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It’s also worth stopping to diffuse some of the negative attitudes people have towards fairgrounds. It is very easy to dismiss fairs as the poor relation to theme parks, but it is worth remembering that, while the amusement park industry has been in existence for a relatively short time, the fairground predates it by a huge margin.

Nottingham Goose Fair, arguably the UK’s best and most famous fair, has been in existence for over 700 years, and many other European fairs are based on traditions that are equally ancient. Moreover, many of the showmen are fiercely proud of their family histories, some of which span generation upon generation of rides, stalls, and shows. To them, fairgrounds are not a simple business venture; it is a way of life. It is the very antithesis of the corporate owned theme park, and not to be taken lightly.

The most popular misconception is that travelling rides are less reliable or even safe than those operated by a reputable theme park, but the truth is that the constant building and dismantling of these rides enables them to be checked more often and, maintained to a standard that enables them to give a much better ride than their theme park equivalents. As for reliability and safety, if your family’s entire livelihood relied on keeping your ride running perfectly, wouldn’t you make sure it was kept in tip-top condition?

Visit a major fair, and one thing soon becomes obvious. The showmen are in serious competition to win your custom. They are desperate to get as many bums on seats as they can, and will do everything in their power to get it. Many of the major rides regularly get their backflashes, lighting rigs, and sound systems overhauled simply to ensure that they grab the attention of passers by more effectively than the opposition.

It is in their interest to keep their machine looking and operating to perfection. Sure, a day at a fair may be more expensive than a theme park, but the fact that the showmen are genuinely looking to impress you, in the hope that you’ll buy another ticket later on, means that in terms of value-for-money it has the upper hand.

Part of the magic of a good fairground comes from something that, by its very nature, a park can never hope to recreate. A top-class fairground is an event, a party time when a whole city can come out to celebrate and have fun. It totally transforms its landscape in much the same way as a house party will transform your living room. Part of the fun of a great fair is to walk around in the full knowledge that, if you came back this time next week, you’d be standing in a desolate field, or a bleak car park, and to see the mundane paraphernalia of the site’s day-to-day life (lamp posts, pay & display machines) sitting dormant.

The fair is a specific point in time, an ephemeral moment when the drab everyday surroundings are hijacked and transformed into a lavish monument to OTT glamour, kitsch, and fun; the big hurrah before everybody goes back to the daily grind for another year. It is for this reason that planning a visit to a fairground should use the opposite principle to a theme park visit.

You should aim to go when the place is at its busiest, because that’s when the atmosphere reaches its peak, as well as being the time when the gloves come off, and every showman works flat-out to lure you onto their ride, using any trick in the book.

The presentation of the best travelling rides is a joy to behold. Whereas theme park rides aim to submerge riders in a fantasy world, travelling rides go directly for the jugular. The basic purpose of a thrill ride is to exactly that – thrill, and while we may admire the artistry involved in making a ride look like, say, a relic from Arthurian England, nothing adds to the excitement of a ride quite like the time-honoured practice of painting it in various bright colours, then overloading it with an array of lights that makes Blackpool Illuminations look subtle, and littering the area with speakers playing a heady mix of ear-splitting techno music.

Add to that the presence of machines that billow out huge quantities of dry ice, and the hyper-ramblings of a manic ride operator encouraging riders to let go of their inhibitions by screaming, waving their arms, and yelling for more, and it isn’t difficult to imagine which approach will provide the more memorable and adrenalin-pumping experience. Continues...