It’s becoming increasingly expensive for Orange County residents to attend their local county fair as leaders hoard extra cash and spend millions on upgrades for themselves.
At this year’s fair, visitors wishing to purchase a one-day admission ticket on Friday, Saturday or Sunday beginning Friday will be required to hand over $18 per person.
Weekend admission tickets are $15 if purchased before the fair officially opens, but when the fair opens at the Costa Mesa Fairgrounds on Friday, they will rise to $18 until the fair ends Aug. 16.
This is the first year that pre-fair pricing is available. Last year, weekend tickets were $15 before and during the fair.
The OC Fair is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
Fairgrounds spokesman Terry Moore said the pre-fair price was added to give families a discount if they plan ahead.
“To help local families find ways to help the OC Fair fit their budgets, we have added pre-fair special pricing offers to provide fair-goers with more affordable options by pre-planning to take advantage of packages available before the fair begins,” Moore wrote in an email to Voice of OC.
Prices for parking and admission to the fair are slowly rising after remaining stable for several years.
This year it will cost $15 to park a standard car at the fairgrounds. This is the same as last year, but it used to cost $10 and then jumped to $12 in 2023 and $15 in 2024.
Weekday admission is $13 per person and weekend admission is $18. Admission for children and seniors this year is $9. When the fair opens Friday, senior admission will increase to $10.
That means if a family of four—two adults and two children—decides they want to attend the fair on Saturday, it will cost them $69 just for parking and admission; before they spend more money on food, drinks, tickets or souvenirs.
Michelle Capps, director of business development for the OC Fair, said the event center has seen a $2.46 million increase in labor costs compared to last year, as well as increases in utility and operating costs.
“These costs, in addition to numerous other fair-related expenses, have increased annually while admission prices have remained fairly stable and below similar events and venues,” Capps said in a statement sent to the Voice of OC.
She said the increase in weekend visitors is aimed at closing that gap.
“By adjusting weekend adult admission by $3, the fair aims to increase revenue by $1.5 million,” she said in a statement.
“The Council is actively working to create a strong financial foundation for the development of the fairgrounds by providing more events and educational opportunities for the community year-round. As a self-funding organization, we must budget in a way that allows us to continue to operate responsibly while funding property improvements and expanding programs.”
Fairgrounds CEOs Get $25 Million Headquarters as Reserves Continue to Grow
As the fair gets more expensive, fairgrounds officials are enjoying a new upgrade to their administration building at the OC Fair & Event Center.
Administration building of the OC Exhibition Center, July 13, 2026. Photo: ANGELINA HICKS, The Voice OC.
“data-large-file=” alt=”” class=”wp-image-3228162″ style=”aspect-ratio:1.7765256525652566;width:811px;height:auto” size=”auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px”/>OC Fair & Event Center Administration Building, July 13, 2026 Photo: ANGELINA HICKS, Voice of OC
The building underwent a $25 million expansion as part of the fairgrounds’ multi-phase master plan to modernize various buildings and officially opened earlier this year.
The administration building upgrade added more than 15,000 feet of space for employee use, including meeting rooms and storage space. The expansion more than doubled the size of the building’s original layout.
At the same time, fairground reserves are growing steadily after declines in 2020 and 2023.
At the end of 2022, the center’s investment balance reflected more than $67 million in reserves, which have grown steadily since 2009.
That balance had fallen to about $53 million as of Dec. 31, 2024, and the fair had reserves of about $60 million at the end of last year.
OK leaders will receive free tickets to events
While ordinary people are forced to shell out more money to go to the fair, Orange County politicians and their allies can attend private catered dinners paid for with tax dollars.
Dubbed the Business Development Dinners, the fair hosts exclusive dinners for local officials and guests to enjoy dishes such as short ribs, salmon and beef tenderloin, according to the 2025 dinner menu.
Such food is usually not available to fairgoers.
The fair hosts four of these dinners each year with guests selected by the fair’s CEO.
Although this year’s dinners have not yet taken place, last year’s guests included Orange County Executive Katrina Foley, Assemblywoman Diane Dixon and the mayors of Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Huntington Beach, Laguna Hills, Lake Forest, Orange, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, Westminster and Yorba Linda.
(Read: Who will get a free ticket to the Orange County Fair?)
Signs lead to the Business Development Board Dinner at the OC Fair on July 31, 2025. Photo: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC
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Every year, fair board members also get free access to the many shows that take place at the fairgrounds, and last year they received about $22,000 worth of free tickets, according to ticket disclosure forms reviewed by Voice of OC.
Board member Natalie Rubalcava, who is also an Anaheim council member, took home the most tickets last year, with total admission prices for live events featuring T-Pain, Ludacris, Indigo Girls and KC & The Sunshine Band totaling more than $6,600.
OC Fair Board Chair Dimetria Jackson came in second, receiving about $5,500 worth of free tickets in 2025.
Board member Nick Kovacevich took just under $4,000 worth of free tickets.
While board member Robert Ruiz took just under $2,000 worth of free tickets, board member Tanya Bilezikjian took about $2,800 worth of free tickets.
Barbara Bagneris took home about $1,500 worth of free tickets.
Board member Newton Pham took home about $300 worth of free tickets.
About 4,500 fair admission tickets were also donated last year to organizations such as the Girl Scouts, OC Rescue Mission and various Boys and Girls Clubs.
Angelina Hicks is the voice of the OC University News Service editor. Contact her at ahicks@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @angelinahicks13.