Carnival & Fair News

The Kentucky State Fair continued its post-pandemic growth with a strong outing this year. The website claims attendance is more than 600,000. For two consecutive years, the fair hasn't made attendance figures public, although by all accounts turnout remains on-par with previous years. Weather was less than ideal on some days – lingering heatwaves likely impacted attendance negatively and a severe rainstorm forced an early closure and cancellation of fair stage stalwarts The Happy Together Tour.

Attendance may have taken a downtick but it was still robust, the fairgoers enthusiastic and ready to spend. “The Kentucky State Fair was wildly successful this year,” said Lexie Ratterman, Sr. Communications Manager, Kentucky State Fair. “With large crowds, great weather, new activations and vendors, and so much more guests enjoyed an incredible 11 days of excitement.”

She insisted that “Final attendance numbers are not currently available,” adding that overall “The weather was great! While we've done have warmer temperatures, our guests were able to cool down inside our buildings with 1.2 million square feet of indoor, air-conditioned space.”

Kentucky Taglines

Year-to-year attendance figures are only one metric and it's questionable how much a year-to-year fluctuation indicates about the outcome of an annual tradition like the state fair. Less quantifiable but perhaps more indicative are the less tangible aspects of the event. “The vibes were energetic this year,” said Ratterman. Our tagline All Things Kentucky All in One Place fully captured the vibes of the fair. Every corner you turned, you could shop local vendors, indulge in KY Proud food, celebrate blue ribbon wins, and explore what Kentucky has to offer. “

Encouraging a statewide sense of community and pride has been a priority for the fair as well as a winning strategy. Last year the tagline was 120 Years, 120 Counties, capitalizing on the fact that the fair was a century plus score, the same number of counties in the state. The numbers didn't line up as well for the 121st anniversary but the sentiment still won the hearts and minds of Kentuckians.

The advertising budget has not been increased since 2022. The media buy was similar to previous years as well: Digital - 36 percent; Radio - 17 percent; OOH - 19 percent; Print - 6 percent; TV- 6 percent; Production - 15 percent.

In recent years the fair has implemented a social media influencer program, which they expanded this year with a specific emphasis on encouraging fair participation. “We utilized social media by running an entry-specific campaign with the goal of increasing entry numbers,” she said. Figures on if the entry numbers showed an increase from 2024 were not available.

“The fair exceeded expectations in 2025 as we greeted hundreds of thousands of our neighbors and celebrated the Commonwealth,” said Ratterman. “Additionally, we saw record-breaking numbers in entries for the Sunshine Class (children with disabilities partner with a mentor to show animals in the ring) and several General Entry classes.”

Reversing Downward Spiral

The 2025 annual celebration of everything Bluegrass State continues the reversal of the fair's trajectory. Prior to the pandemic, the Kentucky State Fair showed plummeting attendance rates and a lack of new ideas. For example, the 110th Kentucky State Fair (2014) had a total attendance of 515,937, a 16 percent decrease from the year before, In 2019, Kissel Entertainment was awarded the hotly contested midway contract for the Kentucky State Fair, and although the lockdown and canceled fairs disrupted the event, the midway provider has reversed the downward spiral the fair seemed set on pre-pandemic by emphasizing the guest experience on the Kentucky midway.



“Our first year debuting at the Kentucky State Fair was 2021,” said Madison Kissel, COO , Kissel Entertainment. “We are proud of the ways in which we've innovated and pushed boundaries in five short years. We continue to see a rise in attendance and a loyal customer base and I think that is due to the trust the community has in us. They trust that we will provide their families with a safe experience and environment. They are assured the money they invest in us goes directly back into giving them an exceptional hospitality experience. They know and expect that every year, we reinvest in the community to bring the best of the best. We have reimagined what is possible in a mobile-capacity and take lessons from industry leaders across the globe to bring back directly to Kentucky. We learn from experts to be the most inclusive entertainment provider. We hope other fairs appreciate just how important this trust is, between amusement providers and fairgoers, and invest in the right carnivals that reflect their values and visions, so that we continue to create lifelong lovers of the fair.”

According to Kissel, the 2025 midway – which featured 50 rides, was the biggest and most successful so far for the carnival company. “This year was an incredible success for not only the fair and our business, but also for our family,” she explained. “We had an exceptional attendance rate, where people came from all over the great state of Kentucky and beyond to take part in this important tradition. We achieved a lot in our mission to be the most inclusive outdoor amusement provider in the country, as well as our goal of reimagining what a carnival could be. We pushed the boundaries in our theming work to ensure guests had an immersive experience.”

Midway Revenue Up

Compared to 2024, “We are proud to announce the revenue was up,” said Kissel. “We are very grateful that the love of fairs and the tradition of community experiences like this remain a priority for the families we serve. We look forward to investing this back into the community through new innovations and amenities next year.”

The top grossing rides on Kissel Midway were the double Astro Wheels, the Python, the Nemesis 360, the Wacky Worm, and the Matterhorn. But Kissel pointed out that ride performance and guest experience is contextualized by the overall midway experience. “We see an uptick in ridership when we've added immersive experiences surrounding the ride,” she explained. “Before guests even board, we want them to feel the excitement or whimsy waiting in line or walking past. The Wacky Worm has a new photo opportunity in front of the ride that transports guests to an Alice in Wonderland experience. For the Python, guests encounter photo ops with a giant python, stone Buddhas framing the entrance, fog effects, dramatic lighting, jungle foliage, and even a vintage 1971 Toyota Land cruiser that sets the stage. The queue itself was meticulously designed to build guest anticipation, and once onboard, riders are immersed in a soundtrack featuring a custom explorer's narration and jungle soundscapes. It also helps us weave in essential safety messages without disrupting the experience”



Kissel Entertainment introduced two new rides at the fair – Venom – a thrill-seeking extravaganza and Wunderland, a house of mirrors with an Alice in Wonderland theme that Kissel tricked out with the company's signature flair. “Our brand new Wunderland ride is a house of mirrors that has a gorgeous custom painting that is surreal and to add to our immersive ride experience, a soundtrack a plays the audio from the Alice in Wonderland book,” she said.

Attention to the guest experience at the Kentucky State Fair was not limited to enhancing what happens on each ride. Kissel Entertainment unveiled 1932 Avenue – an expanded rest and comfort zone for families – it's named after the year this carnival family started in the business and located at the entrance to the midway. “[It] is a beautifully designed area welcoming our guests to the park and paying homage to the Kissel family's company inception nearly 100 years ago,” Kissel explained. “We debuted entirely new will call stations, gorgeously expanded baby changing and feeding rooms, and VIP redemption areas with a look and feel to transport people back in time.”

Kissel Entertainment has firmly established itself in fairgoers' imaginations with their own line of family-friendly spokes-animals The themed characters – Axel the Beaver; Hambassador R.A. Hamhoof; Jet the Eagle; Hi-Jinx the Cat and Bandit the Pug – are a team of vibrant and engaging characters, designed exclusively for Kissel. The unique and original mascots that are exclusive to the carnival company enhance the guest experience, delivering an added layer of storytelling to the theme park-quality ambience associated with the Kissel brand.



“Each character represents our company's main values: a commitment to safety, a service-first mindset for unmatched hospitality, a passion for thrills, a love for classic fair foods, and an environment that encourages play and imagination,” said Kissel. “This year we debuted at the Kentucky State Fair our custom stuffed animals that are one-of-a-kind and an impressive design feat by our partners, Toy Factory, being exact replicas of our cartoons and available for families to win at our games. We hope children and adults alike take these pieces of memorabilia home to make memories that can be passed down for generations.”

Plush is not the only way fairgoers interacted with the mascots. Kissel transformed the mascots into 6-foot tall inflatables interspersed throughout the midway. “Now guests can feel fully immersed with our characters ingrained in nearly every aspect of the park experience, from employee uniforms, safety signs, height charts, photo opportunities, to even themed rides featuring their friendly faces.”

While creating the theme park experience Kissel was also cognizant that the summer's economy was plagued by volatility. Affordability had more emphasis this year on the Kissel Kentucky Midway. “We always believe, as a family business who has also experienced the tough financial strains this year has brought onto the world, that we've to match the needs of the communities we serve,” said Kissel. “This season, we offered thrifty days to make the fair more financially accessible to all families, and we've seen communities take advantage of this. Every family deserves the chance to make memories and participate in community events, so even when tariffs and costs of living had risen and increased our own supply costs and expenses, we've done not hike up prices in some knee-jerk reaction and put that strain on the community. We think maintaining fair pricing, and allowing discounted days and food and game deals, allowed our guests to continue to enjoy the fair-going experience this year.



Inflation spiked up again, although its impact on spending fair was elusive.” Inflation did not significantly impact the Kentucky State Fair from an admission standpoint,” said Ratterman. “Parking prices remained the same, and admission prices remained mostly the same from 2024 with a slight increase We are not seeing lower spending from our fairgoers.”