Central Florida Fair 2025

So there I was in our hotel room, having just landed in Orlando with no itinerary set. Which is unusual as I typically spend weeks before a trip researching what to do. However, this time was laissez-faire. I also knew my mom and sister may have plans, but they didn’t. As a matter of fact after they picked me up from the airport, they initiated nap time. I had been up since 2am and knew if I napped I wouldn’t wake till the next morning. So instead, while rubbing my feet together in my comfy bed, I did my searches to find us an adventure.

There are three sites I always check when visiting a new city: TikTok, Eventbrite & Groupon. You can learn more about how I find local gems here.

I actually went so far as booking us three a Groupon for a Hot Air Balloon experience at Disney Springs for $70. It came out to about $30 in savings, so 30% off. That seemed like quite the deal until I heard about today being the first day of the Central Florida Fair on the news. Not only was the breezy weather perfect for a fair day, there was a promo for $1 admission per canned good brought.

Now fairs are pretty common year round and having the Texas State Fair at home sets the bar pretty high. I was still intrigued enough to check out the site and very pleased to find that there were circus acts included in the admission. I have a special interest in aerialists so any opportunity to watch someone swing in the air, I’m there.

Here were all the highlights:

1 —

Circus Inferno

The group is called Circus Inferno and they perform twice a night, not only do they have aerialist but fire workers? too. It took a little longer than we expected to get admitted so they had already started once we arrived. It was their first performance so there were some technicalities to iron out but overall it was an amazing show you definitely wouldn’t want to miss if you go.

2 —

Giant Cheese Stick

I’ve heard of mozz logs before but this was my first time trying one. It was delicious. However, the cheese in the middle lacked some meltyness so it probably could have been cooked a little longer. Highly recommend if you’re the type to order mozzarella sticks for the table.

3 —

Black Henna

Now I love henna and am usually weary of artists who do not use pure henna. This time, the thought of a pretty henna hand holding up my birthday drinks lifting me to a high that enabled impulsivity to take over. I had never even tried black henna before since I have seen so many horror stories of allergic reactions and side effects. Luckily, I only experienced small nearly indetectable bumps during the last few days. I do feel lucky tho and will not be applying black henna on my skin again. Besides the irritation, it takes longer to set and instead of the natural copper color left by pure henna, it just looks black. I could have achieved the same results with a sharpie. Not to mention, the price. My sister and I both got hand designs that cost $50 each. We chose the designs and the artists were pretty accurate but it took them less than 10 minutes and quality ingredients weren’t used so $50 plus tip and credit card fees was ridiculous. The upside is my artist was kind enough to let me draw my own “logo” which really made mine unique. The main reasons I would not recommend getting henna at this fair is because it’s not pure henna and is overpriced.

4 —

Petting Zoo

I always feel guilty seeing animals in cages but find it quite obvious when the animals are not being properly taken care of. The caretakers of the petting zoo seemed to be doing a great job. The animals looked healthy and happy (especially if you were feeding them). We didn’t buy a carrot cup to feed but I definitely will next time. There were camels (that you could also pay to ride), goats of all ages, ponies, a zebra, porcupines, alpacas and cows.

5 —

Free Parking

I just knew we would have to pay at least $10 for parking but to my pleasant surprise there was plenty of free parking in the lot just by the entrance. Hopefully, this wasn’t just an opening day deal!