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Arizona Exposition & State Fair
Rating Details »
Categories: Local Flavor, Arts & Entertainment [Edit]
Arizona State Fairgrounds1826 W McDowell Rd
Phoenix, AZ 85007
(602) 252-6771
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
27 reviews for Arizona Exposition & State Fair
Being overpriced is all in good fun, right?
I felt that the fair was alright. The entrance price was kind of annoying since you have to pay for food and attractions at the actual fair. But that's to be expected.
The rides were fun, no doubt about it. Staff was courteous and friendly. Games surprisingly didn't scam you into losing, and I found myself winning more than I was losing, (rare, right?)
Food is where they scam you. I mean they really, really scam you. All the food is outrageously expensive and jam-packed with empty calories. But I figure that's part of being at the fair.
The fairgrounds were decent, and as to be expected, port-o-potty's were atrocious.
Sounds like any state fair. Oh, but the fry bread is amazing.
Not quite what I expected, but still a good time.
The highlights:
- Waterloo, an ABBA tribute band playing the night I was there, was amazing. They did a great job and had the audience dancing in the aisles.
- The food was a festival of deep-fried, artery-hardening goodness that you can only find at fairs and some sports events.
- I tried my first ever funnel cake. Yes, it was good
- I purchased a corn dog from a vendor that was missing his front teeth and wanted a sip of my beer. No, I did not give him one.
The not-so-great:
- $20 to park!? I am not familiar with the area and probably could have done better on this one.
- Where were the cows!? You cannot have a fair without COWS! I saw a large building filled with llamas, but no cows. Another building, that may have had them was closed. :(
Overall I am glad I went, but maybe should have gone during the day to be able to see more exhibits. In the evening it is more like a really crowded and kind of dirty amusement park, but with drunk people.
I will still go back next year... :)
This is why you're fat.
You've got huge fairgrounds and plenty of walking to do inside the fair (work those legs), plenty of sprinting to get to your car safely at night in the sketch neighborhood (increases heart rate) and plenty of laughing at those less fashionable than the rest of us (work those abs!) and the ratio of places to buy overpriced, deep-fried, tasteless food dripping with grease vs. RIDES and ATTRACTIONS, what the fair was originally developed for (not to mention the animals and 4-H projects) is about 4:1.
People... come on, now.
The family and I headed out to the fair on a Tuesday night in November. This is not the home grown state fair you remember growing up. While they may try to make it seem that way, this one is a corporate venture for sure.
Thankfully, we went early enough that there really weren't alot of people and the kiddos could get their ride and games in before dark.
Parking at the Fair grounds cost us $10 - which we gladly paid to not have to walk down McDowell after dark. We had free tickets to get in, so that saved us $40+.
Typical foods available - fried twinkies, mondo fries, Chinese food, pizza ... even scorpions. No - we didn't try them, but hear they taste just like chicken :)
We actually picked this particular night to go so we could see David Cook in concert.
Here's the great part of the Fair ... general seating is FREE with fair admission. Sure - you can buy a reserved seat (for something like $15 - $20) to sit a little closer, but we chose the free seats.
GREAT concert! The opening band, The Script, were from Dublin, Ireland and did a good job. This was their first opening for David Cook (and in America?) and their energy really showed their excitement.
David Cook was awesome! The best part - he sounded pretty much just like he does on his CD. He was joking around with the audience and having a great time performing. Really enjoyed his singing and the overall performance. I hope he has a really long career ahead of him.
If you're planning a trip to the fair and would like to save some $$$, definitely read the other YELP reviews before going. There's at least one or two for cheapskates that don't want to spend alot.
Will we go back to the Fair? probably.
Will we go back for the concert series? Absolutely!
Suggestions?
1) Check out their website for discount days.
2) Unless you want to, don't pay full price (see above)
3) Set a budget and stick to it.
4) Check out the concert series.
5) Allow plenty of time to have fun.
6) There is a free shuttle from somewhere to the fairgrounds ... it would be worth it to research this a little more & find out from where. I didn't have time or we probably would have done this too :)
7) If you're on twitter - so are they. http://twitter.com/azs...
8) Their website is http://www.azstatefair...
Have a good time!
Food, food and more food! The AZ State Fair is always a good time. Lots of happy people having fun!
I wish I could have found a vender that I have seen in the past. It's the one that writes names on a piece of rice. It can be made into a necklace, bracelet, keychain of various other novelty items. Im curious if anyone knows what Im talking about and if that vendor was here this year?
At any rate, as always we spent a lot of cash but it was worth it. The rides were awesome as well as watching people ride the mechanical bull. I have to wonder how those ppl feel the day after? Great buisness for the local chiropractors, Im sure!
We saw Kelly Clarkston. She's a pretty good singer but needs to work on her concert skills. I expected a better show really. I saw lots of ppl leaving early on. We only made it about half way through before thinking...its the same thing over and over. Thats too bad. Kinda disappointed there.
All in all, Id do it again. See ya next year!
I just got back from the fair a couple hours ago. We had a girls night and eh it was fun. My company was better than the fair. Tickets were only ten dollars. Since it was a wed. it was dolla rides and games night.
First thing we did was get the party started was gab some beers...for a whopping 7.50 Large being like at the most 16oz, but I expected that. My lady friends got some bratwurst which were 8.50 and came with chips...I decided to stay away from babe. aww oink oink...I had a potbelly pig named Goose soooo yup. Anyways enough with my righteousness. I got the fried zucchini for 5.50. I swear it was like 3 whole zucchinis it looked like and delicious. We ate while watching some hypnosis guy. Not so much a believer, but it was amusing. Some dude in a pink wig pretending to be pink...later followed by 5-50 year old folks get down to baby got back.
My friends went on a couple rides, which I didn't partake in. I had a bad experience with a carnival ride...my harness came undone and I had to go 30 seconds dangling by a tiny seatbelt. Longest 30 seconds of my life, and scared shHhtless. Anyways after a while they convinced me to go on one and it was the freefall...I must admit FUNas soon as I was able to breath again. I don't get it amusement parks I'm all for higher, faster, flippy-er. Carnival rides not so much...didn't go on anymore. Wait I went on the smaller ferris wheel and no seat belts and no door just a rail with two big openings on the side for me to fall out of...and of course we're taking pictures and I'm the one who had to jump from one side to the other. I swear I'm not a baby...but I don't recommend doing that.
We played the silly games that seem impossible to win. The staffs cool though. We rarely left empty handed and they gave us a couple free tries. I know the secret to throwing the ball in those buckets...the only disturbing thing was the guy working the booth kept telling me it was like making love...nice and easy with just a lil oomph. UHHHHH then he jumped over to show me how to throw it, guess I'm a little rough? He bumped into me and proceeded to dust off some imaginary dirt he got on my top. And all I got was a lousy bulldog...
Best part of the night PHOTOBOOTHS...I love them! We squeezed are asses into the tiny booths and spent a good 30 dollars on memories that will last a lifetime.
I'll be back next year...friends say I need to grow some balls though and go on the rides. We'll see.
A GUIDE TO THE STATE FAIR FOR FUDDY DUDDIES AND CHEAPSKATES SUCH AS MYSELF
First and foremost, the score for this event is based upon one thing: the fried pickles. As a Southerner, the idea of frying a pickle is not so alien to me as to many of my more urban, east-coast elite friends, but the idea of dipping a big ol' honking spicy dill in cornbread batter and frying it on a stick?
Where I come from, we bread and slice our pickles. At the risk of never being able to go home again, I must say, the Arizona Method blew my mind.
You have to try one. Unless you hate fried food. In which case, you probably hate life in general and won't enjoy the fair no matter what.
PRICE/WHEN SHOULD I GO?
First off, there are a ton of discount opportunities to get in. Going early on a weekend, going to certain grocery stores, certain days, happy hours, etc. - $10 is not what you should pay unless you go on an absolute whim. Same goes for tickets inside - you can usually find discounted tickets somehow with a little advanced planning.
Second, even if you do end up paying ten bucks, you can assuage your wallet-guilt by going on the night of good music or other cultural fun times. There are a bevy of performers/events to choose from. For me, there's always at least one performer worth checking out for ten bucks. This year, Bob Dylan. Past years, Weezer, Beck, Weird Al, random old school hip hop folks. There's also demolition derbies (!!!), and roller-derby, and other stuff.
PARKING
October and November in Arizona are beautiful! Take advantage of the cool night weather, park down McDowell somewhere, and bring along a coke bottle with a little special whiskey inside.
OTHER FAIR ISSUES
Again, check the schedule! Some nights are more country-riffic, with cows and livestock and crops. I really do think most people who were dissatisfied with their fair experience coulda had a better time if they did a little upfront work.
Fried pickle. Bob Dylan. Ferris wheel gondola.
3 solid stars.
Once again the fair as entertained, enchanted and amazed my family. We now have gone so many times over the years we have certain traditions and expectations.
Turkey Leg for Daughter -check
Frozen Banana for mom- check
Walk thru exposition hall buy some tacky item --check
Visit Baked Goods -check
Ride tilt a whirl -check
Eat curly fries-check
Observe the Livestock -check
Yup it's all good . In fact this time it seemed cleaner and nicer than normal . Way to go AZ Fair.
3 Previous Reviews: Show all »
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10/15/2008
An update ! My daughter and I won first place for chocolate chip cookies !
My daughter also won… Read more »
A cool October day, the Arizona State Fair and three of my fav gals in the world: Sister, SO and 14 YO Daughter. Life does not get much better.
Add to that the once a year Fair Food adventure and wow... carb and fat overload - I was in heaven.
We started with the sky-ride from near the North Entrance to the middle of kiddie land. Taking in the smells, the energy and sights of the fair was fun and one of the two rides we took all day.
We went to the fair around lunch time because we WANTED fair food, so the next stop was the food fairway over by the exhibit halls. On the way we found fresh squeezed lemon ade - and I mean fresh; the guy squeezed lemons into the cup, added filtered water amd sugar and poof - a delicious and refreshing drink.
When we got to the food fairway,one of us went to get a corn-dog, another an Indian Taco and the third went to PiggyWiggly mound o' fries. We sat in the shade of one of those monster umbrellas and shared the orders between us - yum... once a year kinda' yum ya' know.
A carbo-laden walk of the exhibits and then a Fried Twinkie - been seeing them, hearing about them - never had one until then. The powdered sugar was not dusted on it, it was like a spoonful dropped on it. Chocolate syrup to dip and OMG - decadent choco, sweet, fried goodness with a creamy melted filling. So glad three of us shared it!
Wandered down to the Hi-Miler roller coaster and we took turns so one of us could watch hats, bags and purses while the others rode. After two rides each, we were feeling appropriately tossed around in a little metal car on rails.
The sun was getting a little hot, so we went looking for cool air inthe Aggie exhibits where we discovered sheep (baaa...) and Mama's heloing kids with Llama in one of the show arenas - with chairs to rest a bit in. I twitpic'd an image of the Mama's and Llama's, but Twitpic is not handling my images properly these days... working on it.
The rest of the time at the fair was devouring one of the specials we came across when I wanted a bag of popcorn and Sister wanted a caramel apple - we saw a three for $10 option that let us add cotton candy to the mix and then we were feeling complete on fair food in our adventure.
No skeeball this year or water gun races to pop a balloon - just lots of food not on my diet, time with loved ones and meandering amongst the medium to light crowds of Sunday morning.
As others have noted, it's not a fair, it's a carnival. I've always imagined State Fairs to be where people from the actual State get together and show off their produce, have pie contents, biggest pig, biggest tomato, talent contest, etc... This is a bunch of private creepy carnival companies coming to town and milking you for everything you're worth.
The games are stupid. They're designed for you to lose, but so you don't feel bad, if you pay enough, most will guarantee a stuffed toy. I'm sorry, if I want a guaranteed stuffed animal, I'll go to the store and pay market value for it.
Then they have their tricky ticket system, $5 get you 10 tickets, $20 gets you 40. So there's no benefit to buying bulk. Each game is 7-10 tickets, and it's usually for only one try. So you're literally paying $5 to try to throw a single ball into a random basket. But you feel better because it's tickets instead of money, so you do it.
The photo booths don't work, but they refuse to put "out of order" signs on them. So we spent 20 minutes on a bunch of different booths that didn't work before getting our money back and leaving.
The food is probably the worst part. Not only is it ridiculous prices, but it's also not food any more. Fried burritos, fried burgers, fried ANYTHING. There are places where you can't take a breath without getting a lung-full of fried.
The only good part was the Ferris wheel
The food is greasy and fun...each year you wonder what else are they going to deep fry on a stick?
Parking is expensive. Rides are ok. Junk food is diverse.
Animal exhibits are the same stinky walk-thru every year. Just wander thru the cow exhibits--watch out for cow poop piles or chance catching e-coli on your shoe bottoms.
You feel like you need to wear sunglasses and headphones to avoid aggressive shammy sales people in the commercial building.
The State Fair still feels ghetto. It's not as bad as it once was 20 yrs ago (I remember going on the same day someone was murdered and stuffed in a trash can). It's still old, dirty...and gross.
The AZ State Fairgrounds needs to be badly updated. I wish they would just sell the land and build a bigger and better location outside of town....save your money and drive over to Anaheim/Buena Park in California if you want fun.
I don't feel good today. Why did I have to eat barbecue, frozen yogurt ($4 for a standard cone-not a waffle cone mind you!), funnel cake, candy apple, cashews, and cotton candy in one trip? Oh yeah, because it's the fair! I did skip all the fried candy bars, twinkies, and whatever else that batter will stick to crap.
Also went on a few rides. I couldn't find one of my favorite rides this year and couldn't ask about it because I know it by the name it had in 1976 "The Scrambler". It's the one where if you sit on the correct side of the seat, you will squash your companion. Not a big fan of this new e-ticket card either. Too hard to keep track of how many tickets you have left. We had to go to a booth to check the balance because the ride attendants were too busy to tell us. That made me want to hold up the line having him scan a bunch of empty cards. Also, how do I know they are not overcharging me for a ride?
Also checked out a bear show and a few of the exhibits. Not a bad evening. Now I need a payday loan to cover it.
I have to say the food is gross, but the concerts are fun, and the beer in the concert venue is cheaper than on the grounds, but either way- no beer for me. We went on the ferris wheel which only suceeded in scaring me. This fair gets 4 stars for the free on street parking, some guy who gave us free tickets to get in, and for inspiring my fiance to adopt a chicken. Yup. You heard it here first- we're officially urban poultry keepers.
Its a hen actually. I'm from the midwest, were County fairs and the Quarter Horse Congress are more my speed. I will say a big thanks for the little 4-H ers who do a great job!
We went to the fair on opening day. A buck to get in but 12.00 to park.
We took my nine year old neice who had never been to a fair (she lives in Globe and they keep her fairly sheltered). She was overwhelmed just walking in and I caught her staring at quite a few people.
She probably would have been happy to leave right then having seen enough freaky people.
The food was good. Fair food. Greasy and sugary and cotton candy wonderfuliciousness. That's a word. Don't question me.
We rode a few rides. Had a great time. We decided to leave just three hours later when we spotted two 12 or 13 yr old girls makin' out. Yeah, thankfully she didn't see THAT. It would have been a long ride home full of questions...that only her mother should answer.
On the way out we stepped over a hypodermic needle. I like how the addicts just leave it there for the next guy. I like a giving spirit.
Growing up, one of my favorite movies was the animated version of Charlotte's Web. One of my favorite scenes from the film is when the rat, Templeton, goes around the fair at night, collecting left-over food scraps and garbage. He eats everything in sight, singing all the while about the fair being a "smorgasbord, orgasbord, orgasbord." At the end of the night, he returns to the pen where Wilbur is being kept, proclaiming "What a night! Never have I seen such leavings! Everything well ripened, seasoned with the passage of time and the heat of the day. Oh, it was rich, my friends. Rich!"
Well, there's no better way to describe the way I felt when I returned home from the State Fair on Friday night. I was disgustingly full of the greasiest food on Earth but incredibly satisfied at the same time. Like Templeton, my husband and I (and fellow fair-going companions) really partook in the "smorgasbord" - we consumed a corn dog, fried gator on a stick, mini donuts, funnel cake, bratwurst, and a massive turkey leg (which was delicious, by the way!). It was like Thanksgiving dinner, but less nutritionally complete. Of course, we also had some alcoholic beverages - the drinks we tried were all very expensive ($8.50 for beer and up to $12 for a mixed drink) but we were pleasantly surprised by how strong they were. No watered-down drinks for this crowd of fair-goers!
Another totally hedonistic experience at the state fair was the fabulous (and totally free!) Old School Jam concert. We rocked out to Coolio, Club Noveau, Climax, and Naughty by Nature (Ton-Loc was too cool for (old) school and skipped out). Maybe they weren't as good as back in the day, but we all had so much fun re-living the good old days and dancing off all of that ridiculously caloric food! The only less-than-fun part of the whole concert was the grumpy people behind us who told us to sit down (have they ever been to a concert?!), but their bad attitude was the only downer of the whole experience.
If you haven't been to the state fair yet AND you like eating lots of junky food in a no-frills environment, I recommend you check it out. You have until November 2, 2008 to do so. I believe you can still see Meatloaf and LL Cool J if you are interested in a concert. To save money on parking, park in the Capitol building lot (northeast corner of 19th Ave and Jefferson) and take the free shuttle (runs every fifteen minutes). Just don't have too much fun or you might almost miss the last shuttle like we did!
The State Fair is a truly wondrous place. Kettel Corn and Fry Bread and Turkey legs. mmmmm. But the best parts are the people parts--the competitions. People can and make jam and knit and sew and enter their work and ribbons are awarded to the best. How much better could it get than that? How much more real? I highly recommend that everyone march right down to the Fair-and spend at least a third of your time looking at the competitions. Better yet--enter something.
Had a great time here last week with my daughters. It's good to go soon after they get set-up (less stinky). The rides were fun, the food AWESOME, and the games were the same old trickery - though now you pay for them with a pre-paid game card instead of cash which helps keep them legit.
You HAVE to try feeding the baby Giraffe and Camel in the petting area!
Going to Weezer concert here tonight - hoping to avoid a stabbing.
The Arizona State Fair is more like a carnival. Maybe it's because I'm from the Midwest, but I think the focus of state fairs should be on agriculture, animals, exhibits, etc.
The best things about the Arizona State Fair are the inexpensive concerts and the salt water taffy.
They get two stars from me for the ferris wheel where I got engaged.
Listen up! I go for the food.
I got suckered into taking 2 14-year old girls. The boss' daughter and her BFF. I dragged Jenni from work so I could have an adult around.
The only rides I went on were the chair lift and the giant ferris wheel. Anything that would mess my hair is O-U-T out!
Walking into the fair was worse than WalFart as far as sensory overload goes. But, that's what the fair's for, right?
We got there around 7, so there wasn't too much of a crowd. Had to stop immediately and catch part of the demolition derby. I have always wanted to do derby - demolition or roller!
Ah, the crowd at the fair. I have never seen so many sorry souls in one place! Seriously, Jenni and I saw a dozen different people with some sort of neck wound. WTF???
The petting zoo was cute, but reminded me of why I went vegetarian years ago. It also made my token 14-yr old question her meat-eating. There was even a camel! A CAMEL! In the desert! Fancy that!
The food. Ahhhhhhh fair food! Got curly fries for $6.50. I would have complained about the price but MAN ALIVE it was a huge plate! I shared it with everyone - even random peeps workin' the games!
On the way to the car, we each got a funnel cake. I had mine with just powdered sugar. Jenni did, too. The girls had their own, too. One got the apple and I had a bit. Yum! The other got strawberries with whipped cream. 14-year old girls can eat that, ya know. 37-year olds only dream of it.
I bumped into a few people I knew, which was cool.
By the time we left at 9:30, the place was PACKED. My boobies got elbowed by countless people who don't even realize they had the privilege. Snooze, ya lose!
There are $1 rides on Wednesdays, including four ferris wheels and a drop zone which seems higher than the one at Castles & Coasters.
There are many carnie booths, including that one where you try to throw a ring around the head of a Coke bottle and of course it'll never happen. No giant Scooby for you.
There are many animals, including a pair of alpacas and 10 dozen chickens. Why the chickens, I don' t know. More alpacas, I say.
There are drinks, including $12 margaritas and small $7 cups of beer. Amazingly, no one at the fair is drunk.
Then there is food, including deep fried Oreos and deep fried Dr. Pepper. I ate the deep fried Oreos and the deep fried Dr. Pepper.
The End.
--------------------
(last day of the 2007 state fair is Nov. 4)
If you're OK braving the DMV or Walmart crowd, the October/November tradition known as the Arizona State Fair should be a breeze. Hey, I ain't above these sorts of things. Shoot, this place oozes nostalgia that we can all relate with.
Halloween night is arguably the best night to check the fair out. Its usual large crowd dwindles to a small but steady stream as families stay home to do the trick or treat thang.
For singles and couples that means - green light for the carnival and all sorts of artery-clogging junk food. But it also means costumed fairgoers galore, and little to no waits in line for rides.
A few cool observations:
* Free parking (as opposed to $10) if you park at the State Capitol and take the shuttle buses that run every few minutes.
* Expensive concessions, to be expected of course.
* Asphalt-paved grounds are a nice touch for those whose allergies are aggravated by the usual grass and dust of a typical fair.
* Intersting people-watching, including the 40-something costumed couple dressed as a matching nut and bolt.
* Your normal selection of carnival rides include the gigantic ferris wheel plus the skyride tramway-like ride reminsicent of the buckets at Disneyland.
* The Arizona Game and Fish dept. with their interactive exhibit is impressive and done well.
* Shrewd and aggressive little old ladies in the culinary arts exhibit who somehow recruited me for the 2008 SPAM cooking contest. Not quite sure how that happened, btw.
All in all, a fun and klassy time.
We rolled up to the state fair on a fine Sunday afternoon. I was well hydrated and ready for an evening of debauchery involving barnyard animals, deep fried GARBAGE, shitty domestic beer in a plastic cup, and "amusement" rides. Zed and Nickels were on the buddy system, I was their backup buddy, the third wheel on the tricycle of fun, 3-dub for short.
Is it sad that the best thing I can say about the State Fair is that with enough beer it becomes tolerable? I discovered that I am not a big fan of deep fried sweets. Maybe I'm just not in the right space for it, but most of the food options at the Fair looked uniformly gross. Nickels went gaga over the bunny rabbits while I had a staring contest with a turkey. Man turkeys are a lot of ugly to pack into one bird. I'm not sure I can continue to eat something that ugly, because if you are what you eat, well let's just say it's not going to be pretty and leave it at that.
You would think the funhouse type attractions would be more fun with a few beers but honestly they just weren't. I wanted them to be, but there was nothing scary or really all that interesting about them. The sky rail thing was a little fun altough I felt a little silly sitting up there without skis on and you can imagine my disappointment when the ride did not end at the top of a mountain.
We successfully avoided a Doughtry concert, which made me happy, but there was some sort of frightening pre-teen dance troup trainwreck that we ended up in front of at some point. We tried to make light of it. I tried to remember the hilarity of Donnie Darko's little sister's dance troup. I made a half hearted attempt at telling Zed that sometimes I doubt his commitment to Sparklemotion but it was no use. Nickels brought up the fact that somewhere in the audience there was probably a pedophile or two taking in the show and it was all down hill from there. We walked away skeeved out at a society that thinks it's cute to paint up 11 year olds like $10 whores, throw them in sparkly boyshorts, teach them to shake their asses in some semblance of coordinated effort and call it entertainment.
It's fun to go to every 2-3 years.
I do like the ferris wheel and riding the camel and stuff like that.
I also like funnel cakes a lot and having one every few years sounds perfect to me.
OHMYGOD... FRIED SNICKERS BARS and FRIED TWINKIES and FRIED OREOS...and maybe even FRIED SHOES or UMBRELLAS OR FRIED SMALL CHILDREN or something. Yes! Yes! Yes!
Oh - but the rides suck. So -2 for sucky rides. And for only having goats in the petting zoo. Yick.
BABY GOATS BABY GOATS BABY GOATS!!!
It's all about the baby goats.
And fantastically revolting carnie food.
Rides? Meh.
I will gladly continue to rub elbows with the seedier side of life to see more baby goats.
Frozen chocolate-covered cheesecake on a stick with artificial strawberry swirls. See you in October!