DAVENPORT, Iowa — It's fair season, and one of the Quad Cities' largest fairs returns Aug. 2-7 to the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds, located at 2815 West Locust St. in Davenport.
Hundreds of thousands of people, kids and critters from both sides of the river will gather at the Mississippi Valley Fair for six days of live entertainment, carnival rides, contests and fried food.
Good Morning Quad Cities will be live from the fairgrounds on Aug. 2 to celebrate the kickoff of fair festivities. Tune in between 4:30-7 a.m. on WQAD News 8. You can also catch up on all of our coverage on YouTube.
Here's what you should know if you plan to go to the Mississippi Valley Fair.
Tickets, admission:
Tickets for grounds admission to the Mississippi Valley Fair are still available for purchase. Tickets only allow entrance to the fairgrounds once, so you will not be able to leave and reenter. Adult tickets are $10 per day. Kids 4-12 get in for $5 per day, and kids under 3 get in for free.
Fun cards, which allow the cardholder daily entrance to the fairgrounds and all Grandstand acts, are available for $100 each.
Buy your tickets and fun passes online anytime or at the fair office from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. Great Southern Bank, Hy-Vee and Kwik Star locations will also have tickets available for purchase.
Grandstand acts:
Big-name musical acts will take the Grandstand stage each night of the fair, and fireworks will follow the shows. Entry to the Grandstand requires a fun card, and all seats are first-come, first-serve. Find the schedule of Grandstand acts below:
- Tuesday – Kid Rock.
- Wednesday – Nelly and Flo Rida.
- Thursday – Jimmie Allen.
- Friday – Carly Pearce.
- Saturday – Brantley Gilbert.
- Sunday – Dustin Lynch.
Attractions:
There's more to see at the fair than just the Grandstand acts! Catch Chainsaw Artist Gary Keenan, Cycle Circus Live, QC Skydivers and performances from other musicians throughout the week.
There are also several events attendees can take part in, including the corn-dog-eating contest, kiddie tractor pull, talent show, petting zoo and bingo.
Find the full schedule of attractions here.
For the kids:
Sandyland is a fun, activity-filled area for kids within the fairgrounds. It’s open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.
Food:
It's not a fair without food! Many concessions offering traditional fair food - kettle corn, cotton candy, nachos, funnel cake and corn dogs - will be set up throughout the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds.
You can also find some non-traditional options like gyros and baklava, smoked mac and cheese, pork chop on a stick, fried cheesecake, egg rolls, reuben sandwiches and blooming onions.
Click/tap here to find a list of food vendors and their menu offerings.