Minnesota State Fair attendance: 2023 was 6th busiest year for the fair

MN State Fair: Larger crowds expected for Day 2

Larger crowds are expected for the second day of the Great Minnesota Get-Together. FOX 9's Se Kwon has the details.

FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. (FOX 9) - After setting an attendance record on its opening Friday and seeing its second-highest attendance for an opening weekend, Minnesota State Fair attendance totals backed off this past weekend, amid the heat, but still brought in enough visitors for its sixth-busiest overall fair.

A total of 1,835,826 attended the Great Minnesota Get-Together in 2023, down from 1,842,222 last year, but an increase from 1,301,584 in 2021, when COVID kept some home. An all-time record was set in 2019, with 2,126,551 people attending.

During its opening weekend, between Friday and Sunday, 551,315 people walked through the gates at the fair, trailing only behind a record set in 2019 when 557,853 visited. For comparison, both totals were well ahead of third place at 518,869 visitors in 1998.

But, headed into weekend two, as temperatures rose, attendance slowed overall.

On Labor Day 119,731 total people attended, fewer than 2021 at 123,578 people, and the lowest Labor Day total for the fair in 25 years.