North Florida Fair — Local services in Tallahassee

My husband and I stayed here for 7 nights in our RV while visiting family before heading out west for the summer.

The pros: $30 a night, RV sites are spacious, the electric and water connections work fine, but the sites are only partial hookup and have no sewer connection- there is a dump station. That was okay for us when we booked because we have tanks in the RV to hold some waste and bathroom/shower facilities were advertised/offered as an amenity on the fairgrounds website.

The cons: these bathrooms and showers were so dirty and unkempt that they were essentially unusable. Spiders were literally ✨everywhere✨ in the bathrooms, to the point where it borderline felt like a horror movie. The showers had buildup on build up of soap scum and who knows what else on all of the walls, shower curtains, mirrors, and floors- hair and a used q tip stuck in a drain (for the whole week we were here) Random brown stains near the floor. We never saw any employees or housekeeping enter or leave the bathrooms the entire time here.

We booked with the fairground and were okay with partial hookups because we thought these facilities would be useable, as that was the expectation put forward by this business on their website. If you’re staying for a couple nights and can use your tanks until you leave and dump at their dump station $30 a night isn’t terrible, but at the end of the day the amenities also have a part in the nightly cost. They should be clean and useable if you’re paying for it. This is the state of the bathrooms and showers that the business must think is okay for their customer base to use.

The fairgrounds are pet friendly but be warned that there are tons of stickers in the grass if/when you’re taking...

The south entrance forces you to walk by the row of cat calling, game barkers trying to get you to play. The problem with it was that the aisle is so narrow that you can even get more than a couple feet from them. It's not a fun experience. The saddest thing I saw was when a very young boy (around 5-6) had just received a sweet tea. He took one step back and as he was raising the cup to his mouth to take a sip, it slipped from his hands and exploded on the ground. He started to cry. I asked the guy at the counter (who watched it happen) if he would replace it (because the actual product cost to him would be so insignificant) HE SAID NO, THAT THEY COULD BUY ANOTHER ONE. The father was broke and they walked away as he tried to console his son. I took pictures and shown them to the fair managers who seemed shocked at what transpired; but, who knows if they did anything. I did try to find the family to give him one and they were lost in the crowd. But anyone who brings their kids to the fair, you want them to have wonderful fun and fond memories. This child will always remember this fair experienxe with...

I can imagine why there is a vacuum in the reviews section here. To be clear - the best part of this fair is the showcasing of panhandle talent and effort in the pavilions lining the midway. Many of the food outlets are great too! (Again, local outfits likely paying out the nose to be vendors here).

The "security" and ride attendants, on the other hand, live up to the storied fables of "The Carnie Life". To wit:

Son forgot his jacket in the van. An honest mistake... We parked 15' away from the entrance and I explained the situation to the armed carnie at the door - but he gave me an emphatic NO - we would NOT be allowed to get the jacket and reenter without paying readmission. I asked if I could speak with a manager. Sure. Same conversation.

I think a bit of flexibility could have gone a long way here.

So... Enjoy the...