GDS Fair (Greene-Dreher-Sterling) vs. Wayne County Fair: What Each Is Like

Late summer near Lake Wallenpaupack means two county fairs, back to back, both an easy drive from Hawley. They're not the same event wearing a different name. The Greene-Dreher-Sterling Fair (everyone calls it the GDS Fair) is the small, local one closest to Greentown and the south end of the lake; the Wayne County Fair in Honesdale is the big regional draw. Here's what each is actually like.

What the GDS Fair is like

The GDS Fair started in 1917, when schoolteacher Ella Nevin set it up to show off her students' handiwork, and it has grown into what its organizers call a real, honest-to-goodness country fair: livestock and agricultural exhibits alongside rides, food and stage entertainment. It has its own fairgrounds at 457 Crestmont Drive in Newfoundland, a short drive south of Greentown, which is why people searching for a "Greentown PA fair" usually mean this one. It has been cancelled only rarely: in 1955, when flooding put ten feet of water over the fairgrounds, and in 2020 for the pandemic.

The arena program is the part regulars talk about most: farm, antique and garden tractor pulls plus diesel and modified truck pulls, scheduled on the fair's published schedule. Livestock shows, exhibit halls and contests (including the Fair Queen contest) round out the week.

GDS Fair dates, admission and parking

The fair runs for the ten days before Labor Day, and its last day is always the day before Labor Day. In 2026 that was August 28 to September 6. By the same rule, the 2027 fair should fall on August 27 to September 5, 2027, but confirm on gdsfair.org once the association posts its schedule.

At the 2026 fair, admission was $10 on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays with rides included (gates at 11 a.m., rides from noon) and $8 Monday through Thursday (gates at 2 p.m., rides from 3 p.m.). A $30 week pass covered admission and most shows, with a $20 senior week pass for ages 65 and up. Parking is always free. The association also runs a Fall Flea Market and Craft Show on the grounds; the 2026 edition was Saturday, September 26.

Wayne County Fair (Honesdale): the bigger fair

The Wayne County Fair is the larger of the two by a wide margin: nine days in early-to-mid August, drawing roughly 100,000 visitors a year, and running since 1862, the single largest annual event in Wayne County. Expect a full midway, grandstand shows including monster trucks, and harness racing on select days at the Wayne County Fairgrounds on Route 191 north of Honesdale.

Which one to pick

If you want the full county-fair experience, with a large midway and big grandstand shows, go to the Wayne County Fair. If you want a smaller, more agricultural, small-town fair with tractor pulls and cheap weekday admission, the GDS Fair is the better fit, and it's the closer of the two to Greentown and the lake's south shore. Because Wayne County wraps up in mid-August and GDS runs into Labor Day weekend, a late-summer Lake Wallenpaupack trip can realistically catch both.