Metrolina Tradeshow Expo Marketplace & Events

Went this past Saturday on 10÷17÷15. Went for the Metrolina Fair.
Liked that parking was free but they make up for that for by charging people 12 and up $ 8 dollars. I decided to get the all day pass. On the week ends it is $ 25 dollars. Should have only paid per ride. The thing is I went with my daughter but she did not want to go on the rides. And some of the rides you cannot go solo. They do not tell you this until you are already paid for the pass and at the ride. Who wants to bum a ride at the fair. I ended up on only three attractions. One was the zero gravity ride and after that I was done. Don’t really remember it being so bad when I was younger lol. Felt like someone was holding my whole body down. Not a good feeling. Plus felt sick after the ride.
The food selection was decent but generally overpriced, go figure. They had the fried items like fried twinkie for I believe 5 dollars. And funnel cake for eight. They also had fried cheese sticks, pizza, ice cream, lemonade, sausage and grilled, shaved beef sandwiches.
I had a Nathan’s hot dog, fries and medium tea for $ 8.50. Not too bad for a fair. Hot dog was not bad but nothing to write home about.
I did enjoy the helicopter ride for ten dollars apiece, again, cannot go solo.
I gave it 2 stars because the entrance fee of eight dollars, food on the expensive side, and paying twenty-​five dollars for an all day pass when I had to time it just right on some rides to if I could share a seat with a stranger. It is also a small fair. You will see some of the same people again and again.
They did have a free petting zoo and horse ride was eight dollars.

Pretty much have only visited this place during the antique and flea market weekends so I can’t say as to how they handle actual specific events other than this one.
The parking is in a gravel lot/​field but they don’t charge to park so that is a plus. Admission the day I went is $ 5 for the entire day. The vendors change around so there’s always something new to browse as well.
Thankfully and most importantly there is a small bar between a few of the metal buildings that actually serves beer and mixed drinks. That’s a nice break to have given the size and how long it actually takes to take in all the different buildings and weather permitting the outdoor areas.

It was just a great idea my wife had to go with the kids to the fair they had going on there; a great idea it was. Anything that puts a smile on my girls face is good for me. No one was there directing traffic for parking so it was pretty much grab what you can; parking closer to the ticket booth would be smart because it’s a long walk from the back. 4 and under was free and adults were $ 8 and children $ 5. Didn’t realize you had to pay extra to get on the rides nice trick, rides were decent enough. Trust me when I say you will save a whole lot more money buying the wristband or hand stamp for the rides. A petting zoo for some city kids is always good; food was not my choice and surely ain’t want to take a chance with my life. They should really invest in some soda fountains, none of the vendors had soda fountains they served bottled soda in cups for $ 4-​$ 6? You can just get the souvenir cup for $ 6 and refill for $ 3? I took a cool helicopter ride and monster truck ride. Kids liked the escape artist show by lady Houdini… you get the idea. Pretty cool carnival games and rides! Also a cool drown the clown who harassed and antagonized people to pay $ 10 to dunk him in a tank of water. Also a mechanical bull ride for $ 10! The challenge was males ride for more then 8 seconds wins $ 100; females 7 seconds! My wife did 5.2 seconds! DAMN!

Friends dragged me here for the gun show.
Parking is on a large grassy area with little organization and no direction from attendants. You’re just hunting for a spot all on your own. Make sure you park «legally» and that you leave enough room in case someone doesn’t know what they are doing any manage to block you in.
Long queue for paying the entrance charge — note that there are multiple ticket windows and you may be able to move from a long line to a shorter one where the lines break up.
The gun show took place across three structures with an open area in the middle for the smokers. Not recommended if you’re at all claustrophobic and don’t handle crowds well. Why the fire marshal allowed this sort of tightly packed humanity I don’t know. If there were a panic, look out! Signage could be better pointing the way between the buildings.
For the gun show at least, there was some security. Anyone carrying an openly displayed firearm had it inspected and secured. Signs were posted prohibiting loaded firearms, but there was no magnetometer checking.

Just had a booth at the Quilt Show this past weekend. The service of the volunteers was excellent, parking was easy, bathrooms were well-​stocked and concession food was pretty tasty. We had a great time and so happy that they scheduled the same weekend as the Bead Show!

It is what it is… an open field with some storage-​type buildings, porta-​jons & parking lots.
I’ve always known this expo to welcome festivals, home shows, gun & knife shows & the like. Yesterday’s visit actually brought me here to work the Oktoberfest.
Vast land makes for plenty of pop up tents for beer samplings, food & merch vendors. The downside: even with the good amount of porta-​jons, men still found the need to um, «relieve» themselves at the end of the woods.
Getting in the venue seemed to work well; plenty of volunteers & staff showing you were to go. Getting out wasn’t so easy. All those volunteers & staff were no where to be found. Therefore, there were a maze of taxis & people trying to get in to pick up intoxicated folks, while others were trying to escape the madness.

I was here for Oktoberfest but have also been here for one of the antiques shows.
I was a bit lost when I got there this trip. When I got there I parked in the first area. I didn’t hear anyone telling me where to go until after I got up to the first gate and realized that was for the home show. So I went back to the car, moved it to Gate 2 area.
The event was organized well. They had people checking your IDs first. Then they had people taking your ticket, the next person put on the wrist band, someone handed you a program and then you got your glass. Pretty good system.
The Oktoberfest event was set behind all the antique buildings with various tents for the beer vendors. The food vendors seemed to be off on their own with the non-​profits. The Unilocal tables were hidden in this area. I don’t think they got the traffic they could have had.
Unlike Angie, I didn’t have any problems getting out. It was simple. The problem I ran into was getting on I-​77 but that’s Charlotte drivers for you…
For the antiques market, it’s an ok event. I’m not an antique person so I only came up once. It’s not like other antiques markets I am used to up north but this is the south. Things are different here.

Here for Carolina Rebellion
Pros– plenty of bathrooms, grounds were fairly clean for such a large event, strong police and EMT presence
Cons– Line to get in was outrageous– some people waited 2 – 4 HOURS just to get inside. Lack of food vendors equaled LONG LONG lines at the stands they did have.

The expo itself is pretty lame — it seems like a few buildings in a field, next to the now-​defunct Metrolina Speedway. We actually went for the Home Show, which at the same price as the show held at the former Merchandise Mart, is a complete waste.
You can walk through the entire thing in a few minutes, and it’s just about worthless. Perhaps four rows of tables, and very few of them offering anything worthwhile.
As to the grounds of the expo itself? It’s like a fairgrounds. Don’t bother going if you’re handicapped, because the spaces are close to the entrance, but they are also muddy if it’s been raining. Not a good mix.