Carnival & Fair News

Running from July 19 through August 18th, this year's Orange County Fair is a behemoth in Southern California, rivaling the massive Los Angeles County Fair which now runs in May. With an attendance exceeding 1.13 million guests over 23 operating days, the fair's tagline “Always a Good Time” certainly seemed to be the case. In fact, per the fair's own on-site survey, the fair received a 4.2 out of 5 as an overall attendee enjoyment rating. Nine of the fair's run days were sell outs, with 12 days in all welcoming 50,000 guests.

General Admission was $13 Wednesdays and Thursdays, $15 Friday-Sunday for adults. Admission for seniors ages 60 and over and kids ages 6 to 12 was priced at $9 every day, and admission was free for kids 5 and younger. The fair continued a tradition begun during the pandemic of limiting daily attendance for crowd control, with a cap this year set at 50,000 visitors per day.

Once through the gates, there was plenty of good timin' to be had, from concerts at the Pacific Amphitheatre, admission to which was included in fair admission; wine seminars and tastings; $5 Taste of the Fair treats available until 4 p.m. daily; and both KidsLand and thrilling main carnival attractions by the score from Ray Cammack Shows.

According to Michele Richards, the OC Fair CEO, “Each summer, it is a privilege and a delight for our staff and partners to put on the annual OC Fair for the community and this was an exceptional year. The entertainment was stellar, the competitions were top-notch, the $5 Taste of the Fair was a hit, and by staying with our limited daily attendance model, we again minimized the impact on our neighbors and provided a great experience for fairgoers.”

Concerts included a diverse selection of acts from Rick Springfield and Richard Marx to Alice Cooper, Trevor Noah, and Aquabats. Overall, some 130,000 fairgoers grooved to national acts in the Pacific Amphitheatre, with 32,000 enjoying musical performances in the fair's smaller venue, The Hangar, where guests could hear bands such as Queen Nation, Eagle's tribute band The Long Run, and Led Zeppelin tribute Zeppelin Live.



Food choices were even more varied, from hits like bacon churro fries from Bacon Nation to a birria burger from Tasti Burger, honeycomb Siracha soft serve, chocolate drizzle strawberry cups, and cookie butter croissant cones at Swirl, to entirely new selections that included Nashville Hot Chicken Tots from Biggys, a unique pickle split from Pineapple Whip, and candied watermelon on a stick from Cowboy Kettle Corn. There were entirely new food purveyors as well, from Vegging Out with plant-based options and healthier treats to Spud Ranch potatoes, and Wahlburgers meaty burgers. Naturally classic fair foods also drew copious consumers with jumbo turkey legs, cotton candy, popcorn, ice cream, pizza, corn dogs, cinnamon rolls, funnel cakes, and roasted corn among them. 6,000 pounds of corn dog batter was used to cover the popular foot-long corn dog-on-a-stick.



But given the summer weather, among the most consumed items at the fair were lemonade and ice cream, with 3,219 vanilla cones served at Sweets by Cardinali, and 2,273 swirl cones in a sweet second place.

Competitions were as abundant as the dining options, with 6,259 competition entries across all categories from culinary arts to fine arts. Contests included pie eating – an event won this year by a returning champion, and a new gingerbread competition.

And, in livestock auctions, a record auction price of $14,000 was brought for the grand champion steer. At the fairgrounds' year-round Centennial Farm, 17 piglets and one peachick were born. Those piglets were too young to compete, but the fair presented daily pig races with other, older oinking contenders, as well as personal interactions at the Great American petting Farm.

As to exhibits, California State University Long Beach alums merged lowrider culture with art in the Visual Arts Gallery with the "Rides and Rhythm" exhibit. The fair also brought back their successful exhibition from 2023, the Art of Music, which Richards describes as a “tribute to the artists who create album cover art.” The exhibition was revised for its encore appearance with 150 hand-painted, large-scale album cover art recreations as well as a pop-up record store and themed cocktail lounge.

New this year was the massive exhibit Orange County Sand and Sea in the OC Promenade, which included a touch tank, virtual reality element, and recreation of beach landmarks from throughout coastal Orange County. Richards describes it as including “iconic spots at each of those beaches like the Red Car Museum in Seal Beach or the statue of [surf and swim legend] Duke [Kahanamoku] in Huntington Beach or Ruby's Diner and Fun Zone in Newport Beach; [as well as]the Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach."

In Heroes Hall, fairgoers experienced what life was like on the Santa Ana Army Air Base (SAAAB) located in Costa Mesa from 1942-1946, as well as view the featured exhibit, “The Vietnam War through the Art & Photography of Ed Bowen.” In the evening, the venue featured a nightly performance of “Taps.”

Demos of all kinds were also abundant, from instruction on sourdough starters to cow-milking. Roaming entertainment included the Magic of Frank Thurston and roving karaoke, while at the Action Sports Arena, 30,00 guests enjoyed monster trucks, demolition derbies, BMX Big Air Triples, and comedy hypnotist Chris Mabrey.



Carnival thrills were just as plentiful. Ray Cammack Shows offered contactless payment, credit cards, and cash payment options, with unlimited ride wristbands available for purchase any Wednesday or Thursday before 5 p.m. but usable until 8 p.m. on those days. It was priced at $49. During a pre-sale that ended July 18, wristbands were priced at $44, and included two free games. Carnival guests could also choose the carnival ticket FunPass, available daily, a package of 50 tickets for $50, or 100 tickets for $100. RCSFUN and the OC Fair also offered a Read and Ride program, for which kids who submitted book reports could receive two free ride passes in the carnival's Kidland.



The carnival brought three new rides to the fair this year, including the poplar automotive-themed thriller, Overdrive; a Bavarian themed roller coaster called Heidi, with cars that Richards described as “styled after Bavarian beer barrels [that] spin while going down the track." Also new was the Enchanted Castle, a fun-house attraction. Returning favorites included Alien Abduction, the big wheel, and kiddie rides such as mini bumper cars and monster trucks.



Summing up the event, Richards asserts that "The OC Fair is the largest gathering of community in Orange County, all summer long. People come back year after year to make memories with their families and friends." She adds “We want to thank all who visited and supported the 2024 OC Fair. You helped provide the funding for our community give-back programs including Centennial Farm, Heroes Hall and Imaginology.”