There is a live giraffe. There are rides that make your head spin for an hour. There are the deep-fried versions of foods that I didn’t even know existed. A car show, a petting zoo, the world’s biggest Frito chili pie, a massive ferris wheel. All these and more describe the Texas State Fair. However, the undeniable fun that is the state fair can be summed up in one world: overpriced.

I had never been to the State Fair before Monday- a fact that many found surprising, since I’ve lived in Texas my entire life. I was excited to try the sickeningly tempting fried delicacies, ride the fastest and scariest rides, and try to find my house from the top of the ferris wheel. When I first entered the gates and gave the attendant my ticket (which was free, courtesy of the state of Texas), I was already mapping out which rides we would hit first and what sounded the most unhealthy and exotic of all the fried foods. Before we set out for our adventures, each of my friends bought twenty coupons (ten dollars worth), which we figured would last us a while.
We were wrong.
The first rude awakening of the day was when we approached the nearest roller coaster, ready to get our adrenaline pumping. It, and almost all of the rides, cost ten tickets.
Ten tickets! That equates to five dollars, for a two minute roller coaster that isn’t nearly as intense as the ones at Six Flags or other theme parks. We opted out of spending half of our tickets on a ride at the very beginning of the day, figuring that some of the rides toward the back would be cheaper.
Nope.
We spent most of our time wandering around looking for rides, food, and games that were a reasonable price, or trying to find entertainment that did not cost anything.
I’m not saying the fair isn’t great fun, or a good way to spend a day. But the prices are out of control- each fried food was around $7, it cost at least $5 for a 60 second ride, and to win a big prize in a carnival game was at least $20.
We didn’t have to pay for our entrance tickets because all students get a free one, but if we had, that would have been an additional $16.50 on top of the cost of the rides, food, and games. It would be easy to spend $100 in an hour at the fair. All in all, the State Fair was a fun experience, but ultimately I have decided that it is a black hole for the excess income of America’s middle class. I would recommend going at least once for the experience. but if you are careful with your money like I am, you may find it a bit hard to enjoy.