From $25 to $500: How much are people spending at the Ekka?

Ekka-goers arrived at the showgrounds on Tuesday ready – and willing – to spend money.

“I’ve already spent $30 since I walked through the gate,” Samford resident Christine Martin said.

“You know that you’re going to spend money when you come here, it’s part of the day,” said Logan mum Ashlee Harris, who had recently arrived with her husband Mitchell and son Henry on Tuesday morning.

The Harris family budgeted between $100 and $300 for the day, but were hopeful they would be able to stretch that amount as much as possible.

“You can enjoy a lot of the things here without having to spend a lot of money,” Harris’ husband Mitchell Harris said.

“If we go under [$300] that’s great, but I think you can do a lot with that money,” she added.

For Emma Norris, the day’s budget of $500 was fluid as she set out to make memories for her two children, rather than focus on the dollar amount.

“It’s about the experience and [making] memories,” she said.

This year, entry to the show cost $40.95 for an adult, $30.95 for a concession, and $26.95 for a child, with kids four and under free.

While Norris admitted the beloved show wasn’t necessarily affordable, she said it was a special occasion with most of her budget expected to go towards rides and showbags – specifically lolly showbags, her daughter added.

“It’s once a year, and we don’t come every year, so that’s okay,” she said.

For others, they arrived with a tighter budget. Two students this masthead spoke with planned to spend $25 and up $70.

“$25 … pretty low … [will spend it on] mostly food and maybe one ride if I can,” the young man said.

“I’m going to be spending about like $60 to $70, just on anything really … that catches my eye,” his classmate added.

This year, to increase the value of buying a ticket to the Ekka, children’s tickets for Thursday and Friday were being paired with a free ticket to Dreamworld valued up to $119.

The Ekka is running until Sunday, August 17, at the RNA Showgrounds.