Minnesota State Fair Tickets Get Pricier
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - The cost to get in the gates at the Minnesota State Fair is going up by $1.
That means adults will pay $13, and seniors and kids will pay $11. Tickets for children under five remain free.
Jerry Hammer, the state fair's general manager, says the increase is necessary for operational purposes.
"Our costs to produce the fair continue to go up quite a bit," Hammer said.
At the year-round amusement park at the Mall of America, reaction is mixed.
"When you have a family of course, you just expect for everything to go up," said Andrew Chapin, father of two. "What can you do?"
But Stacy Bednar, a mother of two, wonders when enough is enough.
"Any type of small, incremental amount adds up," Stacy Bednar said. "We've just been noticing that a lot lately."
But she says they'll most likely go anyway because her 8-year-old son, Wen, is a big fan.
"I really like the mini-doughnuts," Wen Bednar said. "They're super good."
Jerry Hammer says costs to support the food and patrons are on the rise. Fire protection is over $1 million, as is sanitation.
And a big new cost will be a new parking lot, which he hopes will alleviate traffic on Como Avenue.
"To produce the fair, it's quite an expense. It's going to cost about $40 million for us to produce the fair for next year," he said. "We need revenue to do that right."
While they're doing it by increasing adult tickets to $13, WCCO looked at other state fair prices. Ohio is $10, Iowa is $11 and California is $12.
But the people at the helm insist it costs more to put the "great" in the "Great Minnesota Get-Together."
"I think people understand," Hammer said. "I hope they do, anyway, that we're giving them great value."
A way to save is to buy advance tickets, which have also increased by a dollar.
