Final day of the 2023 Minnesota State Fair underway

Monday is the final day of the 2023 Minnesota State Fair, making it Kids Day!

Admission for kids ages 5-12 is only $13, and there are discounts all day long on the Mighty Midway and Kidway rides and games.

There are also vendors offering special Labor Day deals throughout the day.

Keep in mind the fair closes early on Monday, with admission ending at 7 p.m. and the fairgrounds closing at 9 p.m.

Blippi, the popular children’s entertainer, will take the Grandstand stage at 3 p.m. Meanwhile, Soul Asylum will be at the Leinie Lodge at 7:30 p.m.

Fairgoers are urged to wear light-colored and loose-fitting clothing due to the ongoing heat advisory, which is in effect through Tuesday afternoon. High temperatures are expected to reach the mid to upper 90s. Heat indices are expected to surpass 100 degrees.

Hot conditions also caused some animals to leave the fairgrounds earlier than expected over the weekend. Normally, animal departures are scheduled for early Monday afternoon, but for some, they moved out Sunday night.

The welfare of animals that are still at the fairgrounds on Monday will be monitored by veterinarians who are on site.

The hot and humid conditions didn’t keep fairgoers at bay over the weekend — on Friday, officials said 190,290 people attended, while 200,170 people were at the grounds on Saturday. That marked just the second time crowd numbers surpassed 200,000 this year at the fair but was still a long way from the all-time attendance record that was set in 2018, when more than 270,000 people attended. Sunday’s numbers will be released sometime Monday afternoon.