Strong attendance numbers mark successful return of Santa Maria Strawberry Festival

SANTA MARIA, Calif. -- It was an extremely fruitful return for Santa Maria Strawberry Festival.

Thousands of visitors filled the Santa Maria Fairpark over the past weekend, marking a very successful return for the popular event after being wiped out the past two years.

"We were all very excited to welcome the community back onto the fairgrounds and we couldn't have been more thrilled with how it turned out and just the overall community excitement and vibe we got," said Rebecca Barks, Santa Maria Fairpark Public Relations and Sponsorship Coordinator. "Just to see how many families were out and about and enjoying our carnival food, and the fun games prizes, and strawberry tasting, it really made it worthwhile."

While final numbers on attendance, sales and other event-related metrics are not scheduled to be released for a few days, Barks said early numbers show the festival was a rousing success.

"From 2019, we were able to look at our Saturday numbers and we did see a 25 percent increase on Saturday," said Barks. "We're not quite sure what our Sunday looks like yet, but at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, the lines to get in were huge. We were trying to work them in as quickly as possible to get them in, but yes, at 4 and 5 o'clock in the afternoon, we had hundreds of people coming in."

Barks highlighted the festival's "Toddler Town," live entertainment, and food vendors were especially popular attractions.

"Just great comments," said Barks. "We've had a lot of people call into the office and reach out to us when we were here and just say how great of a time they had and that's all we can hope for. That's why we're here."

She also stressed the importance of having the Strawberry Festival return, as well as other signature events, which are also scheduled in their traditional formats over the next couple of months.

"That's what we're here for. We're an event center first and foremost for the community," said Barks. "We do have events throughout the year, but these staple events, the Strawberry Festival, the West Coast Kustoms and the County Fair, that's really where we see that income come into the fairgrounds that help us keep going throughout the year. It's a really big boost for us and a big boost for our economy locally."

The West Coast Kustoms Car Show is scheduled for May 27-29, 2022, while the Santa Barbara County Fair is set for July 13-17, 2022.