Ennis + Waxahachie Weekend Itinerary

The short version

Ennis and Waxahachie sit about 15 minutes apart in Ellis County, and their best seasons line up almost perfectly: the Ennis Bluebonnet Trails run April 1–30, and Scarborough Renaissance Festival in Waxahachie runs weekends from mid-April through May (plus Memorial Day Monday). That overlap makes a single spring weekend enough to cover both — wildflowers and open roads on one side, a 35-acre Renaissance village on the other. This itinerary is part of our Things to Do in Ennis hub; pair it with our Dallas day-trip guide if you're deciding between a single day and a full weekend.

Day 1: Ennis

• Morning — Start at the Ennis Welcome Center, 201 NW Main St, for a current trail map and bloom status, then spend a couple of hours on the Bluebonnet Trails. If you'd rather drive an open-cockpit vehicle through the wildflowers than sit behind a windshield, book a 2-hour Slingshot experience — it starts right at the Welcome Center.
• Midday — Lunch downtown; see Where to Eat.
• Afternoon — Walk Downtown Ennis along Dallas Street, then the Ennis Railroad & Cultural Heritage Museum a few blocks over. If it's a weekend, Sugar Ridge Winery in Bristol makes a good late-afternoon stop.
• Evening — Check in to your Ennis hotel or B&B (see Where to Stay) and have dinner downtown.

Day 2: Waxahachie & Scarborough Renaissance Festival

• Morning — Drive about 15 minutes northwest to Waxahachie. If Scarborough Renaissance Festival is running that weekend (weekends from mid-April through May, plus Memorial Day), plan to arrive when gates open to beat the midday crowds and heat.
• Midday–afternoon — Spend the day at the Faire — the 35-acre village, jousting, and roughly 200 shoppes are enough to fill most of a day on their own.
• Late afternoon — If you have energy left, Waxahachie's own historic downtown and courthouse square are worth a short walk before heading home or back to your Ennis lodging.

When to go

The tightest overlap is any April weekend once both the Bluebonnet Trails (open the full month) and Scarborough Renaissance Festival (weekends starting mid-April) are running. May weekends still have the Faire but the bluebonnets will be fading or gone, so lead with Ennis in April if the flowers are the priority. Memorial Day weekend is the last Scarborough weekend of the season and also overlaps with Ennis's own National Polka Festival — a three-way pairing if you want to build a longer trip. See the Events Calendar for what else is on the schedule.

Where to stay

Ennis has a small set of hotel and bed-and-breakfast options close to downtown and the Welcome Center — full details on Where to Stay. If you'd rather anchor the weekend in Waxahachie, its historic district has additional lodging, including bed-and-breakfast properties within a few minutes of the Scarborough Faire grounds.

FAQ

Can you visit Ennis and Waxahachie in the same weekend? Yes — they're about 15 minutes apart, and their peak seasons overlap almost exactly. The Ennis Bluebonnet Trails run April 1–30, and Scarborough Renaissance Festival in Waxahachie runs weekends from mid-April through May, so a single spring weekend can cover both.

Is Scarborough Renaissance Festival close to Ennis? Yes. Scarborough Renaissance Festival is held in Waxahachie, roughly 15 minutes northwest of Ennis, making it easy to combine a bluebonnet-trail morning with a Renaissance-festival afternoon on the same day.

Where should I stay for an Ennis and Waxahachie weekend? Ennis has a handful of hotel and B&B options close to downtown and the Welcome Center; see our Where to Stay page for specifics. Waxahachie has additional lodging, including bed-and-breakfast properties in its own historic district, if you want to split the weekend between the two towns.

Start the weekend in Ennis

Book a Slingshot experience for Day 1 and drive the Bluebonnet Trails before heading to Waxahachie for Day 2.