What happened to the fair? Half the size of attractions and food. Nasty ratchet staff at almost every stop of the way. I was so disappointed. There must be something going on that we don't know. read more

Petting cows and sheep Monster trucks Winning fair games Vibes Food It was a very fun time, but I was disappointed in the food AND dessert options read more

Prince William County Fairgrounds - Cows - Local Flavor Near Me - Manassas, Virginia

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There were a lot of changes this year that we weren't expecting. Everyone now goes through the same entrance and waits in line whether they pre-paid for the tickets or not. Once inside the fence, staff then sends the prepaid people off to the left and the people who need to buy their tickets to the right to a trailer that is very clearly labeled as selling wristbands for rides and says nothing about admission. An identical trailer is around the corner that really does sell the wristbands. There are new rides and fewer attractions. We enjoyed some of the new rides but were disappointed not to see some of our favorites that we talk about all year. I don't recall the prices from last year, but I feel like I paid more money for less benefit. That being said, we plan to go back next year but mostly because it is my child's favorite activity that we talk about all year. read more

The huge price increase for this county fair that we've attended several times, along with some deceptive advertising, makes it truly feel like a rip-off. $25 entry fee (no re-entry only includes parking, the farm animal exhibits, and the one evening show. Ride wristbands (for unlimited rides) cost $35 (including the $2 "activation fee") and also charges a 3.5% fee for paying with debit/credit card (which makes it about $37.50 per person), and then the advertised pony rides, camel rides, and monster truck rides cost extra ($10 each per rider, cash only). Almost all of the games are $10 min. to play (some are $5 but give 1 chance while $10 gives 3 chances), and as expected, the food and drinks are quite pricey and each stand charges $1 or $2 extra transaction fee for using a debit/credit card. If you're sensing a trend, the biggest tip (if you still want to attend and ride the rides for $52.50 per person) is to bring plenty of cash so you can avoid all the extra transaction fees for everything you'll want to buy while there (as well as any of the "extra" rides that charge separately). All in all, we're coming away from it really feeling duped and like we did not get our money's worth! read more

Prince William County Fairgrounds - Local Flavor Near Me - Manassas, Virginia

One of the worst experiences I've had since living in NOVA. New to the area (Prince William county and their fair grounds). Parked in the wrong area, inadvertently, and asked for assistance when trying to leave as the gate was closed. Was met by a woman who flagged us down. Instead of helping she was insulting, accusing us of trying to circumvent the actual entrance to avoid paying. She continued to insult us saying the nastiest things such as "you found time to walk far enough to get food... I could have just had you towed". It's funny that this woman, a Russian sounding white woman, made it a point to speak to us with such disdain. I hate that what came to my mind was "would you have spoken to us this way if we were white". She got so caught up in her rant that I practically begged her to take the admission money as we were never trying to avoid payment for entry into this lackluster fair. So we ended up paying nearly $100 for food and an entry after staying less than 30 min. What a waste. I don't recommend this fair for many reasons, but mostly the extremely poor customer service. read more

1-pague $70 dollars por un niño de 13 ,14,11 y yo de adulta, no te explican que no podes salir y volver a entrar, que ese dinero solo te da paso para que entres a gastar porque aparte de la entrada tenes que pagar cada ride y entonces viene la segunda estafa. 2-tenes 4 opciones 100 créditos por $10,200 créditos x $20 y 500 créditos por $50, y si queres ride "ilimitados"es lo que dice en el rótulo compras una pulsera por $28 que no puede ser compartida (la tarjeta si se puede compartir) y vos dirás hay que buena idea la tarjeta me ahorro como la comparto pero te cobran $2 extra por activación y cada juego cuesta entre 40-50 créditos sino es que más osea en dos vueltas con suerte se te acabaron los créditos de la tarjeta. Y como si esto no fuera suficiente les presento la tercera estafa! 3-hicimos la fila para un juego luego de estar paradas por un buen tiempo resulta que no puedes subirte con la pulsera aunque claramente en el rótulo dice todos los ride ilimitados, dijeron que solo aceptan tarjetas osea que aunque compres el brazalete de $28, tendrías que también comprar la tarjeta con Dios sabe cuantos créditos mas los $2 aparte de la activación y para rematar aun hay juego que se pagan cash. 4- mi hija lloro viendo las condiciones deplorables en que tienen a los animales se ven descuidados maltratados tuvimos que decirles que uno de los conejos estaba sin comida y otro sin agua en este calor de el infierno a el supuesto encargado. A lo que nos contesto gracias boy a decirle a los que le toca darles la comida teniendo la comida debajo de las jaulas no relleno nada, puedes ver su pelaje unos hasta se ven enfermos, las vacas están puros huesos a una oveja le estavan cortando el pelo y el metal que les ponen para mantenerlas estáticas literal le luchaba la garganta podías ver que se sofocaba. Para mi esto es lo más inhumano que e podido ver hablando de ferias, solo les interesa el dinero dan asco las instalaciones los baños están en malas condiciones puertas quebradas destrabadas sucios es incontable cuántas cosas malas hay en esto y el condado lo permite. Es un robo nunca regresaré a este lugar deberían multar todo este tipo de eventos que están muy por debajo de los standards de limpieza calidad y sobre todo responsabilidad moral read more

After spending over $100.00, many rides had no one to work them, vendor had no ice for drinks & very little seating. You have to walk to the front to sit on picnic tables. Would not waste my money on this fair read more

We paid 70$ just to find out that, that is what you pay to *enter* not to go on the rides, and we were never told when we paid.

We've been going to the Prince William County Fair for many years now. It is the largest fair in the state and while that's nice to have nearby, it also means that it draws some of people in Virginia that you might not want to be around. The admission fee is decent at $10 for adults and $5 for kids/seniors. They offer unlimited ride wristbands for the various rides, which I recommend getting if you plan on riding more than three or more of them. Otherwise you can purchase individual tickets at the various ticket booths throughout the fair. There are lots of carnival/fair rides, but most of them are tired and old. On this visit there were several of them that didn't work properly and the equipment seemed like it needed to be replaced. Not exactly reassuring when your family is on the ride. I think the only ride that I felt comfortable on was the Ferris wheel. There are lots of games to play as well. The prices for playing were reasonable and I have no complaints because most of them have some way to win even on the smaller fees. If you walk away with a toy or stuffed animal, pardon the pun, but that's fair to me. They also have livestock like sheep, cows, chickens, and other interesting barn animals. Just make sure to bring the hand sanitizer, especially for the little ones. Speaking of animals, one of the cool things they had this year was the Clayton Rosaire's Big Cat Encounter. This is a short 20-30 minute show where you watch one of the Rosaire's interact with a Lion, A White Bengal Tiger and a Liger. He was very funny and the show was entertaining. A large section is dedicated to local and national vendors like banks, political parties, home services, real estate etc. Also they have a section for home arts and crafts, which is pretty neat. The clown show and monster truck shows were cool and they provide some fun family entertainment. I wasn't a fan of the $2 admission per person to the grand stands for the monster truck show. Oh and the chainsaw artist was pretty interesting to watch. The food is always a novelty and I'm pretty sure you can find deep fried anything. The prices are reasonable for the food, but it doesn't hurt to pack a meal and run out to the car like we did. Parking is plentiful and its not a long walk to the entrance, however expect dirt, gravel and mud, so don't wear your nice shoes. The staff is sometimes friendly and sometimes not. Several times they were very nice and other times they were downright rude. It's hit or miss. We went on the last day and I think because of that there was an awful smell that lingered in the air. For me it was rather irritating and kind of ruined the entire experience. *The fair is NOT gun carry friendly. read more

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I used to go.. but then they raised the prices.. now I heard they lowered them again. There is ample amounts of parking.. but it's on gravel/grass.. so don't bring your nice car. They have livestock for sale and display, demolition derbies.. pet shows.. and other shows on a daily basis. The rides are so so.. but the food is pretty good and the shows can be entertaining. Probably more fun for children. read more

Love the rodeo show! Because it's my first time, I was searching any detailed information and pictures about it before I go but found little. It turned out that paying extra $2 besides of the admission fee was worth the 1.5 hour rodeo show indeed! The host was an excellent entertainer, the horse and horse riders, cowboys and cowgirls, were really handsome and cool! Though the bull ride seemed very tough. The ride seemed so fun for family and the youth, even more interesting in the evening surrounded by the dark blue sky and colorful lights. Unfortunately, the weather seemed not consistently coordinated for the week this year. BTW, I think the pricing was not well stated on the official website. The admission fee was posted under each event/activity that confused me. In fact, one admission fee covered all besides of the food and the ride, and with extra $2 for the show at grandstand. read more

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I give 2 stars for having such a large fair and a lot of rides. I have to be honest that the food sucks and pricey than it should be. I got chicken tenders at the restaurant name BBQ something cafe. I took a bite of the chicken and it was not good at all, it tasted like they cooked it days ago I also found out that some of the fries I got with chicken had one that was already bitten and somehow they put it in my food tray (I could see teeth mark on the fries and a little ketchup on). so please be mindful, eat before you come in this fair and do not waste the money on food at all (cotton candy and other sweet treats are alright). Staff was really nice and friendly. I wish it would be better next year, very disappointed on food. read more

Prince William County Fairgrounds - Local Flavor Near Me - Manassas, Virginia

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Down home country fun! Monster trucks rock! I look forward to many more events here and taking my kids to the fair!

Had a great time but not much to do and long lines. Place was clean but found a dead frog in one of the kids rides. Had a great time but min interest for a kid read more

Prince William County Fairgrounds - Sun rising on pw county fair - Local Flavor Near Me - Manassas, Virginia

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Virginia's largest state fair! I have grown up going to the Prince William County Fair. The fair comes around each year in August and has a lot to offer. Everyone can find something to do as well as visit the exhibits or shows. There are several shows, demonstrations, concerts, demolition derbies, rodeos, animal exhibits and competitions. The fair provides a great creative outlet for any level artist, baker or craftsman. There is no additional fee to participate in most competitions and judging. Prizes and/or ribbons are awarded in several categories. The commercial areas allow local businesses to setup and promote their respective product, trade or service. This is a very economical form of advertising, especially with free give aways as there are thousands of people each day. Of course there are the expected fair commodities such as the rides, games and the 'fair' food. As a parent, I have encouraged my child to take part in many of the events at the fair. We submit our artwork, plants, baked and canned goods for competition. There is no greater pleasure than watching your child receive a ribbon and award check for something they have created. A great self-confidence booster! Even I have received a few bucks and a ribbon or two! Overall, it does not have to be expensive to attend the Prince William County Fair. They offer discounted days and discounted tickets can be purchased when you participate in the home goods judging. See you at the fair! The Prince William County Fair Grounds serves as host to many other events throughout the year. read more

A decent county fair. I grew up in a rural area, and the county fair was always a highlight of the summer. Being in a metro area, it seems to be more of a novelty, but still has all those things that take me back to being a kid. Food: There were A LOT of food stands here, but they all seemed to be offering the same things. Where has the variety gone? I was appreciative that I didn't have to stand in a line for my fried oreos though. Animals: There were 4 small barns of livestock exhibits. I used to exhibit at the county fair, so I always take a stroll through the barns. Not a lot of cattle here, mostly goats, chickens, and rabbits. I guess this makes sense though for the area. Rides: Good selection for a fair this size. Multiple fun houses, a few great spin and pukes, and the carnival classic, The Zipper The tractor pull was happening the night we were there. Ever try explaining the point of a tractor pull to someone who has always lived in the city? The best I could come up with was "It's something rednecks like to waste money on!" LOL read more

Bathrooms need a bit of updating, but overall it's basically what you'd expect. The Bug Out is perfect for this place. EDIT: Filling in the blanks as this was my last review in a slew of them. The Bug Out is an annual Volkswagen car show that's been going on for many moons now. Definitely a good time, minus the occasional fisticuffs, but that usually happens when testosterone meets race fuel. Plenty of space and the fact that you can BYOB is even better. read more

Well the Manassas fair just took our money let us in the closed and refused to give us our money back! Disgusting!!

I feel like I've been coming to this fair all my life. I've been here with my brothers and sisters, and I've also been here with a lot of dates. It offers everything a great fair offers: There are food competitions which I cannot stress enough how much I love. If you're looking to try something new and original then come here and pick the food of your choice. Over the years I've tried great BBQ's great brownies and a great chicken or five. The have a tone of games and rides. Of course this being a county fair you aren't going to find Disney world quality rides, but they do the job, they are more catered to the children in my opinion. They have the classic games like the one where you use a baseball to shoot down a bottle pyramid that seems glued to a pedestal? Yeah they have that and if you can somehow knock the iron bottles of hardness, you can win a cool prize for your girl to always think of you with.... or remember you by. This is a huge fair and whenever I come to it it just gets bigger and more active. If you are in the area, definitely let aside a weekend date to check it out! read more

This fair isn't worth the money. Every year it has less to offer, for more money. This year it has been made even worse because it is very hot and they removed a vendor for having free water as their promotional item because they had food vendors that were selling water for $3 a bottle and didn't want to take anything away from that. Every year they also have petting zoos that aren't good for the poor animals. There are plenty of free events in Northern Virginia, in my opinion, this fair doesn't have enough to offer to be worth the money. We won't be returning unless they have more to offer customers and hire a new event management company. read more

An obvious and milestone event for our family in the summer. Kids love the rides, which are appropriate for all ages, and the animals they have to pet and feed. You really can't go wrong with animals at a fair that allows you to break from the constant lure of games and food. Wrist-bands on the opening night are a tremendous value with the remaining days costing $18+. Tuesday is just $2 to get in, $2 per ride (by purchasing $1 tickets from the booths), which is decent. The issue is the kids love certain rides that are short and want to go again, again, again and the $2 is prohibitive. You are best to go first night. Military are always free by showing your ID at the gate. Love this fair and feel it's essential to our year. read more

Go there to peoplewatch. Meth princesses, teen moms, societal malcontents, and rednecks. In other words, the only place you can be a reject among rejects. Love it!!! read more

Seemed like the drive would never end, but once we got there my sone was beyond excited and enjoyed every second at the fair. Will definitely return once the fair is in town! read more

The fair is what to be normally expected with regards to the food, rides, events. Something we always look forward to going to. A few comments about it: 1. Military members get in for free. That is really great of the organizers, I appreciated it. 2. The food that we ate there really wasn't up to par this year. If you are going to make us pay that much, make it taste better. It's only fair. Right? 3. A couple of things that really bugged me: a. There was a really annoying clown in the dunk tank. Probably bordering on inappropriate for kids to hear some of the things coming out of his mouth. I'm an adult so it doesn't really offend me but I know folks were getting offended. b. This is the worst part of the fair. THE VENDORS. Holy crap. Don't go into the buildings if you want to enjoy the fair. I like to look for new stuff out there and I know they are trying to sell their stuff but as you walk through to see if anything catches your eye, they are mostly (not all) relentless to get you to talk to them. NO, is not a word they understand. People go to the fair to enjoy fair food, rides, games, etc not to be pressured into buying something they really don't need or can afford. Speaking of affording.. I almost couldn't get away from the Bathfitter guy (not sure if that is the company or not but you know the bathroom folks). This guy wanted to come to my house, give me a quote, etc. I told him that I really couldn't afford to have anything done right now because of other bills and issues but that didn't disuade him. He wanted to finance my job (probably at high interest rate) and add to my already debt pile. This is something that really turns people off from enjoying themselves at these events. Please figure out a way to control them. Overall, good job to the organizers. I know it isn't easy.. read more

We went on the last day of the fair this year. We knew it would be crowded and as all fairs are, we knew it would be overpriced. That said, 6 tickets to ride the darn ferris wheel, at $1 per ticket with no option for package discounts...that's just crazy. Also the crowd was pretty trashy. My husband remarked that he wondered what percentage of the attendees had done meth in the last week. I saw more than a couple of people wearing confederate flag shirts and accessories. The barns were a mess, and I'm a former 4-Her, I know livestock and while the nature of it is a little messy and it takes constant attention to keep the areas fresh and presentable, it should be done....not the fair's fault, but still a negative point. The parking, while free and seemingly plentiful needs to be improved in terms of entrance and exit. We left well before the end of the night, and it took hours, yes, more than one to get out of the lot because of bottlenecking and poor traffic directing. This is supposed to be the largest fair in Virginia? I've been to MUCH larger ones in Alaska, despite the population of under 700,000. The only remotely cool thing at all was the bear show from the bearadise ranch people. Thoroughly unimpressive. read more

Usually fun. Each year less vendors and attractions. However, each year for as long as my family has attended, you could get your hand stamped and come back later. Today we went for a look-see and planned to leave and come back when it was cooler in the evening. Went out the through the gate and asked to get stamped. Told, as of yesterday, the first day of the fair, no longer policy. Nowhere is this stated. This is sad, as the Fair has been going downhill for a while. read more

I went to the fair last Saturday. I am going again this Saturday. I think its more "memories" for me than anything else though. When I was a kid, we used to go to the PWCF every single year. This was the first year I've been back to it in a decade. The fair was so much smaller than I remember, but every bit as awesome! All the animals are there and their ribbons are on display. Saturday morning (Aug 22) is the dairy goat show in the show barn and I will definitely be watching that. The cotton candy tasted just as good as I remember and the funnel cake was even better! If you stroll through the commercial building you will find a table of old guys selling the 60th anniversary fair book. Those old guys are who's left of the fair founders and to my surprise they all still remembered my Mom from nearly 30 years ago. I love the fair, and always will. Its small and quaint, but definitely worth the trip!!! read more

**** update**** the fair administration got back with me and were very receptive to our concerns. I believe they may not do something about it this year but maybe next year. We will give them one more try!! I've always been one for second and third chances. So my husband and I have been coming to the fair for a long time every year multiple times a year. My husband has been coming every year since he was born! Over 30 years. Never have we been harassed by staff as much as we have this year. You made a huge mistake hiring the RMC event people! They are not family friendly!! We bought the refillable deggeller cups and have been harassed to throw them away EVERYTIME we have entered the fair this year. Three nights in a row! We bought the grandstand tickets early because I get extreme bad anxiety with big crowds around me, when did it become a rule that you cannot enter from the bottom? That really concerns me for my family that is handicapp! How do you expect people to walk on a pathway that is smaller than three feet wide, then you allow people to sit on the bottom row so people cannot get by. And the RMC event people are absolute assholes about it, I was trying to explain to the guy why I wanted to come into the bottom and he completely disregarded me. We will not be coming back and it's a shame because we normally buy season passes every year. We didn't this year because last year we had bad experiences as well! You are running the fair into the ground. I wouldn't be surprised if it disappears just like some other counties! read more