Your guide to a kid-friendly city
Games, rides, a plethora of fair foods and cute animals. That’s what you’ll get at the Evergreen State Fair. It’s easy to spend the day enjoying all the attractions with family and friends. Join in on this Snohomish tradition, open August 25-30 and September 1-5.
Cost, tickets and the drive over
Going to the fair is never a cheap treat. The cost of parking is $15/weekends and $10/weekdays. Tickets are $10-$18 depending on age. Children under 5 and elders over the age of 90 are free. Add to that a wristband for rides, tickets for games, fair food, and other vendor purchases, families could pay a hefty sum, by the end of the day. If you want to save a little cash and your sanity from standing in long lines, purchase your entrance tickets online as well as wrist bands for unlimited rides.
Pack your own lunch and drinks and splurge on a couple treats while visiting.
The drive over to Monroe was easy on a weekday, but anticipate traffic picking up on the weekends. Go early for easier parking and shorter lines. The park opens up at 10:30 a.m., but you may arrive a full 30-mins before. Bring cash with you – today the credit card machines were not working in order to pay for parking.
What’s a fair without rides and games? The park is divided into a young children’s section (good for ages 1-8, by the blue entrance) and a tween/teen/adult section (by the red entrance). My children are 8 and 10 so they opted to ride the attractions geared toward older children and adults. If names like the Ring of Fire and Zillerator sound intimidating, then look for the gentler rides like the merry-go-round, tea cup ride, and the iconic ferris wheel by the red entrance.
There were many games to play, most running 5 tickets/person ($1/ticket). My boys played together at some of the games, while we played as a family at others. We won a couple prizes and there were smiles all around!
Weekend crowds will bring about long lines, so purchase your wrist band for unlimited rides ahead of time, especially if you think you’ll be going on all the rides at least once. If you arrive at the park and want to skip the lines and the special offers on tickers, you can spend a little extra to purchase tickets outright at a kiosk. Reloadable cards are available at pink self-serve kiosks all around the park. This saved us a ton of time, even though it cost us a little more. Cash and credit cards are taken at booths and kiosks.
Stunt dogs, animal shows and more!
There are so many shows to watch at the Evergreen State Fair. Some shows cost extra like the rodeo and the monster truck extravaganza. Others like the stunt dog show, the reptile museum and the animal shows were free. Watch precious pups race around catching frisbees, while mastering tricks. Pet a large tortoise and observe a real alligator lounging on a few chairs. Admire the beautiful coats of the alpacas, and gawk at the size of the large rabbits at the fair.
Be sure to visit each of the arenas located on either side of the park, filled with animal attractions, vendors, winning quilts, blue-ribboned bunnies, guinea pigs, goats, pigs and more!
Funnel cake, elephant ears, ice cream, candy, curly fries, corn dogs…the list goes on. Wear your stretchy pants if you plan to indulge in all the treats. And maybe steer clear of the rides, soon after lunch. The food choices are aplenty, most treats running about $10/person and meals upwards of $15/person. We shared a lot of the treats and got a little taste of everything. If you opt to try some fair foods, don’t miss the brats with grilled onions or the iconic Fisher’s scones (with and without raspberry jam!).
Hands full of stuffed animals and tummies filled with tasty treats, we ended our day taking a walk. We looked at some wooden sculptures and watched artists carve their work with handsaws. There was so much to see and do at the Evergreen State Fair. Before we left my oldest said, “This was a really good day, mom. Thank you!” His brother chimed in, “I had so much fun!”
Don’t miss this iconic festival of fun and head over to the Evergreen State Fair soon! Know before you go … The Evergreen State Fairgrounds is located in Monroe: 14405 179th Avenue SE Purchase tickets in advance for entry, games and ride Cash and credit card accepted Be sure to grab a map ahead of time so you won’t miss a thing! The theme parks are stroller and wagon-friendly Dress for the weather. Bring sunscreen, hats and headphones for kids who are sensitive to noise. Pack a lunch and lots of water, especially on hot days
Check out all our other ideas on where you can go and what you can do
Jasmin is the Associate Publisher at Seattle's Child and an Eastside mom of two boys. She enjoys parenting with lots of love and laughter. Co-Founder of PopUp StoryWalk, she also loves children's picture books, essay writing, and community stories.
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