Family Fun at the Fort Bend County Fair

The Fort Bend County Fair is underway in Rosenberg, and it's a good time for the whole family. This fair is designed to entertain your little ones and even up to your teenagers. It runs Sept. 28-Oct. 7, 2018, so there's still time to make a trip.

The fair is decently sized in that the crowds are not overwhelming but there is enough to do and see for the entire family. We visited as a family on opening day and were not disappointed. Make sure you bring cash because even though there are on-site ATMs, certain ones were not working (plus, it's just less hassle).

Upon entering the gates, the first thing you see is the carnival midway. While this is what the kids usually want to do first, don't forget about the real reason for the fair's existence: to appreciate what the 4-H students and adults have been working on all year. The exhibition buildings are scattered throughout the property, and one of our favorites was Exhibit Building D. This is the building which displays the art, crafts, baked goods and such the area adults and kids created. My 5-year-old son was so excited to see he could have submitted a Lego structure for a competition. He also appreciated the art submitted by the elementary schools and high schools in the area. It actually built his confidence, and he told me he wanted to do similar projects next year in school. While this might seem like the least exciting part of the fair, keep in mind these buildings are air-conditioned if the weather decides to change and rain (which it did on opening day).

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The exhibition buildings can also provide a nice break from the sensory overload of the carnival. Near this exhibition building, there are nice bathrooms in case the little ones need a potty break. There is also a commercial business exhibition hall for shopping. Near the entrance, the building is full of local businesses selling a variety of goods from jewelry to candles.

You can find the animals to the left of the fair carnival, and it's a perfect area for educating your kids. Think taking care of your fish is hard? Try a calf, rabbit, turkey goat, sheep or pig. Depending on the day you go, you can see any number of these animals. The fair's website has a full schedule of which animals will be judged each day. You can walk the stalls as the students bathe, brush or feed the animals. Most times, if you ask, your children can pet the animals as well. It's a great way to show your child what different animals actually look and feel like, like how pigs really aren't that soft and how goats have friendly demeanors just like dogs. Near the entrance and to the left of the commercial exhibition hall is the free petting animal corral where you can also buy feed and feed the animals. The corral does include some tall llamas, however, and they seemed to scare some of the smaller visitors.

A must-do for your little ones just on the left of the show-animal corrals is the Ag-tivity Barn. This is where your children can see "ag" at work. There are baby ducklings playing, baby chicks ready to be born on display as well as other animals. There are attendants on-hand ready to teach your children about the differences in animals hides, scat, and paw prints.

If that's not enough to see and do during the day, in the evening there are also a multitude of events for the family. Always a crowd pleaser is mutton busting where kids try to stay on the back of a bucking sheep to win a grand prize. Sadly, your kids won't be able to participate - the competitors are area students who had to qualify back in August. 

The carnival is what you find at most fairs. Be sure and buy your tickets at the entrance of the carnival section because all rides need tickets. It's $1 per ticket, and there is an armband option for multiple rides available. Most of the children's rides are two tickets per ride. The children's rides and games are in the middle of the carnival, including easy games for smaller children that simply involve picking up rubber ducks from a pool of water to be a winner. So there's something for any age group. For the rides, the measurement is between 36 inches and 46 inches.

All around the fair, there is plenty to eat. What would this article be without talking about fair food? For your little ones that aren't adventurous, there are plenty of options. For my boys, the crowd pleasers are always popcorn, candy apples, and lemonade. For the moms, there is the roasted corn, anything on a stick and anything fried. Again, bring your cash. While $2 for popcorn seems reasonable, with everything else you are paying for, it adds up. I heard one couple in the resting tent trying to figure out how they spent $75 in just under an hour.

Admission details:

Season Pass - $40
Adults - $15 at the gate or $12 online
Children 6-11 - $5
Children 5 & under are free

All photos by Julie Bagley

This post originally published in September 2016.