times {BOGO Special}

Lolli — Sat, 14 Mar 2015 15:04:37 +0000

I am excited to tell my Maryland – DC – Virginia readers about a special Spring Break offer at the Maryland Medieval Times. I am even MORE excited that my family and I get to spend another exciting evening at Medieval Times dinner theater. Although we were offered tickets for my family, all thoughts are my own. Enthusiasm is 100% genuine.

It’s not common to find a family activity that is fun and engaging for the little kids, the teens, and the adults alike. But no matter how many times we go back to Medieval Times, we all have a blast.

This Spring, the Baltimore/DC-area Medieval Times is offering an amazing deal for families.

Medieval Times Offers Children Free Spring Break Special

Buy One Adult Ticket, Get another Ticket Free

Get one of the best deals of the season when you visit Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament, Baltimore Castle this Spring Break.

Purchase one full-paid adult admission and receive a second admission free. This offer is valid for all shows through ~~April 12, 2015~~. {This deal has been extended for blog readers ONLY through 5/3/2015!} Must mention or enter discount code BOGORB5 at time of purchase.

Call 1-888-WE-JOUST (935-6878) or visit www.MedievalTimes.com for information and reservations.

*This special offer is only valid at Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament in Hanover, Maryland. May not be combined with any other discount. Certain restrictions apply. Plus tax and processing.

Spring Break at Medieval Times BOGO – PSF Give Me Your Best Shot

Lolli — Thu, 27 Mar 2014 22:42:42 +0000

We LOVE Medieval Times. Yes, this latest family trip to Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament was complimentary, but our enthusiasm for the awesomeness of Medieval Times is 100% authentic.

I’ll apologize upfront for the ridiculous amount of pictures from this latest trip. I swear I deleted dozens of decent pictures before choosing the photos I wanted to feature here.

Before I get started on our amazing experience, I wanted to give a shout out to all of my Washington DC-area readers and friends. I know I’ve heard from a lot of you after posting Instagram pictures from the tournament that you’ve always wanted to bring your family…well I’ve got the perfect chance. During Spring Break next month, you can get Buy-One-Get-One-Free tickets. See the Medieval Times BOGO special below:

Click here {Spring Break BOGO special at Medieval Times Baltimore/DC Castle} to print off the coupon or use the code to order online!

Ok, now back to our exciting time with knights and princesses, horses and hawks…

Our seats for this show were incredible – second row, center section (we had the Royalty Package, which included VIP seating, flags to wave, a commemorative program, and a “behind-the-scenes” DVD). We were SO close to all of the knights and the horses…it was incredible!

This was our third time experiencing Medieval Times as a family, and we still secretly rooted for our first knight (the one in yellow). We were also pretty fond of “our” knight for the knight – the Black and White knight!

One of the things that struck me this time was the fact that the program and script are different every time we go. Sure, there’s a lot that’s very similar, but they keep it fresh. I love that. The King’s Chancellor was quite funny this time around.

As always, the food was incredible. The lights came on long enough for me to snap a quick picture of my chicken (before the potatoes and ribs were delivered). My favorite part of the meal, though, is the delicious tomato soup (see that empty bowl?).

Everything is eaten with your hands. No utensils (kinda fun for the kids!).

One of the highlights of the night was when our knight threw a flower straight to Reese. She caught it and beamed for the rest of the night!

As always, the pageantry and the games were thoroughly entertaining. We cheered a LOT!

In the end, it wasn’t our black and white knight, but our “first” favorite knight, the yellow knight, who won the tournament. We cheered pretty loudly for him!

When the show was over, we were just starting! We set out to meet all of the knights and royalty and the kids had everyone sign their programs and flags.

The knights are all such good sports!

We told our yellow knight that we always rooted for him, no matter what section we were sitting in. He gave us one of his amazing smiles.

We can’t wait to go back again!

Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

To play Give Me Your Best Shot Photo Story Friday, check this. Copy this code into your post and sign the link list:
<center><a href="https://foodfunfamily.com/tag/give-me-your-best-shot" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://mychaosmybliss.com" target="_blank"></a> Hosted by <a href="https://mychaosmybliss.com/" target="_blank">Cecily</a> and <a href="https://foodfunfamily.com" target="_blank">Lolli</a> </center>

An InLinkz Link-up

Royal Falconer – Medieval Times #WW

Lolli — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 01:30:23 +0000

It’s no secret that we are huge fans of Medieval Times. Just this past weekend, we had the chance to go again (yes, it was a complimentary show for us!), and I was finally able to get a decent picture of the Royal Falconer. I am obsessed with birds of prey. I love hawks and falcons and eagles. Love.

More about our trip to Medieval Times coming soon…on a not-so-wordless day!

Have you posted a Wordless Wednesday post on your blog? Link up below for our weekly blog hop!

An InLinkz Link-up

Medieval Times – The Perfect Family New Year’s Eve {PSF – Give Me Your Best Shot}

Lolli — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 03:20:09 +0000

Note: My family was invited to attend a special New Year’s Eve celebration at Medieval Times in Baltimore/Washington D.C. (see my announcement post) but all thoughts, opinions, and pictures are my own.

As I mentioned when we visited Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament last May, our whole family was blown away by the whole experience. The food, the performance, the service, the atmosphere…it’s now one of our favorite places EVER. It’s not every day that a family of seven can find an activity (or even a restaurant!) that everyone is happy with. Medieval Times has definitely made our top 10 activities to do together.

The big surprise of the night on New Year’s Eve was not the fact that kids could be recognized as Honorary Knights and Princesses of the realm or the fact that everyone had just as much fun at our second Medieval Times experience. No, the biggest surprise of the night was the kids’ reaction to “our” knight. The kids recognized their knight from May (they were very fond of him!) – but this time, he was playing the “bad guy.” While the rest of the room was booing him, my kids were (quietly) cheering him on.

Can you blame them for loving this guy? Doesn’t he have the best smile, even as the villain?

Last time we were at Medieval Times, the kids took a picture with “our” knight, and they were really sad that he wasn’t available after the most recent show for picture #2!

From the food and service to the entertainment, it was the perfect way to spend the afternoon of New Year’s Eve with the kids.

Have you ever been to a Medieval Times? We highly recommend it as a fun family activity!

What photos have you taken this week? Please share on this week’s linky.

Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

To play Give Me Your Best Photo Story Friday, check this. Copy this code into your post and sign the link list:
<center><a href="https://foodfunfamily.com/tag/give-me-your-best-shot" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://mychaosmybliss.com" target="_blank"></a> Hosted by <a href="https://mychaosmybliss.com/" target="_blank">Cecily</a> and <a href="https://www.foodfunfamily.com" target="_blank">Lolli</a> </center>

A Medieval New Year #WW

Lolli — Wed, 08 Jan 2014 02:41:33 +0000

This New Year’s Eve, my family and I were invited to the Baltimore/Washington DC Medieval Times for a special family Medieval New Year celebration. More to come on that (I took a TON of pictures!) but for now…

What have you been up to lately?