Topsfield Fair 2026: Friday, October 2 through Monday, October 12, in Topsfield, Massachusetts. Topsfield Fair traces itself back to the Essex Agricultural Society in 1818, which puts it in its third century. The eleven days include livestock barns, a full midway, the giant pumpkin weigh-off and a Grandstand headliner, the high-wire family act The Flying Wallendas, booked for the closing weekend.
Prices, discount days, parking and hours below were read from the fair's own site, topsfieldfair.org, on September 20, 2026. Two details were not published then and are listed at the end.
About the fair
The Essex Agricultural Society was founded in 1818 to give Essex County farmers a place to show livestock and trade techniques. What began as a one-day cattle show became the multi-day fair it is now, with three interruptions: 1918 for the Spanish flu, 1943 through 1945 for World War II, and 2020 for the COVID-19 pandemic. The fair moved to its current 207 Boston Street site in 1910, on farmland donated to the society decades earlier.
Attendance runs to the hundreds of thousands over the eleven days. The giant pumpkin weigh-off, draft animal competitions and agricultural judging anchor a schedule that now includes a carnival midway, food vendors and a Grandstand concert and entertainment series.
Dates and hours
The 2026 fair: Friday, October 2 through Monday, October 12 (Columbus Day). The Directions & Hours page listed these hours: Friday, October 2, 4 PM to 10 PM. Saturday, October 3, 10 AM to 10 PM. Sunday, October 4, 10 AM to 9 PM. Monday through Wednesday, October 5 to 7, 11 AM to 9 PM. Thursday, October 8 through Sunday, October 11, 10 AM to 10 PM. Monday, October 12, 10 AM to 8 PM. Opening day started at 4 PM, and the first Monday through Wednesday started an hour later than the rest of the run.
Ticket prices
Advance admission was $15 and sold only before opening day: online, at the fair's ticket booth until the day before opening day, and at local retailers. The tickets were good on any day of the run. Children under 8: free with a paying adult on any day of the run. All sales were final. Online checkout could add a per-ticket service fee on top of the $15; the amount depended on the ticket vendor.
Ride tickets and wristbands were sold separately from admission, at the gate and in advance. Ride prices were posted on the fair's site.
Senior and military discount days
Senior Citizen Days: Monday, October 5, Tuesday, October 6 and Wednesday, October 7. On those three days, a $10 admission ticket for anyone 65 or older, sold only at the fairgrounds ticket gates and not online.
Military Day: Tuesday, October 6, the same day as the middle Senior Citizen Day. Free admission for active-duty military personnel and the immediate family members accompanying them, with military ID shown at the gate. Both discounts: gate only, with ID required (proof of age for the senior rate, military ID for free admission).
Parking
Parking: $15 per vehicle at the fair's lots, free on opening day, Friday, October 2. The lots sit off Route 1 and Route 97 on several sides of the fairgrounds. Weekends and the Columbus Day holiday: an overflow lot at Fair-View Farm on Route 1 North, with a shuttle bus to one of the fairgrounds' admission gates.
Accessible parking spaces exist across the lots.
Location
The fairgrounds are at 207 Boston Street, Topsfield, MA 01983, at the junction of Route 1 and Route 97, about 25 miles north of Boston. Most of the parking lots cluster around that junction.
Grandstand: The Flying Wallendas
The headline Grandstand act for 2026: The Flying Wallendas, a high-wire family act known for a seven-person pyramid crossing. Booked for the closing weekend, Saturday through Monday, October 10 to 12, which includes the Columbus Day holiday. The fair's daily events calendar has set times, which can shift.
Other programming
Beyond the Grandstand, the core is agricultural: livestock shows and judging, the giant pumpkin weigh-off and draft animal competitions. Around that sit a carnival midway with rides and games, food vendors, arts and crafts exhibits, and daily live music and entertainment across the grounds. Programming on the smaller stages and in the exhibit halls changes by day.
The Big E overlap
The Big E in West Springfield ran September 18 through October 4. Topsfield Fair 2026: October 2 through 12. The two calendars overlapped for three days, October 2 through 4. Topsfield Fair alone: the days after October 4, through October 12.
Not published as of September 20
Two details were not published as of September 20, 2026: the admission price during the run, and a map tying lot letters to gates. The online ticketing fee depended on the ticket vendor.
