Such a beautiful day in Arizona we came to the Festival of Lights! You have to park behind it and…read morewalk a bit to get there, 20$ get you an all day pass for kids for the bounce houses. There's two sides of vendors with food and cute things to buy, I do wish that they had signs saying their form of payment because everyone had different forms and you don't find out until you are buying something and the lines are long sometimes and the sun was super bright today. Make sure you put on sunscreen and wear sunglasses. FOOD: there was pita jungle, dumplings, hot dogs, dominos pizza (cash only), pop corn, cotton candy, ice cream and cakes. DRINKS: coffee Goat, a few stands of lemonade and sodas and on the center of the park there was a couple of breweries you have to pay to enter that part. Big stage with entertainment, kids dancing, bands sponsored by BIG O TIRES AHWATUKEE! They also had a Santa stand starting at noon where you can take pictures with him and tell h what you want for Christmas. The line was long all day.

A little disappointed in this year's event. Despite still being free to get in, the booth rental…read moreprices were $400 which led to $9.00 hot dogs $15 funnel cakes and $8.00 cokes. Not to mention that there were nowhere near the amount of places to eat as advertised. I'm assuming the space rental price kept many people away as the marketplace had only two thirds of the vendors as in past years. All in all, a very expensive day for a family outing that didn't live up to the events, concessions and fun as in past years.

I love this street show…read more We've met so many talented artists over the years, we've been coming for the last several. This is my favorite place to Christmas shop because we can buy local artist pieces and one of a kind gifts. I love West Kept Secret's homemade magnets and metal calendars. The weather is gorgeous, there are so many places to sit in the shade, being your doggies on a leash and eat and drink. They also feature local music to listen to in the main quad as well.

My family booked us tickets while I was home visiting. I'd never heard of the Lantern Festival…read morebefore, so I really didn't know what to expect. I'm so glad I went. It was wonderful being outdoors with lots of great people and fun music. I was really impressed at how well behaved everyone was. This is 100% a family friendly event that I would suggest any parents looking for an event for the clan to attend. The day was really relaxing, attendees were given a platform to express the issues that have weighed heavy on their hearts, and messages were written on lanterns that were cast off into the water. It was really beautiful and I hope to be doing it again with my family in the future.

I went to Food City to get discount tickets, per the websites request. Well....it was a less than…read moredesirable experience and waste of time...only to find out that it was a .30 cent savings not a $4 savings per ticket. $18 a ticket plus $10 to park on the fair grounds. It wasn't very well put together and there were random fair rides all over. I think this is worth more like $5 and free parking. I went to this same event 3 years ago in Chandler and it wasn't nearly as expensive and no parking fees. I wouldn't go again.

3.20.26 - Was excited for this event! Purchased the early bird tickets for $13 each so that wasn't…read morebad at all. I attended this event last year and the lines weren't too bad that time. Place seemed brighter and livelier last year. It was also a bit more busy too. This year, it was pretty empty. Lines were short though so that was a good thing. It was hot out on this particular weekend. Wish they would plan these outdoor events during the cooler months. I just had to come back again for a few specific items. Unfortunately, the oysters from Nola Oysteria were a bit overcooked and dry this year. Chili wontons from Zindrew were also better last time. They were also hot (spicy) last time. This time, it was just mild (1 friend can't handle hot). I ended up buying a jar of Zindrew's hot chili oil to take home. Sooo good! Pho soup dumplings were delicious!! I wanted 2 more trays of it! My friend liked the bone marrow. They liked the katsu chicken sando too. My lychee tea was refreshing. My friend got a giant mango drink in the animal jugs but it came with little to no ice!! Was not worth $25 for it. My only regret was not purchasing any dessert to eat or take home this time.

So this past Sunday was the Thriftapalooza…read more.. This is a must try attraction for the ones that didn't make it this year, but a must for next year. Easy parking. Easy entrance. Friendly customer service from all the workers..but most importantly. It was a fun function. Walking down and looking at all the booths and bringing me back to when I was kid. The things I'd collect and wear. This was an awesome event. Glad I was able to take part in it. Thank you Thriftapalooza! And thank you AE & State Fair for a great event...until again yelpers...

First time at M3F and I loved it. I like how spread out the venue is at the park. And we did both…read moredays- one cold rainy day and other perfect AZ spring weather. Both were great! Highlights: cleanest porta potties, good choice of food vendors, I got a tattoo!!, I really loved the shows I saw and danced to. Justice, LCD soundsystem, badbadnotgood, leisure, mind chatter, girl talk, LP Giobbi, hippie sabotage, orions belte, polar bears, & ward andrews. I would definitely come back next year since this festival is so dance-y! Lots of EDM and great bands.

I've gone to this festival for many years. It is grown quite a bit. It now has three live music…read morestages and an off to the side a DJ dance stage. Unfortunately this year I went on Friday and it was rainy all day long. I still had fun, but I would have appreciated a bit more rain/shade protected areas in the VIP. I prefer previous years where the VIP had a snack area, a lunch and dinner included in addition to drinks. This was more like the VIP experience areas at the WM Phoenix Open. M3F has changed VIP to a $100 credit on your wristband. This doesn't buy very much at a 10-hour festival. Drinks were $12 to $16 plus tax and tip. Three street tacos cost $15 plus tax and fees. Like I said, $100 credit doesn't go very far.

I went to the Tequila Festival with the BF and 2 friends and, honestly, it was pretty fantastic. We…read moregot our tickets through groupon, so it was not terribly expensive. With the ticket, you get 10 drink samples. I tried drinks from Canteen, Cruz tequila, and many others. We got enough alcohol to have a very good time. We also got to try food from the Sandbar (spicy mac and cheese...surprisingly delicious), El Reye de la Torta (always delish), Si Senor (Really good green chile...strong jalapeno flavor, but yummy), and America's Taco Shop (delish pork tacos). I had the added bonus of getting some Yelp sunglasses....fabulous! Overall, we had several hours of fun and entertainment and didn't have to stand in line for crazy amounts of time to do so. We also got to meet Xhibit...so that was....weird. I would go again next year.

SO MUCH FUN! Went with friends for this event and enjoyed the whole day!…read more The different types of tequila were interesting (Cocoa Patron, nuff said) but the lines were a little long as the day wore on. Just glad that we went early and got done early because as we were winding down, some people were just starting to get crazy! I'll totally go back next year if friends want to go!

Not as big as I expected from the advertising. Needed more shade spots and more fun booths.read more

Attended this annual event on Saturday. It was fairly big, taking up a good half chunk of the park…read more I only saw a few homeless folks loitering. They must have been hiding until the festival ended. The dollar food sampling tickets were a nice touch, but I only found about six booths out of 150 offering those dollar samples. I tried the $1 tamales and small egg burritos, both were good. Over a dozen food trucks, a huge beer garden and a bunch of local stuff for sale. It was a nice event for downtown Phoenix and finally one where no admission is charged, like the good ole days.

What an absolutely FABULOUS day at the annual Gay Rodeo ! The beverages , people , food , swag ,…read moreentertainment & bull riding was AWESOME! I can't by his was my frat time at this event , I will definitely be going back each year ! My recommendations are as follows, be sure to bring cash for tickets for food, you can charge tickets for beverages and water but, cash only for tickets for food. Also, be prepared to buy & win tons of amazing items, water, bottles, stickers, bags, T-shirts, paintings, homemade granola bars, hats, belt buckles, Western gear, the list goes on and on! Don't miss this event!

The venue is great for a rodeo. However, I felt that the $5 parking fee on the rodeo grounds was a…read morebit steep, especially considering the $20 entrance fee. The concert was fantastic, I especially enjoyed hearing Harry perform. I am a big fan of the rodeo, and I would definitely consider attending again, particularly if the event were held during cooler weather.

At this Mexican dominated festival, the tamales are hit and miss. I would not recommend eating the…read moresamples from most stands as they were mostly cold and unappetizing, plus some folks were wandering around with cold samples too. We did have a few good tamales including the ones from Food City and one that was wrapped in a banana leaf, but like I said, its random luck from the 10 or so stands. The festival is only two blocks long, but alot of booths had wheels to spin to get free stuff and alot of free samples of other products too were available. Everything is mostly conducted in Spanish, including the music. Spent about 90 minutes at the festival, but it could be better if bigger and if the tamale booths were labeled better.

We had a great time at this event and there is some great food. You can spend as little or as much…read moremoney as you want - admission is free. A family and pet friendly event, it is equally welcoming to the physically challenged, I noted. We had an awesome plate of food consisting of two tamales of our choice, damn good refried beans, and rice for $7, which benefited a church. It was so good, we purchased a dozen for $18, which is the set take-home price for all vendors here ($10 for a half dozen). An ample amount of security staff was a reassuring presence here. A large stage featured talented Latino groups and mariachi bands. The hit was one featuring a young boy, child prodigy, on an acordian with his family. They serve alcohol, which requires a free wristband received after presentation of an ID staing that you are over 21 (required for any age). This is a great event. Period. My husband and I have this on next year's calendar for sure.

Loved the Grand Ave Art Festival. Lots of booths, performances, local businesses along Grand Ave…read morewere open too. It was great that they blocked Grand Ave, so we could walk and explore everything safely. Oh and it was free! Enjoyed a free demonstration and prints from Hazel & Violet, bought beautiful handmade porcelain bowls, bought handmade jewelry, bought a lovely bouquet from the local Grand Ave flower shop Plum. There is live painting, murals, pavement painting, music performances, Taiko, fashion show, and more! I enjoyed the grateful well interactive art piece as well.

I came in expecting this to be an extra First Friday, something a little extra to do in our perfect…read moreNovember weather. I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I got a little more than I expected. Lowkey, Grand Ave is 2010 Roosevelt Row. It is, without a doubt, the most hip neighborhood in Maricopa County. It's more creative than downtown, more fun than current RoRo, and trendier than anywhere else. Every business on the road is out in full force trying to show everything they've got. And with so many newcomers to this area, this year's festival served as a debutante for new establishments, which include galleries, bars, and clothiers. What I really appreciated were the galleries that made an effort to show the *history* of this short stretch of road. It was always zoned to have both nightlife, travel destinations, and industrial establishments all in close proximity. I suppose the only downside is that having large events sort of exposes this neighborhood as not being the most pedestrian friendly. It's short on shade. Even modest crowds turn the sidewalk into a traffic jam. They have recently added one crosswalk, but it still feels like it could use more. Nevertheless, you should check it out when it comes into town next. It's totally worth.