Everything you need to know about Hull Fair

Hull Fair will swing into life later with hundreds of thrilling rides and attractions.

The annual event, which is more than 700 years old, is one of the largest travelling fairs in Europe.

It will open at 16:00 BST on Friday and will run until Saturday 12 October.

Visitors are being urged to use park-and-ride services and buses, as there will be limited parking available in the streets surrounding the Walton Street fairground.

Last year, about 600,000 people attended the fair over the course of eight days – 200,000 more than in 2022.

New large rides for this year include the Starfighter and Project X.

The official opening of Hull Fair is due to take place at 16:00, an hour earlier than usual, when the city's Lord Mayor will ring the fairground bell at the Waltzer XL ride.

The fair will then open at 12:00 on the two Saturdays and 14:00 on weekdays. It will close at 23:00 each day.

As tradition dictates, the fair will not open on Sundays.

Visitors travelling by car are encouraged to plan ahead after parking problems around the fairground in recent years.

Hull City Council has put up cones and barriers in nearby streets and on grass verges to prevent drivers leaving cars on grass verges and central reservations.

Last year, enforcement officers were seen ticketing cars parked on double yellow lines.

In addition, strict parking restrictions will be in place in streets close to the fairground.

These include: Paisley Street, Lowther Street, Lonsdale Street, Sandringham Street, Granville Street, Perry Street, Ruskin Street, Arthur Street, Walliker Street and "Little" Anlaby Road (between Perry Street and the West Park gates).

Limited parking will be available within the MKM Stadium car park, charged at £6 per car.

Park-and-ride services will operate from the Humber Bridge car park, off Ferriby Road, and Priory Park, Hessle.

From Humber Bridge car park (Service 22)

• Buses will run to the fair every 10 to 15 minutes from 17:00 until 20:30 Monday to Friday, and from 14:00 until 20:30 on Saturdays.
• Buses will run back from the fair from 17:30 until 23:05 Monday to Thursday, from 17:30 until 23:20 on Fridays, and from 14:30 until 23:20 on Saturdays.

From Priory Park and Ride (Service 22)

• Buses will run to Hull Fair up to every 10 minutes from 16:00 until 20:30 Monday to Friday, and from 13:00 until 20:30 on Saturdays.
• Buses will run back from Hull Fair from 17:30 until 23:05 Monday to Thursday, from 17:30 until 23:20 on Fridays, and from 14:30 until 23:20 on Saturdays.

Buses that run from Hull Fair after 19:30 will go to both Priory Park and the Humber Bridge.

Stagecoach will provide additional services during Hull Fair.

Fairgoers will be able to purchase a discounted DayRider ticket for £4 per person (£12 for a group of up to five) and children under five will travel free.

Matt Cranwell, the managing director of Stagecoach East Midlands, said he hoped the services would "help decrease congestion and provide a stress-free way to travel into the city".

Additional bus services from Paragon Interchange to Hull Fair:

• Service 2 and 2F Hull Fair Shuttle (with stops at Park Street and Anlaby Road) will leave the interchange every seven to eight minutes until 19:00, from bays four and eight.

Return buses from the fair:

Extra evening buses will run every 30 minutes, including:

• Service 2 from Anlaby Road to Boothferry Estate.
• Service 3 from Chanterlands Avenue to Orchard Park.

Buses back to east Hull, Bransholme and Kingswood will run at regular interviews until 23:05 (23:20 on Fridays and Saturdays) from the Anlaby Road bus stop near West Park:

• Service 6 to Beverley Road, Kingswood and North Bransholme.
• Service 8 to Holderness Road, Saltshouse Road, Bellfield Avenue, Spring Cottage and Bransholme.
• Service 10A to Stoneferry, Leads Road, Sutton Road, Sutton Park, Bransholme Centre, Bodmin Road and North Bransholme.
• Service 12 to Holderness Road, Gillshill Road, Sutton Village, Noddle Hill Way and Bransholme.
• Service 13 to Holderness Road, Southcoates Lane, Preston Road, Greatfield and Bilton Grange.

Hull Fair will be free to enter, with each ride, attraction and food outlet setting its own prices. There will be more than 300 attractions, including about 80 rides for children.

While prices for each ride and stall will not be confirmed until the fair opens, last year most cost between £3 and £6, with children's rides from £2.50.

Last year, food prices included £6 for patty, chips and peas; £10 for meat gyros; £8 for a cheeseburger, and £6 for foot-long fries.

Hull Fair can trace its origins to a royal charter issued in 1279, when fairs were an opportunity to trade livestock and generally eat, drink and make merry.

It was originally held at Easter, before moving to September.

In 1752, Britain changed the way it calculated leap years, which resulted in the "loss" of 11 days from the calendar that September. According to local tradition, Hull people took to the streets as they thought the change would mean the loss of the fair.

The uproar led to a new date, in the second week of October, which remains to this day.

Hull Fair has survived longer than most. A law passed in 1871 saw the majority of traditional fairs shut down by Victorian politicians who complained of "grievous immorality", including rowdy behaviour and drunkenness.

The fair has been staged at Walton Street since 1888. Before rides became the main draw, it was known for musicians, circus performers, animal shows and other exhibits and curiosities.

Last year, a rifle range that wowed the crowds over nine decades was recreated in miniature by the family who ran the attraction.

The Wild West game boasted real guns and was a fixture at the fair from 1904 until the late 1980s.

In recent years, ride-holders have called for the fair to open on Sundays, arguing that the move would help reduce congestion on Saturday, when about 100,000 people attend.

However, the council has defended the long-standing tradition on the basis that local residents benefit from the break.

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