Entertainment, animals, food and rides featured this year

ORANGE COUNTY FAIR

The Orange County Fair is one of Orange County’s biggest annual events, drawing thousands of people to the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa for food, fun, music, and games.

The OC Fair dates runs through Sunday, Aug. 14.

Here’s everything you need to know about this year’s OC Fair from concerts and special events you won’t want to miss to fabulous fair food to feast on to all the ways you can save money with weekly discounts, and more.

For a full OC Fair schedule, visit ocfair.com or download the 2022 OC Fair app. Advance tickets are required, no fees, and capacity is limited.

ENTERTAINMENT

• Comedy hypnotist Mark Yuzuik, nightly in Plaza Pacifica.

• The Magic of Frank Thurston, daily in OC promenade.

• Roving entertainment including Dragon Knights Stilt Show, Red Light Brass Band and Ellas mariachi group (limited run), daily throughout the fairgrounds.

• Community entertainment featuring local music groups, dance troops and more, daily on three stages.

• Tupua Polynesian dance group, nightly in Plaza Pacifica.

• Live music, nightly in Baja Blues

• Latin music and dancing, nightly in Hussong’s Cantina;

• Performance of taps, 6 p.m. nightly at Heroes Hall ANIMALS

• All-Alaskan Racing Pigs, daily in Plaza Pacifica.

• Animal judging and displays, daily in Livestock.

• Great American Petting Farm, daily near Green Gate.

• OC Fair’s resident animal educators, including pigs, goats, cattle, chickens, rabbits, peacocks and sheep, daily at Centennial Farm DEMONSTRATIONS

• Cow milking, daily in Mil-

lennium Barn.

• Food preservation, chef's tips and more, daily in OC Promenade/Culinary.

• Camel dairy, limited run in livestock.

• OC Vaulting horse acrobat, ics, limited run in livestock.

• Wine talks and pairings, daily in The Courtyard.

• Crafts and handmade goods, daily in Home Arts & Collections Gallery.

EXHIBITS

• Produce and floral competitions, daily at Centennial

Farm.

• Woodworking, quilting, table setting, baking and more, daily in Home Arts & Collections Gallery and OC Promenade/ Culinary.

• Cal Fresh exhibit featuring the state’s crops, daily in OC Promenade.

• Fine arts and visual arts competitions, daily in Visual Arts Gallery.

Things to Know Before You Go

The fair is open Wednesday-Sunday, from 11 a.m.-11 p.m. on weekdays (Wednesday, Thursday) and 11 a.m.-midnight weekends (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). General admission is $12 on weekdays (Wednesday, Thursday) and $14 general admission on weekends (Friday, Saturday and Sunday).

Tickets for seniors 60-plus and kids 6-12 are $7 all days.

Parking is $10 for cars and motorcycles and $20 for buses and limos.

Tickets are on sale now and must be purchased in advance with no fees on ocfair. com. Fairgoers should make sure to get tickets for special days and group adventures now, with limited capacity days could sell out (in 2021, 17 out of 23 days sold out).

Performances in Pacific Amphitheatre, The Hangar and Action Sports Arena during fair-time include same-day Fair admission. Tickets are on sale now. For more information visit ocfair.com.

Unlimited ride carnival wristbands are available this year for $49. The one-day wristbands can be used Wednesdays and Thursdays, must be purchased or redeemed by 5 p.m. and include unlimited rides and two free games; guests can ride and play from 11 a.m. -8 p.m.

Carnival ride and game tickets can also be bought online now and are $1.25 each. Tickets required for each ride range from two to 14 tickets and games require between two and eight tickets each. For more information on this year’s rides and games, visit the website.

Centennial Barn houses these personable goats as well as pigs, sheep, peacocks and more.