As you're making your way along South Houghton Road toward the Pima County Fairgrounds this weekend, do yourself a favor: As you get close, roll down the window and inhale.
Can you smell that?
It's the fragrant intersection of sweet and savory, dirt and dung, with the slight stench of a Mike’s Hot Honey turkey leg and a dirty soda misadventure on The Titan.
Coulda been that second round of flips and twists and the downhill burst going 60 that did it.
Ahhhh, yes, it's that time of year again.
The Pima County Fair is back Thursday, April 17, for an 11-day run through April 27, with its livestock shows and auctions, extreme thrill rides on the Midway and decadent food that few would describe as "healthy."
There's also the nightly concerts where admission is free with your fair admission.
For some families, the Pima County Fair is a treasured annual outing. It's a first-date destination or a BFFs Saturday afternoon hangout.
Folks travel from all corners of Pima County and parts of neighboring Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, just to say they survived G Force, one of the scarier rides on the Midway. The rollercoaster tests Newton's Laws of Motion as it chugs higher and higher until it reaches a towering peak then drops with such velocity you won't be able to catch your breath.
The gravity of the coaster's weight and the speed it gathers from the downhill plunge shoots the coaster around twists and turns and more climbs and drops until it comes to a sudden jolt on the platform and the gates unlock.
Warning: Save the Hot Cheetos pizza and bacon-wrapped pork belly for later.
Here's our guide to making the most out of the fair, from the fun food to the carnival rides and the concerts.
But first, the deets.
Riders get spun under the late afternoon sun on the Mach 1 during the 2019 Pima County Fair. The ride is one of nearly 60 coming to the 2025 fair beginning this weekend.
When, where and how much
The Pima County Fair opens at 3 p.m. Thursday, April 17, at the Pima County Fairgrounds, 11300 S. Houghton Road. Hours are from 3 to closing weekdays and 11 a.m. to closing Saturdays and Sundays through April 27. Admission is $12 for adults; $8 for military and seniors ages 55 and older; $7 for children ages 6-10; and free for kids ages 5 and younger.
Your admission gets you into the nightly concerts on the Budweiser or Michelob Ultra stages, but you can upgrade to reserved seats for $25.
You need to buy tickets for the rides; no prices had been released as of late last week. But there are a few what we like to call cheap date night promotions that can save you a few bucks, including wristband days Thursday and April 23-24. Bring a 20-ounce unopened Pepsi product to get $5 off the $40 wristband good for unlimited rides and one spin on The Titan. On Easter Sunday, April 20, get a special wristband for $30.
To get tickets online and more details, visit pimacountyfair.com.
Carnival Cannolis stuffed with cereal and cannoli cream are just one of the sweet treats at the fair this year.
Viral trends take over this year's food scene
Move over deep-fried Oreos and golden-brown funnel cake, this year the Pima County Fair is debuting a new treat that not only tastes good but is good (kind of) for you.
The star snack for this year’s fair combines two classic favorites: strawberries and chocolate. Fresh, ripe strawberries are smothered in silky Belgian chocolate and served in a family-size cup so everyone can indulge in the sweet flavors.
The star snack for this year’s fair combines two classic favorites: strawberries and chocolate.
“The chocolate strawberry cup will be one of the hottest and most viral food sensations at the Pima County Fair,” said Dominic Palmieri from RCS, the Phoenix-area company behind the fair food and midway rides. “This new food will be as impactful to fair foods as the corn dog was 60 years ago as the first food on a stick. The response has been unbelievable.”
You can see the viral strawberry cup as you scroll through the fair’s Instagram page, showing bright-red strawberries under a chocolate fountain that pours the chocolatey goodness on top of them. Heart-eyed emojis and lots of the word “yum” fill the comment section as you're mesmerized by the video of the chocolate drizzle.
“It’s funny to watch senior citizens that just become the biggest kids when they get this chocolate strawberry cup in their hands. They just love it,” Palmieri said.
You can wash down those strawberries with another viral trend seen on social media: dirty sodas. You may have seen videos of Dr Pepper and Coca-Cola mixed with heavy cream and flavored syrups, creating a float-like drink.
You can expect to see dirty sodas at the fair this year, where stands will have all kinds of sweet flavors to choose from, like the Orange Dreamsical Cotton Candy Float.
You can expect to see dirty sodas at the fair this year, where stands will have all kinds of sweet flavors to choose from, ranging from coconut cream, blue raspberry and wild cherry, with toppings like whipped cream, sprinkles and gummy bears.
“You get to create your own dirty soda fantasy,” Palmieri said.
Last year, the fair featured different savory foods that incorporated spicy Nashville sauces; now they are bringing a little sweet to that heat.
Mike’s Hot Honey will be used in all kinds of savory dishes around the fair. This popular honey brand combines spicy flavors with smooth, sweet honey, so you’re getting the best of both worlds.
One of the foods you’ll see is a Mike’s Hot Honey turkey leg, giving a kick to the classic giant turkey legs you see every year. Palmieri described its taste as a combination of a honey-baked ham and a smoked turkey leg.
Mike’s Hot Honey will also be featured in other classic fair foods like corn dogs, pizzas, pickles and bacon-wrapped pork belly.
“We've been on the hot and spicy trend for quite some time; however, we've now done it with honey,” Palmieri said. “That silky texture of the hot honey on the food just gives it this whole new dimension. It's been super popular and everybody's loved it.”
Of course, you’ll see all the fair foods we’ve come to know and love like cotton candy, deep-fried treats and lots of crispy, crunchy pickles. Don’t you worry, there will be Hot Cheetos too!
“We thought at some point, after 12 years, this is going to slow down, but the Hot Cheetos craze is not going away anytime soon,” Palmieri said. “Our last event, which was the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, we used over a truckload of Cheetos.”
Palmieri said the spicy and crunchy texture sprinkled on top of various foods is what brings people back; they like having a nice crisp atop their pizza and burgers. That’s exactly why the Hot Cheeto cheese pickle pizza is a crowd favorite.
The best part about the food at the fair this year: it all comes in a size big enough to share! When you order your bucket of doughnuts or giant wedges of Fruit Roll-ups-wrapped watermelons, there is enough for the whole family or groups of friends to nibble on.
The Titan is one of the scariest rides at the Pima County Fair, which runs April 17-27 at the fairgrounds, 11300 S. Houghton Road.
Take a ride, or three
RCS has three new rides in its midway arsenal:
- Dragon Coaster, modeled on the 1929 wooden rollercoaster at Playland amusement park in Rye, New York;
- the multistory Enchanted Castle with its maze of climbing walls and funhouse rooms leading to a slide that takes you back down;
- and Overdrive, a whip and twirl ride that jerks your car this way and that while spinning ’round and ’round.
They join the fair's usual suspects, from the kid-friendly bumper boats, Goliath slide, carousel, tug boat and Wacky Worm rollercoaster, to the tummy-turning Grand Wheel, Rave Wave, Mach 1 and the ultimate thrill ride, The Titan.
If standing beneath the Crazy Coaster watching the carts whip around nickel-tight corners that spin the carts 'round and 'round while going up and down doesn't register on your thrill meter, check out the price of admission: rides requiring six or more tickets are the ones that will flip, toss, jerk and catapult you into all kinds of scary.
There are 15 of those rides among the nearly 60 amusement rides at this year's fair, including a few that fall into the category of extreme rides, like the super-scary Titan that hits speeds of 4G and takes you 180 feet off the ground while you sit upright, strapped into an open-air cart with your feet dangling. It looks like those one-armed oil-drills on steroids, cranking 'round and 'round and 'round and 'round.
It'll cost you 14 tickets, which is five more than the nine you'll need for The Titan's just slightly less extreme sister Mach 1. And if you want to jump on the Sling Shot — yes, the image that just flashed in your head is exactly what it is — you won't be able to use tickets; it takes cash.
The ‘80s glam band Warrant play their third Tucson show since headlining the 2023 New Year’s Eve bowl bash downtown.
Music for the masses
Whether you're into headbanging rock, DJ-driven house music or the lush accents of regional Mexican pop, the fair concert series is sure to have at least one show worth the price of admission.
Oh, wait. There is no separate admission outside of the money you pay to get in, unless you want a reserved seat. That will cost you $25 extra.
With this year's lineup, it's sure to be money well-spent.
- Grammy-nominated electro-house DJ Steve Aoki kicks things off with an 8 p.m. show Thursday on the Budweiser Stage.
- KFMA and the fair are joining hands for "Three Way" — three acts on two stages beginning at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 18, with Pennsylvania rockers From Ashes to New on the Michelob Ultra stage, and Michigan's post-grunge band Pop Evil and Memphis nu metal foursome Sleep Theory on the Budweiser stage beginning at 8:15 p.m.
- 1980s glam band Warrant brings its "Let the Good Times Rock" Tour to the Michelob Ultra stage at 6 p.m. Saturday, April 19; country singer Clay Walker is on the Budweiser stage at 8 p.m. Saturday.
- It's all about rap on Easter Sunday, April 20, with Baby Bash topping a lineup that includes Ying Yang Twins, Lil Rob, Cota the Barber and MC Danny Trejo. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. on the Budweiser stage.
- Get on your disco boots for the tribute act Direct From Sweden when it plays all those great, infectiously poppy ABBA hits at 7:30 p.m. Monday, April 21, on the Budweiser stage.
- The Dallas Selena tribute band Tejano Queen Forever takes the Budweiser stage at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 22.
- So-Cal alt-rockers Switchfoot are on the Budweiser stage at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 23.
- Hip-hop/rap legends Warren G, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, E- 40, Mike Jones and Slim Thug bring Flow Jam to the Budweiser stage at 8 p.m. April 24.
- Rapper Xzibit is on the Michelob Ultra stage at 7:30 p.m. April 25; Atlanta rockers Sevendust play the Budweiser at 9 p.m.
- Country duo Brothers Osborne are on the Budweiser stage at 8 p.m. April 26.
- The 16-member Mexican ensemble Su Majestad la Brissa will fill the Michelob Ultra stage at 5:30 p.m. April 27; Latin heart-throb Luis Angel "El Flaco" closes out the series at 7:30 p.m. on the Budweiser stage.
