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I was happy to hear that Circus Vargas debuted in San Luis Obispo this summer and we got the chance to watch a performance the day before Independence Day at the beautiful Madonna Inn property.

I've attended a Circus Vargas show twice! Jump to a list of my tips on going to Circus Vargas with little ones. 

It was a sunny day and we caught the 4pm showing. Parking right by the circus tent was $10 cash, which we gladly paid instead of parking far away. I had an elderly family member with us and this makes a huge difference for him who has bad knees.

This was not our very first Circus Vargas show. We went to one 2 years ago and I have to say that this 2021 performance is much more organized and the sound is much better and cleaner. No irritating bass rattling!

I also enjoyed the storytelling of this year's performance as well. I think the grandparents in our family related to it well and I was so glad they enjoyed the circus with us. Best of all, they were so relieved to hear that there are no more live animals at the circus as they felt that was cruel when they had gone when they were much younger.

Here are the video clips that I recorded while I was there. These are just a bit of what we saw and does not do justice to the enormous talent and creativity the Circus Vargas team put together.

Parkour Performance:


Hula Hooping Performance:


Flying Trapeze Performance:


Blindfolded Performance:

If you did not catch a Circus Vargas performance in San Luis Obispo, they come to San Luis Obispo every year. 

All photos and video clips, including those via Pinterest are original content by SanLuisObispoMom.com.

Tips for Going to the Circus Vargas with Kids

• If your family is a veteran's family, they can request up to 4 free Circus Vargas tickets through VetTix.org. They must have a VetTix.org log-in showing proof that they are a veteran before they can get access to tickets available to veterans. You just have to pay a service fee which is $14.97 (for 2023), but it is considerably cheaper than buying the tickets at full price, especially for 4 people. The person picking up the tickets must be the veteran whose name matches the person who requested the tickets, as these free tickets are only offered to veterans in limited supply.
• After attending two different Circus Vargas shows in San Luis Obispo with two kids, I've seen a pattern. I feel that I enjoy watching the circus way more than my kids. If you have kids who don't like loud noises and can't sit still for more than an hour, this is not a great place to bring them as the noise level of this circus is very loud with a lot of sudden bursts of sounds. Halfway through, one of us had to sit with my kids in the car as the noise level was making them uncomfortable.
• The seats are hard and narrow so if you have long legs or the person next to you has supermodel long legs and wide shoulders, you'll get bumped into, probably more than once. Even when you picked your seats online ahead of time and there was an open seat next to you, that may not be the case by the time the show starts. No bumping and grinding here like the night club but your usual personal space bubble comfort level will need to shrink.
• They sell a lot of merchandise and food as you step into the tent and their knick knacks are all so pretty with many things that light up. Bring enough money and budget that into your trip as your family members may be very tempted to ask you to buy something at a Circus Vargas show!
• If you don't want to miss a second of the show, you're sitting down pretty much the whole time except when there is intermission. When one of my kids was a toddler, he had a hard time staying still as his attention span was very short. Even though children 2 years old and under are free, I don't know if you'll be able to sit through a show with them as the loud noises and rattling from machines that they use can be too much for mine and if your kids are like mine, this may be the case for your family too. It may be more stressful than you think.

Some of my most favorite gifts from my husband are experiences, like a local hotel stay in a nice boutique hotel or a nice stress-free cruise. Read more blog entries to read about my local adventures.