Deals for Days

How to get every possible discount at the 2022 State Fair of Texas

The State Fair of Texas starts in Dallas on Friday, September 30.

Courtesy photo

The 2022 edition of the State Fair of Texas starts its 24-day run in Dallas' Fair Park on September 30, with music, games, and food.

But what we're here for is discounts.

There are a multitude of discount ticket options and deals being offered by the State Fair and other entities, meaning there's no reason you should ever pay full price.

TICKET OPTIONS
General admission ticket prices are tiered depending on the day of the week you go:

Monday-Thursday: $15 for adults, $10 for kids 3-12 and seniors 60 and over
Friday: $20 for adults, $15 for kids 3-12 and seniors 60 and over
Saturday-Sunday: $25 for adults, $18 for kids 3-12 and seniors 60 and over

Visitors must choose which specific date they want to attend, and tickets are good only for the date chosen and cannot be used on another day. Be careful with purchases; tickets are not eligible for reschedule, refund, or transfer.

General admission tickets go on sale September 12, and can be purchased online or at the gate.

Premium tickets are $24 and allow you to come on any day. Two-pack and four-pack combos for premium tickets with food and ride coupons are also available. As a bonus, CultureMap is giving you $15 off a ticket & coupon two-pack when you use the promo code 22mapCOMBO.

Premium tickets went on sale August 1, and are available online only.

DISCOUNTS
Below are the many ways we've found for you to save money on tickets to State Fair of Texas.

The season pass
If you plan on going to the fair more than two times, individual season passes are the only way to go. Prices are $50 at BigTex.com and include one single-day, Bring-a-Friend ticket; a State Fair reusable bag; a 10 percent off coupon for State Fair merchandise; and more. The upfront cost, which can be done in advance or at the gate, pays for itself on the third visit.

If you want to buy food/ride tickets without waiting in line once you get there, you can also buy the $150 Season Pass 2-Pack Combo, which includes two season passes and 50 food/ride tickets (worth $50). As a bonus, CultureMap is giving you $30 off the combo when you use the promo code 22mapPASS.

Food/ride tickets remain at $1 per coupon. As always, if you have old coupons, don't worry; all coupons, even ones from the bygone 50-cent price, will be honored.

Go after 5 pm
If you can wait until after 5 pm to head out to the fair, you can save a good chunk of change as everyone pays child’s prices once the clock strikes five. The deal is good any day of the fair. No promo codes are needed — the discount is automatically applied at the gate and online.

Opening day deals
The half-price deal on opening day continues: Anyone who brings two jars of peanut butter to donate to the North Texas Food Bank will receive $10 admission at the gate.

Military/First Responders Appreciation
All active military, retired military, and veterans, as well as active and retired public law enforcement, firefighters, paramedics, and other emergency services agencies, can save $5 off on weekdays (Monday-Friday) and $7 off on weekends (Saturday-Sunday) when they present valid documentation of service at the gate or online. Spouses of service men and women with a valid Military Spouse ID and accompanying children under the age of 18 also receive discounted admission. First responders receive up to three discounted admission tickets for their family members.

McDonald's coupons
The next time you eat at Mickey D's, make sure to check your tray liner or bag for State Fair coupons. You'll find ones for $5 off on weekdays (Monday-Friday) and $7 off on weekends (Saturday-Sunday.) All coupons are only good for tickets purchased at the gate and cannot be combined with any other offer.

Dr Pepper Value Days
Visitors can purchase their admission ticket online for a reduced price of only $10 on Dr Pepper Value Days, every Tuesday and Thursday. Fairgoers must be a Big Tex Insider to receive the promotion code; you can sign up now at BigTex.com/Insider. (Or — psst — you can use the code 22Culture to get the same deal on Tuesdays only; general admission tickets go on sale on September 12.)

North Texas Food Bank Wednesdays
One of the best deals continues to be North Texas Food Bank Wednesdays. By bringing five canned food items, fairgoers will receive admission for only $5. All canned donations go to the North Texas Food Bank, which helps feed members of the community.

Senior steal
Guests age 60 and over had it made in the shade in past years, as they were able get a discount ticket every day. That deal is now gone, but they'll still have Senior Days every Thursday, when they can get in for just $5.

Thrifty Thursdays
Guests can save while snacking during Thrifty Thursdays, where participating food vendors offer one of their signature menu items at a reduced price, ranging from mini versions to regular-size items.

Discounts on Midway rides
Designated as Thrilling Tuesdays, that day of the week is a great time to go to the fair. Not only can you get your $10 Dr Pepper (or CultureMap) ticket, you can save more inside, when most rides are offered at a reduced price.

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The Mead-up

Medieval village pops up near Austin for days of immersive role-playing

hynafol.com

The Grand Gathering of Hynafol takes place annually at the Sherwood Forest Faire grounds.

Hark! A roving band of role players approaches. The Grand Gathering of Hynafol, an immersive fantasy summit, is coming to the Sherwood Forest Faire grounds in McDade, Texas, from November 6-10.

This Medieval weekend escape makes several promises including a temporary escape from 2024 politics as well as an introduction to LARPing, or Live Action Role Playing. This broad term could apply to anything from taking your visit to the Renaissance Faire super seriously to attending a murder mystery party, and much more in between.

Essentially, it's playing make-believe with an adult understanding of relationships, strategy, consequences, and yes, even politics, although they're usually fictional and set hundreds of years ago. It's also applying that inner-child spirit to playing with access to an adult budget, so the costumes, props, and venues are a lot more exciting.

The Grand Gathering takes place at the site the Austin area's annual Renaissance Faire, which returns from March 1 to April 21, 2025. This off-season event is organized by the Sherwood team and LARPing group The Voyage North.

Attendees will create a character, don a costume, and participate in "combat," dancing, shopping side quests, and much more. Unlike at a standard Ren Faire, people are expected to interact with each other often and in character. Hynafol presents a narrative from start to finish to help inspire and tie all the games and interactions together. A detailed YouTube video by LARPing.org covers the experience for prospective attendees.

Organizers assure first-timers that this is the perfect place to get their feet wet, speaking in an introductory video to Dungeons and Dragons and other tabletop role playing game (TTRPG) players, Ren Faire-goers, and even just fans of fantasy fiction. In fact, it sounds like most Hynafol attendees join because they saw videos from the event online — not some fancy network of role-players who know each other or maintain complicated backstories.

This is good news considering the ticketing circumstances: all-inclusive passes are sold out, but tickets are still available to stop by all events over two or five days, plus a packing list, discounts to assemble a costume, and access to the community throughout the year via a Discord server and monthly Zoom calls.

Attendees using the Weekend Pass and Do-it-yourself Package will still camp at Hynafol, but they'll have to use their own equipment. They can bring their own decorum (Medieval-style) tent to stay on the grounds, or a modern tent to stay in a separate campsite off the main grounds. They can also purchase a meal plan add-on, pack their own food, or purchase food from a vendor during lunch or late-night meals.

More information and tickets ($197-497) are available at hynafol.com.

renaissance faire camping