The San Diego County Fair opened Wednesday to great fanfare, with the Navy band playing for the opening ceremony.
This year’s theme is "Once Upon a Fair," where fairgoers can get lost in storybook adventures.
“It is a an ode to storytelling, the fairy tales, to adventure, to the books that we grew up with and the characters that we love,” fair spokesperson Tristan Hallman said. “KPBS is a partner in that.”
KPBS has a booth inside the 20,000-square-foot theme exhibit, featuring One Book, One San Diego and the upcoming KPBS San Diego Book Festival.
"It's custom built, so you can go through all kinds of adventures in there," Hallman said.
Later this month, those adventures will include meet-and-greets with PBS Kids favorites Arthur and Clifford the Big Red Dog.
On Wednesday, Lisa Cartegena and her family were among the first to enter this year's fair. She wanted to get the kids to spend some time outdoors.
“I'm just going to watch and walk around, get some exercise and just let them enjoy the unlimited wristbands and rides and food,” she said.
But all the kids could think of were the rides.
“I'm looking forward to going on the rides the most,” Isaac Vargas said.
“We are going on some intense rides today,” Ben Christopher said.
Cartegena said part of the reason they were going on opening day was the $5 admission special.
"It was nice to have the lower cost for the expense because everything is so expensive right now," she said.
Fair organizers say they’re trying to keep the fun affordable.
“We recognize that. You know, we live in San Diego County, too," Hallman said. "We are working very hard to offer as many value deals and discounts and opportunities to really enjoy the fair on different days, different promotions, different ideas.”
How to save on tickets
On Fridays, children ages 6 to 12 get in free. And tickets are $3 to $5 cheaper when bought online in advance.
Visitors can also save up to $8.50 per person when buying discounted tickets at Albertsons, Vons and Pavilion supermarkets
The fair is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. through July 5, except for Mondays and Tuesdays. For more information on discounted tickets, visit sdfair.com.
