2018 Sacramento County Fair: Preview Night

It’s that time of year again and the Sacramento County Fair is back in town! Featuring amazing food, super fun rides, fantastic shows, an abundance of animals, and more, the fair is an awesome experience for everyone. The fair is May 24 through Memorial Day, Monday, May 28, 2018, at the CalExpo Fairgrounds. This is the 82nd year of the fair with the theme Let’s Eat, Have Fun, And Celebrate The Red, White, And Blue. There are so many fun things to whether your with friends or family at the Sacramento County Fair.

Media Preview Night: Food and Fun

The preview night for media and bloggers was lots of fun and we had a chance to try some pretty awesome food and check out the rides and entertainment.

Sampling the Food

Let’s just say that fair food is some of my favorite food and I ate A LOT because as they say at the fair “calories don’t count tonight.” As a part of the media night, we get to sample all kinds of foods ranging from the sweetest to the savoriest and vote on our favorites. Some of the foods we tried were:

• Mini donuts from The Castle (winner of Best Sweet Food)
• Deep fried grilled cheese
• Western bacon dog from Hot Doggin’ (winner of Best Savory Food)
• The Pacific pastrami sandwich from Grinder’s (winner of Best New Food)
• Edible cookie dough
• Veggie paninis
• Cannolis
• Cookies and Creme funnel cake
• Mocha Freeze
• Hawaiian shrimp
• and some corn thing with crushed Cheetos on top that was amazing

I had a hard time picking my favorites because all of this food was delicious and a must try when you go to the Sacramento County Fair! There are so many trailers and stands to stop at to try even more amazing food!

Checking Out The Fair: Rides & the Grounds

We rode the awesome Western Express Railroad Train (that’s free all day at the fair) tonight throughout the fairgrounds and got to see all the different rides, food booths, and some kids walking their pigs and cows! There are 30+ rides at the fair for all ages that include slides, roller coasters, kiddy rides, the carnival must have ferris wheel and carousel, and more. I went to the Sacramento County Fair last year and rode all these rides with my friend, Hannah, and we had a blast! This year, 2018, there’s a new ride called “JUMBO” the high-flying elephant ride that’s making its debut!

Shows and Entertainment

Included with your $6 admission fee (for ages over 12), you get to see all kinds of free shows and get to see other awesome animals and entertainment

• There are free concerts on the stages with a wide variety of performers that provide live music throughout your time at the fair. During your walk to the fair, you can stop by to watch the Ramos Brother’s Circus that features acrobatics and motorcycles and the Captain Jack Spare-ribs show.
• There are so many different animal things to check out at the fair, too! There’s the Great American Petting Zoo, All-Alaskan Racing Pigs, duck races, the FFA animals, the “Welcome to the Jungle” exotic animals, and even more wild things to see! There’s even a dinosaur you can take some awesome pictures with plus you can actually ride a camel, which is pretty crazy!
  • I LOVE watching the pigs run as quick as they can. They’re so cute and tiny making it super funny to watch and we always see these whenever we can because they’re super fun!
• Need a break from the heat? Head inside and check out the 100,000 square feet of vendors who sell all kinds of unique products.
• Don’t miss out on the Toughest Monster Truck Tour on Friday, May 25th to see some insanely cool monster trucks race each other and show off.
  • There’s even some bull riding, tractor pulls, kid’s cooking contests, upbeat dance performances, and a few other one day only (and multi day) events you don’t want to miss!

Quick Facts

Pricing: Admission is pretty cheap at only $6.00 per person and any kid 12 years and under are free every day. Parking is 10 dollars, so make sure to have some cash and an unlimited ride band is 30 dollars.

Timing: The general hours of the fair are 10 am to 10 pm, Thursday through Sunday, but 10 am to 7 pm on Monday. The pens with the animals are open from 8 am to 8 pm, Thursday through Sunday, but 10 am to 5 pm on Monday. Make sure you you check the times so you don’t miss this wonderful time of year.