Chowchilla Madera County Fair — May 4–10

County fairs are simple until the dates get messy. That’s what happened here. Some event listings framed the Chowchilla-Madera County Fair as a May 4–10 run, but the fair’s own 2026 pages point to something tighter — four days, from Thursday, May 7, through Sunday, May 10, at the fairgrounds on South Third Street in Chowchilla. (chowchillafair.org) ### So when is the fair actually happening? The official fair website puts the 2026 Chowchilla-Madera County Fair on May 7–10. The event page says the same thing, and the City of Chowchilla calendar matches it exactly. That’s the cleanest answer if you’re deciding when to go — Thursday through Sunday, not a full seven-day stretch. (chowchillafair.org) out a few tourism and roundup pages used May 4–10 language. But those pages read like broad promotional listings, not the operating schedule the fair itself is selling tickets against. When the official site, the city calendar, and the event page all line up on May 7–10, that’s the version to trust. (sierranewsonline.com)y-fair/)) ### What kind of fair is this? This is the Chowchilla-Madera County Fair — a longtime local fair built around agriculture, livestock, exhibits, carnival rides, and entertainment. The fair says it has been part of the community since 1946, and this year it is also marking 80 years of continuous operation. That gives the whole thing a very s(sierranewsonline.com)s attached. (chowchillafair.org) ### What can you actually do there? The fair’s pages point to the usual crowd-pullers — entertainment, livestock, competitive exhibits, and carnival rides. The livestock exhibitor page shows how serious that side is, with separate deadlines for market beef, sheep, swine, goats, rabbits, and poultry, plus a note that the rabbit and poultry sale lands on Friday, May 8. So this is no(chowchillafair.org)king youth-livestock and exhibition event. (chowchillafair.org) ### What do tickets look like? The fair is selling a $40 advance season pass online, and that covers general admission for all days of the 2026 fair. Advance carnival ride coupons are listed at $30 and can be exchanged for an unlimited ride wristband on any one fair day. There’s one catch — grandstand events cost extra, and those fees vary by event. (c([chowchillafair.org)anything especially local about it? Yes — the Spring Festival pageant and queen coronation are deeply local. The fair says Chowchilla young women compete for Spring Festival Queen, and the coronation happens on the Saturday evening of the fair. That kind of detail is what separates a county fair from a traveling carnival. It’s tied to the town’s own traditions. (chowchillafair.org) ### Who’s running this year’s fair? The fair brought in a new CEO, Natalie Worstein, in late 2025. Her appointment came just as the organization was preparing for the 2026 season, and the fair also selected Butler Amusements as its carnival operator under a contract that began in November 2025. Basically, this year’s fair is happening under refreshed leadership and a newer carnival setup. (chowchillafair.org) ### Bottom line If you’re planning around this event, use the official window: May 7–10, 2026. The bigger story isn’t that a county fair exists — it’s that the real value here is in the local specifics, and those only show up once you ignore the vague roundup listings and read the fair’s own pages. (chowchillafair.org)