Telling Tales Festival – FAQ

Visit our Telling Tales Festival page to find all the information you need on planning your visit, presenters, schedules, and more.

It’s free! However, Telling Tales is a non-profit organization supporting literacy in our community, so donations will be gratefully accepted here or at the gate.

Our 2023 Festival will be live and in person!  It will be a two-day Festival at the Royal Botanical Gardens on September 16 & 17.

Yes, the Festival is free! We encourage you to register in advance as you may be required to show proof of registration when entering the RBG main entrance. Check out our author schedule to be sure you don’t miss your favourite author presentation!

Telling Tales runs rain or shine. There are tents and buildings that offer some shelter.

Feel free to bring blankets and lawn chairs. Bring sunscreen and a hat, and bug spray doesn’t hurt either. We highly recommend that you bring your own reusable water bottle to fill up on fresh, free water at RBG refilling stations and the Quench Buggy, both indicated on the map. Bring an umbrella to chase the clouds away. Bring a few slightly used children’s books to donate to the Book Swap & Shop | Échange et achat de livres and pick up a book bag from the Access Storage tent for your new treasures.

The Festival is a family friendly event that will have programming for children from birth to teens!  Telling Tales has dedicated programming tenets for ages 0-6, 6-8, 9-12, and 13+! Visit the full schedule to see the recommended ages for each presentation.

The Telling Tales 2025 Festival Program is coming in August and available online and can be viewed and downloaded from our site. In an effort to reduce our environmental impact, this has been reduced to a smaller handout but still has all the information you need, including maps and schedules. Printed Festival Programs will also be available at the Information Booth at the entrance to Hendrie Park.

Check out our Reading List to find new favourites from this year and past seasons. You can sort by author/illustrator, title, age/grade, theme, and content warning or download our 2025 Printable Telling Tales Reading List.

Families are encouraged to pick up a scavenger hunt card from the Telling Tales Information Booth.  Once completed please return your card as you exit the park—located at the Telling Tales Information Booth on your way out. For each completed card, you will receive a complimentary book from Scholastic Canada (one per family) and be entered into a draw for a Telling Tales Book/Swag Bag (value $100).

Six winners will be chosen and contacted by email shortly after the Festival.

Yes, for Telling Tales Festival we are allowing pets in Hendrie Park on the day of the Festival, but please ensure they are on leash and good with crowds and children.

We encourage you to bring a few gently used children’s books to swap at the Festival. You can also purchase books at great prices. Remember to pick up a book bag from the Access Storage tent! In 2025, the Book Swap & Shop | Échange et achat de livres is being presented in Partnership with Centre francophone Hamilton, with French books available for swapping and purchase! The Book Swap & Shop | Échange et achat de livres is located in the Rose Garden Tent near food and in the same tent as our Official Book Sales with A Different Drummer Books.

Yes. A Different Drummer Books and Epic Books will be our 2025 Official Booksellers, selling the new books from our presenters. A Different Drummer Books is located East of the central Rose Garden in the Rose Garden Tent for children 0-9 and Epic Books by our Preteen Tent and Young Adult Tent for preteens 9-12 and teens 13+. Autograph Tents are located next to our Official Booksellers.

Yes, refer to the autographing schedule online and plan for this!  The tent is located behind the Rose Garden. Authors love meeting their fans and vice versa.

Select Telling Tales merchandise will be available at this year’s Festival. You can find Telling Tales satin capes, bags, hats, and other neat swag at the Telling Tales Information Booth located after you pass through the tunnel and enter the gardens and at the Rose Garden Tent, next to our Official Bookseller and Book Swap & Shop. All proceeds fund the Festival and literacy programming for our community.

Yes, the washrooms have change tables. We will also have a special Baby Changing/Nursing Tent available for families to use just north of the Scented Garden in one of our Quieter Spaces.

This one’s easy: subscribe to our Newsletter for updates on what we’re up to. You can find a sign up form at the bottom of every page. Don’t forget to connect with us on social media too!

Hendrie Park is accessible. Some venues are in grassy areas. Accessible routes are indicated on signage and maps. Only the RBG nature hikes have limited access as part of it is on a ramp with a steep incline and in the woods. Learn more about Telling Tales’ commitment to accessibility here.

Yes, RBG’s gift shop will be operating in its normal location during the Festival this year. Go to RBG.ca to view regular operating hours.

No, but in an effort to offer cashless solutions Square will be available at the Information/Merchandise Booths, the Book Swap & Shop, and RBG Food Services accept debit and credit cards.

There is free parking at the main entrance to RBG.

However, we encourage you to take public transit, or make use of our free bus service from downtown Hamilton.

Additionally, Telling Tales will be providing shuttle buses starting at ~10:15 AM Saturday and Sunday from Aldershot GO Station at Platform 5, as well as from RBG’s Rock Garden Parking Lot, 1185 York Blvd. (Hamilton).

If all lots are full, overflow parking may be available at the Bayfront Funeral Home, RBG Rock Garden, and on the side streets behind the RBG main office.

We have two food trucks and a BBQ station offering a variety of takeaway foods near the Teen Tent/Main Stage (West Hendrie Park) and the Official Bookseller/Book Swap (East Hendrie Park). There will be halal and vegetarian options available from these food vendors.

The Royal Botanical Garden’s Tea House also has sit down service that requires reservations. If you’re interested in dining in, please reserve your space on RBG’s website in advance of the Festival to avoid disappointment.

The Royal Botanical Garden’s Tea House also has sit down service that requires reservations. If you’re interested in dining in, please reserve your space on RBG’s website in advance of the Festival to avoid disappointment.

Indoors, RBG’s Greenhouse Café offers a new fast casual menu featuring a full complement of wine and beer, coffee and tea, ready made sandwiches and salads, homemade soups, and our signature Tea House scones. Enjoy a quick and nutritious bite to take away or sit down and enjoy your meal!

There are vegetarian, dairy-free, halal, and gluten-friendly options.

Report this to any Telling Tales volunteer or RBG employee you see, or go to the Telling Tales Information Booth at the entrance to Hendrie Park.

Washrooms can be found in the main building and near the Tea Room in Hendrie Park.

Yes! Scan the code you see posted around the Festival—this will take you to the 12-minute survey. Tell us how we did! We want to make the Festival the best possible experience for everyone. As thanks for helping us out, you could win a family pass to a famous Ontario Tourist location.