Ekka

The Ekka is always a fun time with the family. The entry price is affordable but overall it can be an expensive day. There is a plenitude of food and tasty treats available. Prices are mostly around $24 a meal and $10 for a snack. Rides are now around $12 to $15 each… and don’t last long. If you purchase a fun pass be careful to budget your points so you don’t end up with unusable credit left over. This year everything looked like it had been upgraded. The rides and food carts all looked shiny and new, and clean…. like they’d just had a new coat of paint. No more vendors or rides that looked old and tired. The younger kids section had noticeably new fun rides, which was a great improvement on past years. Even the buildings and walkways looked like they’d had a fresh coat of paint. I was impressed. The entertainment in the main arena was great. Always lots to keep the whole family’s interest. From motorbikes, cars, horses, to the favourite fireworks spectacular! And of course the wood chop, animal nurseries and dog shows are always a favourite too! The different pavilions had plenty of interesting things to see… and taste. And of course the famous Ekka strawberry icecream still delight! The train now operates an Ekka loop directly onsite, taking people to a few central stops around Brisbane. This was super convenient for people coming to the show, and looked like it was being well used.

Bought the cheaper night tickets to visit the EKKA! One of the best fireworks displays I’ve seen in my life! Loved the monster truck and dirt bikes, wild horses were insane! Really cool motorbike chariot race!! Definitely recommend the evening tickets if you’re on a budget and just want to see the big evening show! We were still able to look around the Woolworths food barn and the show bag barn!

Fun and crowded event, suited for families or friend groups. Alot of retailers with different cuisines. Overpriced of course for a event like this, the night show was amazing however, lots of theatrics and fireworks. It was cool to see tons of different land animals such as cows,alpacas and more. Would i return again? Probably not, but its good to try it out if its your first time. Oh and also the famous strawberry ice cream? Not worth it lmao, nothing special about it. Its just icecream with whipped cream and a piece of strawberry which eventually ends up on the floor.

OMG...Packed, long lined, expensive..... But the strawberry ice cream are worth it... something you gotta do every few years. But trying to find a seat for the show is impossible. Fun time was had by all.

An annual affair in Brisbane during the month of August. Good family fun especially for those with kids. We love to see the animals on display. Lots of handy crafts on display and don't miss the Strawberry Sundae!

Great weather. Be prepared for crowds. Lots of food and entertainment. Loved the cats and animals. Grab a show bag or two and enjoy the atmosphere. Most of all have FUN.

Awesome vibes. Can get exy. Night show is fantastic. Steak house in channel 7 pavilion is devine.

The Ekka needs more security. This tattood blonde woman who was affected by substances verbally abused a young girl and told her she was going to bash her head in. There was not enough security or police to respond.

Ekka is like a massive more awesome version of a state fair. The food expo building had lots of free samples. We ate so much for free! We did end up buying some goodies to take home too. They have a petting zoo area, rides, junk food vendors, multiple stages with live music, & booze for sale! Then they have Ekka nights at the main arena it starts off with a great fireworks show & follows with various entertainment. We had lots of fun. It cost $25US per person to get in.

The Ekka is Brisbane's annual agricultural show, formally known as the Royal Queensland Show. In reality it's the biggest carnival in Queensland, lasting for ten days and giving us a public holiday on the seventh day, aka People's Day. And aka Plague Day. It's a tradition and widely-held belief in Brisbane that when one goes to the Ekka, one catches the 'flu. This is allegedly highly true of People's Day, traditionally the Ekka's busiest day as parents are dragged to the event by excited kiddies. It's always held in August and it seems like the rain waits all year for the Ekka to come around and dumps it all on you in one go. As much of the Ekka is outdoors (most people come for the carnival rides) you're probably going to get rained on, unless you want to trudge around in an umbrella or wear a raincoat (I love how the latter are now being called "emergency ponchos" in supermarkets). Though it's not all about the agricultural show as it was in the good old days, there is still a substantial portion devoted to such activities - dog shows, brightly coloured baby chicks and a room where you can roam freely amongst farm animals are memorable events. Unfortunately animals mean dirt ground and rain means mud. Don't wear your favourite sneakers here. The major indoors section includes the Ekka fashion show and the showbag pavilion. Even as an adult - recognizing what a rip-off these things are - I love getting a few showbags. Carrying home bags filled with treats just doesn't feel like a bad thing. There's also more "adult" stuff at the back, such as a lot of cleaning goods stands and demonstrations (yawn), a discount book store (not bad) and posters of obscure stuff you like, such as Doctor Who (awesome). I've thrown up at the Ekka from a violent ride (the Zipper - not ON the ride, fortunately, but this ride's cages have seen some serious stomach acid carnage in their time), I've been rained on, but I've never caught the infamous bug that is supposed to go around during Ekka time. In spite of knowing how overpriced the whole event is (entry is somewhere over $20 for an adult, and then you pay for each ride you go on*) I still like the Ekka. It's not only associated with happy childhood memories, I still enjoy it. Two years ago I spent a night on the dodgems, picking teen boys in showdowns. I was unstoppable. The guys didn't even charge me in the end, they just let me keep going as everyone else lined up. Best Ekka ever. Oh, and there's bars and pubs there for fathers who've had enough of walking around to look at everything. *Some rides are as cheap as $5 but they're usually more around the $10 mark. The bungee bullet ride is around $40, with ride prices generally increasing marginally each year.

I love the Ekka, and I'm not talking about the money suck of side show alley either. I like to do the Ekka trail with my kids and collect all the freebies, go look at the animals and check in with my ducks (got some winners there this year) go for a $2 cheese toasty and taste all the yummy food in the woolies pavillion get a strawberry icecream, watch the wood chop or the three sheep trials and walk out having spent less than $40. Its a full day its a fun day don't waste it all spending a ton on rides if you want to go on rides go to a theme park instead where they don't charge you per ride.