The Ventura County Fair will return Wednesday for 12 days of fun, excitement and entertainment.
This year’s fair, themed “Rides, Ribbons & Rodeos,” will feature interesting exhibits, exciting contests and top-of-the line Grandstand Entertainment performances.
The Ventura County Fair offers a top-quality experience at great values. Special admission days offer opportunities to enter the fair for free or at low prices. Opening day, this Wednesday, is “Dollar Day,” when admission is $1 until 3 pm. “$3 Before 3” Day occurs is Wednesday, Aug. 8. Admission is $3 before 3 p.m. Youth Day, this Friday, is when children age 12 or younger are admitted free all day. Seniors (age 62 or older) and people with disabilities are admitted free all day on Tuesday, Aug. 7. Military Appreciation Day is Thursday, Aug. 9. On this day, all military personnel holding a current, valid military ID will be admitted free.
Thrill-seekers will enjoy Carnival Wristband Days again this year. On Aug. 2, 6-7 and 9, purchase a $25 wristband, good for unlimited carnival rides until 7 p.m.
The fair offers a unique way for visitors to have fun while giving to the community at the “Fair Cares” Food Drive, presented by FOOD Share on Thursday. Bring five cans of food to donate to FOOD Share. For this, you’ll receive a free return ticket to the fair, good for Aug. 6-9.
The Grandstand Entertainment begins Wednesday and Thursday with Motor Sports, a great way to get revved up for the concerts to come. (Motor Sports events require a $5 admission in addition to paid fair admission.)
Grandstand concerts are a fair favorite. Visitors can see their favorite musicals acts and rodeos for free with paid admission to the fair. This year’s lineup includes Bret Michaels Get Your Rock On 2012 (Friday), Joan Jett and the Blackhearts (Saturday), Banda Machos, Grupo Pesado and Lupillo Rivera (Sunday), Creed (Aug. 6), Frankie Avalon (Aug. 7), Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (Aug. 7), Cobra Starship with This Is She (Aug. 8), Martina McBride (Aug. 9) and Boyz II Men and EnVogue (Aug. 10).
Rodeo Days at the fair are Aug. 11-12. Two shows each day are free with paid fair admission and are a sure way to cowboy up and experience great P.R.C.A. Rodeo action and adventure with your family and friends!
Everywhere you look at the fair you will see someone singing, dancing, playing music, making magic and more. While there are acts from all over California the Ventura County Fair takes great pride in presenting Ventura County talent. Check the schedule of events for these great local acts and say hello to our neighbors as they take to the stage: AOA (Band), Actors & Singers Studio, Barranca Vista Dancers, City of Ventura-Cultural Arts, Cary & The Black Rose Band, Country & Rhythm in Motion, Connexions Dance Studio, Country Lovers Western Dance Club, Channel Aire Chorus, Channel Islands Clippers Barbershop Harmony Chorus, Dance with Aloha, Dancin’ with Pam, Gold Coast Gymnastics, Gold Coast Concert Chorus, Josue Hernandez, El Charro de America, Jill Johnson’s Dance Studio, Ka Hale Hula O PilialohaoKalani O Hilo, KNS Rockstar, Kismet (Teen Band), Mele Ka Wai O Ke Anuenue, MacKinnon Dance Academy, My Distractions (band), Pam Rossi’s Dance Ten, Sis’s Touch of Polynesian, Sing to the Star, Sade Champagne & Friends, Tina’s ports of paradise Polynesian Dance, The Jewels of the NileThe Story of the American Flag, Ukulele Club of Ventura County and Ventura BnBs Square Dance Club.
The Ventura County Fair makes transportation easy with free shuttle rides to and from the fair. Convenient and comfortable, the shuttles begin a half-hour before the fair opens and bring visitors to the fair’s front gate. No traffic hassles, no parking problems, free parking and free shuttle bus service to the fair is available from 10:30 a.m. until 11 p.m. at these locations: Oxnard Performing Arts Center (on Hobson Way in Oxnard), County Government Center (Lots E and F, off Telephone Road in Ventura), Pacific View Mall (off Mills Road in Ventura, near Sears Auto), Ventura High School (Larrabee lots off Poli Street in Ventura), parking lot at Schooner and Harbor Boulevard (across from Sheraton 4 Points Hotel in Ventura). Free shuttle service is also provided from San Buenaventura State Beach off Harbor Boulevard in Ventura, but regular State Beach parking fees will be charged. Wheelchair capable busing is available from all sites.
The Ventura County Fair 2012 “Rides, Ribbons & Rodeos” runs Aug. 1-12 at the Ventura County Fairgrounds. For more information, click here or call 805.648.3376.
— James Lockwood for the Ventura County Fair.