‘Thrillville’ coming to Riverside County Fairgrounds, replacing Date Festival in 2022

The annual Date Festival will not take place in 2022, instead, a new fair will take its place.

The Riverside County Fairgrounds has partnered with Butler Amusements to bring "Thrillville at the Fairgrounds".

The event, set for February 18 through the 27th, will bring carnival rides, games, music and more to the fairgrounds site.

“We are excited that we will have Thrillville coming to the Riverside County Fairgrounds in Indio in February,” said Riverside County Fourth District Supervisor V. Manuel Perez.  "The Thrillville interim event will temporarily take the place as our February festival at the Fairgrounds. We look forward to welcoming visitors back to the Fairgrounds, as Thrillville offers a lot of fun and activities for our families, community and visitors to enjoy!”

The Date Festival has been postponed for two straight years due to the pandemic. 2021 marked its 75th anniversary, which was celebrated virtually in February.

Over the past year, the future of the Date Festival in Indio has been up in the air.

As we have previously reported, the board of supervisors discussed possibly moving it to another county city, despite the 75 years of history and specific ties to the region.

Budget numbers from Feb. 2021 revealed that the National Date Festival operating at a loss of nearly $424,000 so far this fiscal year.

Local Supervisor Manuel Perez says the fair actually makes money, it's maintaining the fairgrounds that caused the loss.

"When we talk about the operations and maintenance of the fairgrounds site as a whole, well, that's what we got to work on," according to Perez.

Check Out: Supervisors ok funding to save financially troubled Date Festival

The Date Festival celebrates the valley's agricultural history by highlighting when Dates came to the area from Africa and the Middle East in 190.

Former Indio Mayor Elaine Holmes, as have other local leaders, have noted the festival's importance to the city's identity.

"This is wonderful for the city of Indio, we so enjoy the energy and the vibe that comes out of this fair and subsequent the festival around that," Holmes says.

For more information on Thrillville, visit https://www.thethrillville.com/Indio

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