“Welcome Summer at State Fair Meadowlands”

State Fair Meadowlands with MetLife Stadium

“Treat every day like Christmas.”

Buddy the Elf

Celebrate summer and every new day out at the State Fair Meadowlands with its welcome return. Rainbow colors, catchy pop tunes, the whirring of rides, and shrieks of delight – the fair produced by State Fair Event Management is the launch of summer fun.

Perhaps it is true to form that a fair in New Jersey is on pavement as opposed to being in a cornfield, but a magical transformation delivers both an amusement park and a Garden State country fair with face painting, a petting zoo, pig races, high dives, music (not just live music, but great bands), magic shows, and a renowned hypnotist’s act that has most out-of-staters leaving saying, “Where’s the nearest jughandle so we can turn around and do it all again?” As part of the Meadowlands dynamic, helicopter rides take the place of the traditional hot air balloon ones. The location also gives excellent accessibility, so everyone can attend.

Floating over Root Beer Floats on the Sky Ride ✨

Following so many pairs of tiny hands in big, wandering fairgoers will first encounter a cornucopia of booths with every imagined fair food favorite from cotton candy to tropical smoothies to gyros to empanadillas. (If you’re dieting, wear blinders and track shoes, or better yet, treat your loved ones.) The serene Sky Ride gives fairgoers an overview and #instagreat photos that meet classic thrill rides like the Polar Express with scares galore in the Haunted Mansion. Candy colored kiddie rides are rivaled only by the Petting Zoo. Though scaled back a bit this year, the zoo still provides enough kid to kid excitement with goats and barnyard friends to elicit happy dances from small children. The fun of rides is only part of the “feel good” atmosphere that makes this one of my favorite events in the state. Adding to the daily fair excitement are the Fourth of July fireworks on July 3^rd and 4^th.

Young Artists

Did you know that you would meet young artists at the fair? Portraiture is the new selfie, proving that everything old is new again, and fairgoers will have the pleasure of experiencing charm in person with no signal dropping. Remember making conversation? New friends will be met at the fair.

Thank you to these young artists. 🎨🌟

Travel Tidbits

To mask or not to mask? Candidly, not many wore masks on this year’s visit, but you can wear one without feeling out of place. If you are concerned, consider going early when it is easier to social distance. Everyone and everything, however, must pass through a metal detector at the entrance. Thank you to security for keeping each and every person safe. Thanks, too, to the amazing professionals calling out to come enjoy the rides and play games, whatever the weather, whatever the crowd, and to those who posed for photos taking it in faith that they were asked for those in good faith.

All smiles at the fun basketball toss at Cully’s Enterprises

Tickets for the fair, June 18^th through July 11^th, must be purchased online and a barcode downloaded for each instead of printing. A Pay One Price Fun Pass includes free admission, free shows and unlimited rides with some exceptions, and free parking. A Fast Pass, available only at the fair, entitles ticketholders to upgrade tickets and skip the lines for some rides. Children under three feet are free, a generous tradition.

As for souvenirs, the memories to take back into the workaday world are beyond compare. The fair magician conjures up children’s smiles, peals of laughter, and marvel, shared harmoniously by one and all. With this beautiful weather, what could be better than to rejoin family and friends in fun? With feet on the ground, but hearts in the air, let’s say to each other, “We’ll meet at the fair”.