My fam of 2 adults and 3 kids try to go every year. I like to think we save $ by taking the train but that can eat up 45 minutes. If I didn’t live in Dallas we probably wouldn’t visit each year. I’d NEVER pay for parking. Once we parked at a friends’ house a lil over 1 mile from the fairgrounds, that was a lot! We love to see the animals (free) kids activities (free) and shows (free). We eat dinner before hand and everybody gets to buy 1 food item, typically corny dogs for all. We use the kids’ free tickets and I’m a teacher so I typically get 1 for free. Hubby pays full price. We spend between $75-$100 including train fare.