Minnesota Scottish Fair & Highland Games

We come to this every year, and it's always a lot of fun. The MN Scottish Fair & Highland Games is held outdoors in the field of a church in Eagan (although the location is changing for next year), and the nearby businesses allow parking in their lots. Think of it as the cute, mini version of the Irish Fair?They have heavy games (caber toss for the win), highland dancing, pipe bands, clan tents, celtic music, a Scottish marketplace, food and drink, and some classic (European) cars - including one previously owned and signed by the Spice Girls? I was all in. The food and drink selection aren't extensive, but they do the trick. As long as I can get a few pints from McCracken Pub - or a wee dram of scotch if I'm feeling feisty - I'm a happy fair-goer. There was also an ice cream truck (golf cart) cruising around! It was blazing hot today, but still glad we all went. Looking forward to see what next year's new venue has to offer.

Scottish Fest used to be one of my favorite festivals. But it has really gone downhill in the past few years. First of all, they keep moving the location and the date. This year was in some obscure church parking lot. And July is WAY too hot for people wearing wool. It used to be in May which was perfect.They've lost a lot of vendors over the years. There was ONE vendor selling anything resembling Scottish food. Hardly any merch vendors anymore, the few that were there are also at every local festival.The sheep herding demonstration that was advertised never happened, we waited until well after 4 for it. In general, unless you can get there in the morning when the highland dance competition is going on, there is little to see. We arrived shortly after noon and felt quite ripped off. There was an out-of-tune brass band (WTF) playing, the only dancing that was happening was the uninclusive Royal Scottish group, and we kept trying to find the heavy games, but all there was were a bunch of people standing around. ONE pipe band played the entire time we were there. Really, $17 per person is WAY too expensive for what we were able to see. They should really discount heavily the price of admission after 12pm, as there is nothing to see or do. We were very disappointed.There are other ethnic festivals that have FREE admission that you get to see and hear much more. Please, Scottish Fair, fix your festival!