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San Diego County Fair 2023

The fair is back, and we decided to go for the day. We took my service dog Dexter who also had a ball. As I type this, he sleeps after a full day of fun.
There are a few things to be said about this. You can buy your tickets online. It’s fast, it’s easy, and it does save some time. Parking can range from twenty to fifty dollars, and you should pre-buy.
They still sell tickets at the fair, but we bought them online. Here is the convenient link where you can buy what you want. As you can see, there are youth, adult, and senior prices.
This brings me to the price of things once you enter the venue. Fair food is the usual deep-fried, sweet treats, sodas, ice cream, and water. Prepare to pay a steep price for this. We were looking at two hundred dollars for two people for food, tickets, and parking. I had some Turkey tacos for lunch, which were $16 before taxes. My husband had pizza; he was around $17. Neither was spectacular, but it was ok.

The tacos were among the healthiest of options. If you prefer burgers, funnel cakes, or deep-fried pickles with bacon, you can find them.
My husband also had a cinnamon bun.
So before rides, or if you find something with the merchants, it will be a tad pricey.
The fair is still recovering from the pandemic. There were some open areas with the merchants. And the usual participation with booths from emergency services was not there, maybe because it’s during the week. Crowds will be heavier later in the fair season, which runs until July 4.
This year's theme is to get outdoors, so the Boy Scouts and state and federal Rangers are doing some education. For the Cleveland National Forest Rangers, it includes some wildland fire education.
We always enjoy the photography exhibit, so we took time with that.
If you plan to go, because of the current weather pattern, it’s on the cool side, which was more pleasant.