It’s Fair Time! Summer would not be complete without a visit to the State Fair of West Virginia held in Fairlea each year in mid-August. This year for the first time the West Virginia State Fair presented a splendid fireworks display for fairgoers on opening night. Themed “Feel the Magic,” the fair, which continues through Aug. 17, ensures visitors will thoroughly enjoy the time-honored traditions of agriculture, family entertainment and education. With a full day of entertainment and attractions, there’s enjoyment for all.
“We focus on family entertainment and have presented over 330 hours of staged grounds entertainment this year,” says Marlene Pierson-Jolliffe, State Fair CEO. “…[W]ith the largest carnival midway in the midAtlantic, over $100,000 in grounds attractions that are offered free with gate admission and our thousands of agricultural and livestock exhibits, we are ensuring that fairgoers will definitely ‘Feel the Magic’,” she said as reported in the Register-Herald.
A variety of discount ticket options are available for fair fans for 2013:
• Mega Pass and Big Pass can be used on any one day of the fair.
• A $5 Food Coupon Book sold through the State Fair’s Box Office (includes one coupon for every food concession.)
• Reserved Parking available in the gold lot just off Fair Street; $100 for one reserved space for the entire week of the fair with 100 percent of proceeds going to the State Fair’s Scholarship program. (Phone 304-645-1090)
• Enjoy Magic Monday with First Energy – bring three nonperishable food items and pay only $25 to get into the fair, ride unlimited carnival rides from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and see the FMX Motorcross Show.
$5 After Five will be available Wednesday, Aug. 14 and Thursday, Aug. 15; box office hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets are also available through participating BB&T banks, and Greenbrier Medical Arts Pharmacies including Union and Western Greenbrier Pharmacies. For a list of participating locations, visit www.statefairofwv.com.
• Gate admission discounts include an $8.25 adult ticket plus sales tax (13 and older) and a $7.25 youth ticket plus sales tax (age 6-12). Carnival discounts include the $25 Mega Pass plus sales tax and the $20 Big Pass plus sales tax. Individual sheets of carnival tickets are available at $10 for 15 tickets (plus sales tax) at the State Fair box office. Gate admission for children 5 years old and under is free.
• Concert tickets are available for all shows and may be purchased via www.statefairofwv.com or at the State Fair Box Office. Tickets purchased online and through ETIX are subject to a convenience fee.
The State Fair of West Virginia, with its economic impact of $13.8 million on the state, is a nonprofit corporation. The fair receives no appropriation from the state, supporting itself from admissions, fees charged to vendors, and rental of the fairgrounds to other groups. It does receive support in kind from the state Department of Agriculture and from West Virginia University.