A World War II aircraft hangar in Santa Rosa is once again bursting with flowers, and this year the theme is a trip around the globe's biggest parties. The Sonoma County Fair's Hall of Flowers opened its 2026 Floral Fandango exhibition to the public today with the start of the fair, showcasing gardens inspired by festivals from around the world, from Rio's Carnival to Burning Man.
The 2026 lineup includes gardens themed to the Rio Carnival, Mardi Gras, Día de los Muertos, Oktoberfest, the Gasparilla Pirate Festival, Burning Man, San Francisco Pride and the Weifang International Kite Festival, according to The Press Democrat. The Rio Carnival garden features larger-than-life mannequins alongside a colorful wall display, while the hall overall features oversized hot-air balloons and a giant kite hanging overhead, all arranged around the building's central fountain, per the same account. Director Greg Duncan and his crew also created a fireworks mural spanning the south end of the hall, and the space includes wine-tasting stations scattered throughout.
A Hangar's Long Second Life as a Flower Show
The Hall of Flowers has been a centerpiece of the fair since 1952, but the building's origin story has nothing to do with gardening. It originally served as a World War II Boeing B-17 bomber hangar before local developer Hugh Codding acquired it as war surplus in 1949 and moved it to Santa Rosa, according to the Pacific Sun. Local historians view the conversion from military storage to a floral hall as a kind of local swords-into-plowshares transformation.
At 28,000 square feet, the Hall of Flowers is recognized as the largest themed flower show on the West Coast and the only county fair display of its kind in the country, as noted by Sonoma County Winegrowers. Duncan has directed the show for more than 30 years since taking over in 1995, bringing a background in theatrical set design and an Emmy Award for his set design work on PBS's Dr. Science's National Science Test. He is only the fourth director in the show's 74-year history.
Six Months of Planning for Two Weeks of Blooms
Each exhibitor spent about six months designing their assigned garden before spending roughly two weeks on-site installing it ahead of opening day, per The Press Democrat's reporting. Exhibitors draw their garden themes out of a hat during a fall drawing, according to the Sonoma County Fair, and designers consult with Duncan throughout the process to keep each installation aligned with the overall festival theme.
The fair itself runs through August 16 under the broader theme Festivals, Fiestas & Fun, according to Marin Mommies, giving the Hall of Flowers' Floral Fandango a natural tie-in to the fairgrounds' programming beyond the hangar's doors. Outside the exhibit hall, the UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County and the Sonoma-Marin Saving Water Partnership installed a water-wise patio demonstration garden called Botanical Rhapsody, featuring permeable hardscaping and drought-tolerant succulents, marking the fourth consecutive year of water-wise patio displays at the fair.
A New Equestrian Circus Joins the Preview Party
Ahead of the fair's public opening, the Hall of Flowers held a preview yesterday in Santa Rosa, with admission to the $50 preview including a performance from Cirque Ma'Ceo, a new attraction at this year's fair. Tickets to that preview funded the Hall of Flowers Scholarship program, which supports local students pursuing agriculture and horticulture degrees in Sonoma and Marin counties.
Cirque Ma'Ceo combines acrobatics, aerial performances, dance and trained horses, and performs under a custom-designed Italian Big Top tent set up at the fairgrounds Event Center throughout the fair's run, according to the Sonoma County Fair. Unlike the preview, general admission to the fair does not include entry to Cirque Ma'Ceo, which requires separate ticketing.
Fairgoers looking for a sweeter tradition can also find free daily ice cream giveaways from Clover Sonoma, the Santa Rosa-based dairy brand, returning this year after a multi-year hiatus, according to KSRO. Once the fair wraps, the Hall of Flowers will host its annual public plant sale on Monday, August 17, from 7 AM to 1 PM, giving community gardeners a chance to buy the mature plants and floral material featured throughout the exhibit.
Fair visitors should note that this festival flower show is a separate operation from the cannabis trade event that also uses the Hall of Flowers name; that B2B show previously rented space at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds before relocating to Sacramento earlier this year.
