Dixon May Fair

Fun

It wasn’t busy for going on a Saturday evening. It was nice and warm when the sun was out, but once it got dark it got chilly, so come prepared! Obviously everything is overpriced, but it’s a fair! Parking was $ 5 unless you find a spot on the residential street. Military discount for adult single ticket. Lots of security strolling around. I like how they check bags and scan you for metal objects before entering.. I have kids, and a little sense of security eases my mind. Will come again.

The Demolition durby is one of the best events of the year at the Dixon May Fair. This is one of the oldest fairs in California and am so happy to live here.

Redneck demolition derby, cow tipping, and cattle rustling… why not? There’s a first time for everything. Imagine driving a rusty old clunker into a gravel bullpen and then crashing into other cars so hard that their parts explode or fly off into the air. Imagine 8 to 12 specially prepared cars entering a bullpen measuring around 50 by 100. They close off the entrance, and for the next 20 minutes the drivers will smash into each other until only one is left running… Sounds fun? I thought so and I’ve never been so some friends and I decide to join the heap at the Dixon May Fair.
The stench of cattle and cow dung permeates throughout the place. Imagine eating a giant bbq’ed turkey leg while that stench is in the air. It wasn’t that bad to be honest, I washed it down with some cold beer and just had to cowboy it up. Arts and crafts were interesting, I even got me a nice lil’ raffia straw hat. Overall, not a fan of fairs, cause I’m just a good ol’ city slicker that can rough it out in the country once in a while.

Small town county fair featuring big names in entertainment… what’s not to like? Give me a funnel cake, a beer and Snoop Dogg, and I am a happy girl! :D

When you pass the John Deere dealer you are getting close.
I’ve become a big fan of the oldest fair in California, mainly because the performers are of better quality than most in the area. Also a cool small town feel makes for great people watching. Spring time kids in love. Boots without the fur. I bet the volunteer ladies have been a volunteerin’ since the 60s.
I’ll usually grab a beer and a corn dog. This time I went with jalapeño cheese pretzel, a perfect salty beer companion with the slightest kick of heat. Yum. The BBQ smelled great.
Animals are fun to check out too, before they end up on your plate.
I recommend parking in the Mexican blue collar neighborhood around fair rather than the parking lot/​psuedo DUI checkpoint. It’s easier to get and out.
As Mark K said,”…a fair done right”.

This fair is small but just right for the family especially if you have little ones! The food is great and so is the entertainment! I’ll go back every year if I can! :)

This was my first experience at the Dixon May Fair, and I had a great time. It’s smaller than some of the county fairs I’ve been to, but it isn’t lacking in any character or charm. From the carnival rides and the midway games, to the livestock and the crafts, they have a full offering.
The weather can be a bit unpredictable in the spring, so be prepared. The sun can really cook down in the afternoon then the evening brings a chill that reminds you that is isn’t really summer yet. The evening I was there brought a few raindrops, but thankfully not enough to dampen the ground, much less the spirits.
There’s all the standards, fried everything and enough sugar to cause diabetes in a third world country, but it’s the fair! Prices are what you’d expect for the food and beer, more than the supermarket but less than the Giants game. The rides are pricey, so you might as well just go big and get the unlimited ride bracelet if you’re into that kind of thing.
Nice people, smaller setting, a fair done right.

wow stereotypes are funny… i grew up in dixon and never rode a tractor or cattle at all… let alone to the fair… lmao
anyway advise from a local&fun facts:
*i beleive the dixon may fair is californias oldest fair, or county fair =)
*they always have a parade on saterday morning i beleive it is… in downtown dixon
*this fair has grown in size of attendance, people come from all around, sometimes i am surprised… but the location itself has not grown… luckily parking options have. for those who say they came in on the recommended exit, that is just the easiest straight shot route, but that one lane road does get packed! i suggest you take sidestreets, or the country route (use google maps, spair yourself the line of cars)
parking has grown to help match, which is a good thing. you may not know that one little parking lot in the front of the fair is NOT all the parking. there is a large park behind the fair, with lots of parking, its a park and a community center, swimming pool… ect ect… with lots of spaces. there is also a new high school built close by, which i beleive is being used for parking as well. us locals likely carpool, and dont pay for parking if we can find a spot on a side street. no you wont get towed (unless you are blocking a DRIVEWAY or in someones driveway ie private property. areas you cannot park are clearly coned off.
there isnt necassarily a different exit for the high school, persea…(i-80 is the other side of town from the high school… is what i mean) you just have to look on a map i guess… there is a country exit you can take to avoid the traffic, and a country side street to cross from the first one that can bring you to the high school area =) (i looked, if you take pedrick road from i-​80 and head south, go all the way to midway road, and make a right, then a right on 113/​1^st, that will bring you to the fair/​high school) and you will bypass all traffic of in town.
furthermore you can take that same pedrick road, but cut right on dixon ave E or E. A st it may be marked as, and look for s. 5^th street, that will take you by the park area where there is parking. and the may fair has entrance from the back as well as the front. there are MANY side streets to park on from this area, or s 8^th street (which is before s 5^th street) that road dead ends at hall park. which is a very short walk across the park, and the fairgrounds is right there. i mean short walk. dixon is small, and the area i speak of is small. there are also many side streets in front of/​sides of the fair.
dixon may fair is awesome in its own ways. it has alot of agricultural value. its a family fair. there is a petting zoo every year. mini/​horse rides for kids. all kinds of animals in the barn areas. for how small of a town dixon is (appx 16,000 ppl) they have gotten surprising names to play at the concerts. the concerts arent the best set up, but its intimate. you can see the singers better than anywhere else! i do also suggest bleachers if your short… haha…the chairs on the feild, people stand up and you cant see as well if you are short.
the derby is one of my favorite things, probably bc my dad runs them every year, and my brother and husband have as well. im not sure if it costs more or less than other derbies nearby. but they sell out EVERY YEAR. people love the destruction. haha. your paying for people to risk their bodies, and insurance for the event incase something goes wrong/​fire etc ect. it may seem redneck to out of towners, but i assure you these people most of them are regular white colar/​blue colar guys. and dixon is not the only place nearby which does them. woodland does as well. and roseville, and santa rosa, ect ect… its not just a small town redneck community thing. lol.
i also suggest pre-​sales on EVERYTHING. tickets are cheaper, to get in, ticket books for rides, concerts, derby, …online. and your assured not to sold out =)
its no state fair, but the state fair should be spectacular, being as it is the STATE FAIR and in a huge city… lol. this is a small town feel, family event… i go every year and now enjoy taking my daughter where i grew up.

I go every year. It is very small but fun. I usually go to the concerts and the demolation derby, both of which pack in quick so get there early and don’t hesitate to wait in line. It cools off in the evening so no matter how hot is is during the day bring a sweater!

We love the Dixon May Fair! It’s held in the charming small town of Dixon, 20 miles from Sacramento. We went on a early sunday afternoon and parked free in the residential neighborhood. As we entered the Fair we were greeted by a mariachi band dressed in silver studded charo outfits with wide brimmed hats. It’s impossible to be in a bad mood when a mariachi band is playing!
The Dixon May Fair also featured the graceful Budweiser Clydesdale horses marching throughout the fair with their animated hitching gait. They were pulling the Budweiser cart with a well-​trained Dalmation a top the cart. Which made me thirsty for the King of Beers. I think it was the little ditty playing, «When you say Bud, you’ve said a lot of things nobody else can say… When you say BUDWEISER — you’ve said it all! The beers were 4 bucks and the live music was free. They had two great live bands playing while we were kicking back sipping the Bud and eating a corndog on a stick. One band was country, another was this coifed-​dark haired kid banging the piano feverishly like a young Jerry Lee Lewis while his band played backup. Lots of folks dancin’.
There was also a nice sized animal exhibit area. Sheep, pigs, goats, cows, roosters, rabbits, chickens all showing off their colors. Lots of blue ribbon winners and 4-​H kids showing off their prized possesions.
The Dixon May Fair also had all the unhealthy fair food you’d ever crave. The smell of BBQ is all around. Waffle cones, funnel cake, BBQ ribs, BBQ chicken, tacos, corndogs, candy apples, cotton candy… the works.
Lots of carnival rides and games too. The Dixon May Fair is a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon in Dixon. I’m now geared up for the California State Fair.

The «city» of Dixon clearly does not know how to plan for big events. We had tickets to see ZZ Top playing the fair. When we took the recommended exit for fairgrounds, we were stuck on a one lane road through the middle of town. We went one mile in an hour. Inevitably, when we actually got up to the fairgrounds, the tiny parking lots were already full. We were rerouted to the high school.
Once we finally got into the concert, missing the opening act, and the first couple of songs in the act, it was great because the venue is pretty small which means it is hard to have a terrible seat too far away.
It is because of the intimacy of the event, and the spectacular chaos getting in, (which could have been avoided by renting some construction signs suggesting motorists take a different exit to the high school), that I give the Dixon County Fair 2 stars.

Last night I went to the Dixon May Fair with some friends because we had some comp tickets from work to see the B-52’s. Even though it was a Thursday, around 7PM the traffic going to the fairgrounds started to back up so we parked on the street. It is so much easier to park on some side street than it is to wait to get in the parking lot. Then again, you might risk the fact that your car might get broken into, but we were fine.
The overall fair was most enjoyable because it wasn’t too crowded nor overwhelming. Maybe because it was a Thursday? I hadn’t been to the DMF before until now. There was plenty of beer to go around and the more you drink, the more money you end up spending on such items like ponchos when it gets freezing at night. Fortunately, there were quite a few opportunities to get said ponchos — go to the guy closest to the concert area; nearby ATM plus he had the best selection AND if you buy multiple items, bargaining time! (Note: after the sun goes down, it gets pretty cold and breezy)
The concert area was actually set up well considering that it was a field and there were actual proper rows of folding chairs. Huge sections of chairs were laid out with each section and row spray painted on the ground. Inside of the concert area were tons of porta-​potties, beer and corndog vendors. HEAVEN! (Sort of.) Also note, if you have to use a porta-​potty, use the disabled person one if you can. It is practically a mansion in there. Its amazing. There are also regular bathrooms behind the bleachers if you’re not into peeing in the dark.
There were also a lot of rides and carnival games set up, ready to take your hard earned cash. As you are being solicited by these carnies, just say that you’re «not drunk enough yet» to play and they liked that. Overall, good for you Dixon!

You pretty much have to pay for parking around here in the lots ($ 5) since there’s tons of people, I wouldn’t want to risk getting towed or ticketed if parking in the residential area around it… unless you’re a local (which CLEARLY I AM NOT) you can probably walk, ride cattle, tractor it over… Etc.
Then you have to pay to get in ($ 10 for adults), I would recommend if you’re planning ahead, to get presale tickets which are a little cheaper ($ 6). $ 8 for seniors, $ 6 for youth, under 5 yrs is FREE, active military FREE…
I would probably recommend getting a bracelet ($ 27, or $ 22 for pre sale) if you plan on riding a lot of rides. They have your typical carnival rides, Ferris wheel, gravitron (the one where it spins around and you can move around in the room and stick to the walls, some hang gliding one… you get the point. They also have discounted tickets that you can get for $ 15 for 30 ride coupons (that doesn’t mean 30 rides, each ride has its own value of different amounts of coupons, the cooler rides are more tickets… you get the point)
Wear sun block, dress for hot weather, bring water… drinks are expensive, and there is NO SHADE.
Dixon may fair… you can smell the deep fryers from the parking lot. YUMMMY YUMMMMY deep fried goodness, churros, cotton candy, I don’t remember if they have deep fried twinkies or not… But yeah, they have your typical artery clogging carnival fair food. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Something that I wish I got to see was the demolition derby… That’s so redneck of me (I’m asian… I don’t know if I have the capacity to be a redneck) but that would be cool to see, but $ 25 for that??? oh heck no… no thanks.
Personally… I would recommend save your money and pass on the may fair and splurge it on the California state fair at the cal expo in sacremento (September). More bang for your buck, more stuff to do, better concerts, more food, more people to check out…