Don't pay retail

How to get tickets for the 2024 State Fair of Texas at a discount

The State Fair of Texas runs from September 27 to October 20.

Photo by Kevin Brown

The 2024 annual State Fair of Texas debuts on September 27, starting a three-week run through October 20 with rides, fried food, music, and fun.

Given the amount of money visitors are likely to spend inside the gates, it's smart to try to save money on admission into the Fair. That's where we come in: Below you will find every possible way to get a discount on tickets for the 2024 event.

Prices for single day tickets (which go on sale on September 16) vary by the day.

If you go on a weekday, prices at the gate are $10 for kids 3-12 and seniors, and $15 for adults. That bumps up to $15 and $20 on Fridays and $18 and $25 on Saturdays and Sundays. If you can wait until 5 pm, adults can get in for the price of a kids ticket, a savings of up to $7.

If you're not sure what day of the week you want to go, the Fair also offers Premium Tickets for $24 that are good on any day, giving at least a saving of $1 for adults on weekends (premium tickets are also available in two- and four-pack combos that include $50 worth of food, ride, and game tickets.).

The Season Pass is a great option for those who know they'll be attending multiple times. This option is available for $60, which pays for itself after three visits if you're an adult. The season pass also includes two vouchers for $5 off parking, one Bring-A-Friend ticket, $10 off State Fair Merchandise with any $50 Purchase, and more goodies.

Premium tickets and season passes are now available at BigTex.com/Tickets, and CultureMap has some special deals for our readers.

When you use code 24mapCOMBO, you will receive $24 off a Season Pass & Coupon 2-pack or $24 off a Premium Ticket & Coupon 4-pack.

You can also save $12 off a Premium Ticket & coupon 2-pack (along with the $24 off a Premium Ticket & Coupon 4-pack) when you use promo code 24mapPACK.

But those are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the discounts you can get on certain special days during the Fair:

Peanut Butter Drive Opening Day (Friday, September 27) - Anyone who brings two jars of peanut butter to donate to the North Texas Food Bank will receive $10 admission at the gate.
Dr Pepper Value Days – Big Tex Insiders (aka those who sign up to get e-mails from the State Fair ) can purchase tickets online for $10 on Dr Pepper Value Days, which is every Tuesday and Thursday of the Fair. To receive the promotion code, sign up at BigTex.com/Insider. (Or, psst, you can also use the code 24cultureMAP to get the same deal.)
North Texas Food Bank, Feed the Need: Every Wednesday of the Fair, visitors can bring five canned food items to receive admission for only $5. All canned donations go to the North Texas Food Bank, which helps feed members of the community.
Senior Day: Every Thursday of the Fair, senior citizens 60 years and older receive admission to the Fair for only $5.
McDonald's coupons: Discount coupons are available at participating McDonald’s locations throughout Dallas-Fort Worth on tray liners and inside meal bags, giving a savings of $5 on any day of the week.
Military Appreciation Day sponsored by Chevrolet: All active duty military, retired military, and veterans save $5 off any day when they present valid documentation of military service at the gate or online. Spouses of service men and women with a valid Military Spouse ID and accompanying children under the age of 18 also receive discounted admission.
First responders: All first responders get the same discount of $5 off on any day when they present a valid badge or ID card from their department or organization at the gate or online. Spouses of first responders and accompanying children under the age of 18 also receive discounted admission.
Ride DART or TRE and save: Not only can DART take you right to the front gate of Fair Park instead of having to deal with parking, you can enter the promo code 24DARTSAVE when purchasing your fair admission on the State Fair’s website and receive $5 off admission any day of the week. Those coming from Fort Worth can ride TRE and get the same discount from the GoPass app.
Group Tickets and Corporate Discount Program: If you're planning on bringing a big group or your company to the Fair, they offer unspecified deals for both; go to BigTex.com for more information.

In addition to ticket discounts, you can also save on rides on Thrilling Tuesdays, when most rides on the Midway are four coupons, with kiddie rides discounted to three coupons on Tuesdays (exceptions include the Thrillway and the Texas Star Ferris Wheel).

If food savings are what you're after, Thrifty Thursdays give you a chance to try signature menu items at participating food vendors at a reduced price, ranging from mini versions to regular-size items.

Finally, for all the hoarders out there, check your drawers for old Food and Midway Coupons from past Fairs. Those coupons are good for this and all future Fairs, and as of 2023, you can use them on food, rides, AND for games.

And that's not all! Bookmark this page, as we will add other ticket discounts announced by various State Fair partners in the days and weeks leading up to the start of the biggest annual event on the Dallas calendar.

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WILDFLOWER WATCH

The hunt for Texas bluebonnets could be tricky this spring, experts predict

Marble Falls bluebonnet field, bluebonnets

Photo courtesy of Visit Marble Falls

Bluebonnets could be sparser this year across Texas.

Bluebonnet bounty across Texas may be a little harder to spot this spring after a dry fall and mild winter, particularly across the Hill Country.

The 2026 wildflower bloom season is expected to vary widely across Texas, shaped by uneven rainfall, continuing drought conditions, and local microclimates that influence where seeds germinate and how wildflowers thrive, according to the experts at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin. This forecast is similar to the 2025 season projection.

Across the Hill Country, from Austin to San Antonio — considered bluebonnet mecca each spring — the recent fall and winter weather helps explain why bluebonnets, in particular, may be sparse. Much of Central Texas saw a notably dry fall, followed by a mild winter with limited rainfall. The fall is the time when many wildflower seeds, and especially bluebonnets, germinate.

Bluebonnets rely heavily on fall moisture to sprout and winter rain to grow before blooming in spring, according to the Wildflower Center. When conditions are dry, fewer seedlings emerge, and roadside displays can appear patchier than usual.

“We may just have to look a little harder for bluebonnets on the side of the road this year in many locales,” said Andrea DeLong-Amaya, horticulture educator at the Wildflower Center, in a press release.

Caltrops in Big Bend National Park Caltrops on the Rio Grande in Big Bend National Park.Photo courtesy of the U.S. National Park Service

Central Texas, in particular, has the native prairie ecosystem where hardy native flower species can thrive. Add to that thin, rocky limestone soil and the state's long-established roadside management practices, and it's no surprise that drivers see an abundance of bluebonnets, Indian paintbrush, and pink evening primrose emerge and thrive during the spring.

The lack of rain in early spring does not mean a paltry wildflower season. Bluebonnets dominate early spring in areas around the state, then retreat. With subsequent solid rainfall, later wildflowers such as firewheel, purple horsemint, and black-eyed Susans will take over as the wildflower season progresses into the summer, according to the Wildflower Center.

“If early spring bloomers are a little more sparse, later spring and summer flowers have more room to flourish,” DeLong-Amaya said.

Around the state
Wildflower displays can vary dramatically even within short distances. Small environmental differences, including soil moisture, shade cover, and pavement heat, influence which seeds will germinate and how flowers thrive. The Texas Department of Transportation, which has sown wildflower in highway medians since the 1930s, provides a map for the best wildflower weeks across the various regions in the state.

Across North Texas prairies, fields of Drummond phlox and prairie verbena often appear alongside bluebonnets, particularly around the Ennis Bluebonnet Trails south of Dallas.

ennis bluebonnets Ennis Bluebonnet Trails will be open April 1-30, 2026. Photo courtesy of Visit Ennis

The organizers of the Ennis Bluebonnet Trails Festival posted on Facebook on February 27, "Ennis Bluebonnet season is officially on the way! We are already monitoring the trails, and these sweet little baby bluebonnet plants are starting to pop up right on schedule. Bluebonnets plants start emerging as these green rosettes in late winter and typically bloom throughout the month of April here in Ennis."

Ennis bluebonnets typically peak around the second to third week in April. This year's Ennis Bluebonnet Trails will be open April 1-30, and the Festival will take place April 17-19.

In West Texas and the Big Bend region, desert wildflowers such as Mexican gold poppies and desert marigolds can produce dramatic blooms after winter rains.

Coastal prairies along the Gulf Coast can produce sweeping displays of yellow coreopsis and red Indian blanket wildflowers in spring.

Even in dry years, experts say Texans can still expect to find wildflowers somewhere across the state.

“I’ve never seen a year where nothing is blooming,” DeLong-Amaya said. “That just doesn’t happen.”

The Carolina jessamine is the Wildflower Center's 2026 Wildflower of the year.Photo by Stephanie Brundage via the Native Plant Information Network

The Wildflower Center also named Carolina jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens) as its 2026 Wildflower of the Year. The evergreen vine produces fragrant yellow trumpet-shaped flowers and can climb along fences or trees.

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