Whether you’re making your first trip to the 2016 fair this week, or returning for the fifth time to sample that fried delicacy you couldn’t quite fit on your previous visits, it’s best to go prepared. Before getting into our guide to Week No. 3 of the State Fair of Texas, a couple notes:
- Friday, Oct. 14, is First Responder Day, when emergency personnel — law enforcement officers, firefighters, and paramedics, active or retired — receive free admission. First responders should bring a badge or ID and up to three family members, who will also get in free.
- A new addition to the Cotton Bowl’s college football calendar is set for Saturday, Oct. 15, when the Air Force Academy plays the University of New Mexico. It’s not an historic rivalry on the level of, say, Texas-OU, but it should make for some exciting college football nonetheless, with the added bonus of being much less crowded than the Longhorns-Sooners match-up of last week.
For more of our State Fair coverage, including some great photos by the intrepid Jason Janik, go here.
A map of the fairgrounds, which you should click to see in full-size, is below, followed by our tips for this week.
What to See and Do
Seeing and doing at the State Fair is much more pleasant in the company of that special someone, that first date, or that somewhat significant other. With that in mind, take a look at our guide to an ideal romantic date night in the land of Big Tex.
Visit the Canstruction exhibit in the Science Place. Local organizations, using canned food that will be donated to the North Texas Food Bank, build structures in keeping with the fair’s theme of “Celebrating Texas Agriculture.” The agri-architecture shows just how innovative North Texans can be, and it’s for a good cause.
An exhibition dedicated to Taylor Swift continues in the Hall of State, and the Sistine Chapel imitation (for which admission costs $8) remains in the Women’s Museum. But we’re partial to the Texas-centric exhibits in the Hall of State: “Six Nations Over Texas,” “Ways of the West,” and “Vaquero: Genesis of the Texas Cowboy.” It is, after all, the State Fair of Texas.
Everybody takes a selfie with Big Tex. Rarer is the selfie with the Budweiser Clydsedales, at Chevy Park Plaza.
The Xpogo extreme sports and pogo showcase defies gravity and a sense of self-preservation daily.
Stroll around Fair Park, appreciate the Art Deco architecture and charming scenery of one of Dallas’ public treasures, and imagine how nice it would be if the space was put to good use the 11 months of the year the State Fair of Texas is not in town. Perhaps take a walk through a parking lot and imagine it transformed into a green space — an actual park at Fair Park.
The Wild West Pet Palooza is an adorably daily show featuring animals doing tricks.
The fireworks and light show “Illumination Sensation” is on the Esplanade every night at 8 p.m.
Take a ride on the carousel and enjoy the lights and sights of the midway. Not too high, not too fast, and, with no prizes to lure you in, you won’t drop hundreds of tickets trying to win that stuffed Spongebob.
Planning to shop ’til you drop? Consult this list of vendors and 18(!) market spots around the fair.
International dance groups perform in Marine Corps Square in front of the Women’s Museum every weekend. Here’s the performance schedule for Friday and Saturday:
| Saturday, October 15 | Just Fabulous Belly Dance | 10:00am, 10:50am |
| Samba Vida Drum & Dance | 10:20am, 12:00pm | |
| Keola’s Hula Hulau | 11:10am, 1:50pm | |
| Brazen Bellies | 11:40am, 12:30 | |
| Lee’s White Leopard Kung Fu School | 12:50pm, 2:40pm | |
| Chilean Folklife | 1:20pm, 3:40pm | |
| Ballet Folklórico Festival | 2:20pm, 4:40pm | |
| Faisan Folklorico Mexican Dance | 3:10pm, 5:20pm | |
| Mitotiliztli Yaoyollohtli | 4:10pm, 6:10pm | |
| Panamanian Folklore Dancers Of Killeen | 5:00pm, 6:40pm | |
| SANJ Bhangra | 5:50pm, 7:00pm | |
| Sunday, October 16 | Chilean Folklife | 10:00am, 2:00pm |
| Faisan Folklorico Mexican Dance | 10:30am, 2:50pm | |
| The Desert Diamonds | 11:00am, 1:00pm | |
| Pomegranate Vibrato | 11:30am, 3:40pm | |
| SANJ Bhangra | 11:50am, 2:30pm | |
| Samba Vida Drum & Dance | 12:10pm, 1:30pm | |
| Ballet Folklórico Festival | 12:40pm, 3:20pm | |
| Daniel de Córdoba Bailes Españoles | 4:00pm, 6:30pm | |
| Zorya Ukrainian Dance Ensemble | 4:20pm, 6:00pm | |
| Na’Di El-Raks | 4:50pm, 5:40pm | |
| I Colori Italiani of the Italian Club of Dallas | 5:10pm, 6:50pm |
For a full State Fair of Texas daily entertainment schedule so overwhelmingly comprehensive it will fry your brains, go here.
What to Listen to
The headliners at the Chevrolet Main Stage:
- Oct. 14: The Peterson Brothers at 5:30 and 8:30 p.m.
- Oct. 15: Nelly at 8:30 p.m.
- October 16: Le Freak at 3 and 5:30 p.m.
And here’s the lineup of regional performers on the main stage:
The Tejas Brothers hand off the honor of daily performances at the Bud Light Sound Stage to Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band on Oct. 16, and the Light Crust Doughboys take over daily show duty at the Dr Pepper Stage on Oct. 16.
For more on the best live music at the fair and our recommendations, go here.
What to Eat, Drink, and Consume
Vegetarians don’t have to miss out on all the fried fun. It is, in fact, possible to go meat-free at the State Fair, and our vegetarian’s guide to fair food is the proof. Vegans may have a tougher time.
Grab an adult beverage at either the Magnolia Beer Garden or the State Fair Wine Garden. Kick back at the mobile beer truck of Beer Haven.
New fried confections this year include Fried Jell-O, sodas in edible cups, and deep fried nachos. We’re partial to the deep fried chicken pot pie. To find all these delicious dishes, go here.
Food discounts are most prevalent on Thrifty Thursdays, when many fair favorites are offered at a discount. Go here to see the deals included in the program.
Creative cook-offs are at 10:30 a.m. every day in the Creative Arts Building. The Celebrity Chef Kitchen, in the same building, is also open daily. That schedule can be found here.
For Your Information
State Fair Hours:
- Gates open: 10 am
- State Fair Building and exhibits hours: 10 am-10 pm
- Midway hours: 10 am-10 pm
Admission tickets are available at bigtex.com, at a Kroger or Walgreens near you, or at the gates of Fair Park. Food, rides, and some other activities will require the purchase of extra coupons, which you can get at the fair or order online.
A general admission ticket is $18 for adults, and $14 for children and seniors. Download the DART GoPass app for $2 off admission.Go here for more ways to save at the fair, and keep reading to learn how to take advantage of daily deals.
Daily discounts:
- Tuesdays: Trade a Dr Pepper can for a $5 ticket.
- Wednesdays: Exchange four cans of food, to be donated to the North Texas Food Bank, for a $4 entry ticket.
- Thursdays: Bring a 20 oz. bottle of Coke for $6 admission. Seniors (60 and older) get in for free. And if you’ve got a real hankering for fried food, Thrifty Thursdays — a discount promotion on fair food — is back in full force.
- Fridays: Visit 106.1 KISS-FM’s website to print off a ticket for $5 admission.
- Daily: Come after 5 p.m. and trade a Dr Pepper can for half-off admission.
The fair runs through Oct. 23.
