The annual Riverside County Fair and National Date Festival will return Thursday at the county fairgrounds in Indio, with a slew of new immersive spaces, fan-favorite attractions, live entertainment and family-friendly activities.
The festival will start at 2:20 p.m. Thursday with a blessing of the dates ceremony at Gate One of the fairgrounds, at 82-503 Highway 111. The festival will run through March 1.
The 78th iteration of the event will introduce the theme of “Return to the Oasis,” which will incorporate decades of heritage and fair traditions.
“The Riverside County Fair and National Date Festival is always a great time,” Supervisor Manuel Perez said in a statement. “Every year, we work to improve our fair and bring more engagement and new events and new ideas to enjoy. I invite all of you who live throughout Riverside County and beyond to come visit.”
New items this year will include the Oasis Lounge and Tiki Bar and the National Date Festival Museum inside the Sands of Time building, which will give guests an inside look at date farming, the festival’s history and the agricultural roots of the Coachella Valley.
Daily entertainment includes all-Alaskan racing pigs, “Jump!” the ultimate dog show, a petting farm and livestock exhibits.
Scheduled events will be the President’s Day grand parade on Feb. 16 featuring professional boxers from Coachella, “Out at the Fair,” an LGBTQ-inclusive day on Feb. 14 and monster trucks on Feb. 12-13.
“Return to the Oasis welcomes families back with a mix of nostalgia, new experiences and the shared joy of coming together at the Fair and Date fest,” Chris Pickering, CEO of Pickering Events, said in a statement.
More information on tickets, schedules and event details is available at datefest.org.