2026 Minnesota State Fair New Rides, Attractions, Enhancements

Before you know it, the 2026 Minnesota State Fair will be here!

In the lead-up to this year's Great Minnesota Get-Together, we've learned about a lot of different things to look forward to at this year's fair. From the Grandstand shows to the new foods and beverages, the hundreds of free entertainment performances, there have been a lot of tantalizing tidbits to get us excited for this year's event.

The Minnesota State Fair's organizers recently announced the list of new attractions, rides, and features to look forward to at the fair this year.

Here are some of the highlights of the new things you can look forward to at the 2026 Minnesota State Fair:

Ultimate Dinosaurs Experience

Every year at the North End Event Center, there is a fun learning experience that's great for people of all ages. This year, dinosaurs invade this space. And yes, it is free with your fair admission!

The exhibit, which is called Ultimate Dinosaurs, will give you the chance to see real fossils, life-size skeleton casts, and explore interactive augmented reality experiences. There will even be paleontologists there during parts of the fair to meet and ask questions about fossils and dinosaurs.

The Ultimate Dinosaurs experience will be open from 9 am until 9 pm daily throughout the fair except for Labor Day, when it will close at 8 pm.

Celebrating America's 250th Birthday

Independence Day has come and gone, but America's birthday celebration continues at the Minnesota State Fair!

The brand-new "America Wheel' honors America 250 - the world's largest traveling observation ferris wheel- and offers an all-American experience with views high above the fairgrounds. This wheel reaches 230 feet above the ground, a full 75 feet higher than the "Great Big Wheel" that's been at the fair in years past.

Displays & Gardens around the fairgrounds commemorate America's 250th birthday - There will be lots of displays, gardens, hands-on history experiences, military tributes, and more throughout the fairgrounds. You can see all of the different things here.

New Rides At The Fair

Besides the new ferris wheel I mentioned above, there are a handful of new rides coming to the Midway and Kidway this year.

New Midway Rides this year include:

Thor is described as a ride where you can "unleash your inner Viking" and soar through the air with twists, turns, and upside-down thrills.
Juke Box Funhouse is a music-themed funhouse with "unexpected twists, fun surprises, and legendary icons from across the decades".

New Kidway Rides this year include:

Pirate Jet, which lets little pirates glide through the air at the helm of their own pirate ship.
Ghost Pirate Dark Ride, which continues the pirate theme of the new Kidway rides for this year. This ride offers kid-friendly spooky fun with silly scares.

Films at the Fair

There will be five nights of Minnesota-made short films shown at the Pet Pavilions area of the fairgrounds on the nights of August 28-29 and September 4-6.

Get our free mobile app

Some of the filmmakers will also be on site to visit with and answer questions after the showings. These start at 8:30 each of the nights I mentioned above, and it is free to attend with your fair admission.

New Enhancements & Improvements

The Minnesota State Fair has been working to improve facilities in recent years, and you'll be able to see some of the benefits of that work this year.

One of the highlights for this year includes the freshly renovated Coliseum, which saw widening of aisles, improvements to seating, and many other improvements.

Numerous other enhancements for both accessibility and overall visitor experience will be in place for this year as well. Things like lighting improvements, improved paved sidewalks, new changing tables, more bike rack capacity, more pre-recorded audio descriptions, and much more. You can see all of these improvements here.

...and more

There are several new vendors, updates to the various competitions and exhibits, some popular exhibits and vendors have moved, and other changes to be aware of. You can see all of the various updates here from the Minnesota State Fair.

Speaking of new things, here are the new foods coming to this year's Minnesota State Fair:

2026 Minnesota State Fair New Foods & Beverages

Each year, a lot of creative new foods and beverages make their debut at the Great Minnesota Get-Together. For 2026, 36 new items will be added to the lineup of offerings, with 9 new vendors making their debut this year at the fair. Here's a look at all of them!

Gallery Credit: Nick Cooper - TSM Duluth