Going To The Fair? Here's The Eagle Ridge Guide To The Minnesota State Fair

The Minnesota State Fair is just nine days away and we're all getting excited about making our annual pilgrimage to the fairgrounds for some great food and entertainment. The festivities begin August 22 and run through September 2; read on for tips on free events at the Minnesota State Fair and how to purchase tickets and get there.

Minnesota State Fair Tickets Drawing

Now you have a chance to make your Minnesota State Fair experience a little cheaper - we are holding a name-drawing contest for two tickets to the Minnesota State Fair, plus a coupon Bargain Book for the fair, and $20.00 spending money to help you buy some yummy fair food! All you have to do to get your name into the drawing is leave a comment on this blog post or on our Facebook page about what you are looking forward to most about the Minnesota State Fair.

Free Activities

• Lumberjack Show at the North Woods Lumberjack Arena: Daily at 11 am, 1:30 pm, 5 pm and 7 pm
• 2 pm: Daily Parade
• Kemps Little Farm Hands Exhibit- kids can ride tractors, plant crops and milk cows
• “Flippenout” a high-energy trampoline/acrobatic show performing four times daily at the X-Zone
• Laser Light Show Nightly at 9:15 pm

Horse Shows at the Lee and Rose Warner Coliseum:

• English Horse Show: August 22-27
• Western Horse Show: August 30- September 2
• High School Rodeo: August 28-September 2

Leinie Lodge Bandshell Tonight Concerts at 8:30 pm:

• August 24 & 25: Blue Oyster Cult-known for their songs “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper”, “Godzilla” and “Burnin’ for You”.
• August 26 & 27: Hanson-known for their song “MMMBop”

Buying Tickets And Getting There

Purchase tickets at Cub Foods

Maple Grove Cub Foods
8150 Wedgwood Ln N
Maple Grove, MN 55369
(763) 494-8364

Brooklyn Park Cub Foods
7555 West Broadway Avenue
Brooklyn Park, MN 55428
(763) 424-2510

Make sure to check out Cub Foods or the State Fair website to get your tickets ahead of time at a discounted price. If you buy your tickets in advance they are $9 (reg. $12) and you can get the bargain book for $4 (reg. $5).

Metro Transit Shuttle Locations 
www.metrotransit.org/StateFair

Don’t feel like driving to the State Fair? Take the bus! For $5 you can park and ride Express Buses to the State Fair: buses run daily during the fair, from 8:00 am  to Midnight.

Here's the top 3 closest State Fair Park and Ride locations:

1. Maple Grove Transit Station  - Service every 30 minutes - Weekends and Labor Day only I-94 & Hemlock Ln.

2. Brookdale Square  - Service every 15 minutes 5900 Shingle Creek Pkwy. - NE corner of Shingle Creek Pkwy and Bass Lake Rd.

3. Fridley Station  - Service every 30 minutes Fridley Station Platform