By mid morning, thousands were already making their way past stalls, rides and the petting zoo for a sample of Easter Show fun, without the need to navigate trackwork and long lines to get to the Sydney version.

Brisbane's Sarah Nobbs and daughter Zaylee were visiting family in the Illawarra and headed out for a day at the carnival.

With one daughter among the animals at the petting zoo and another amid the rides, the verdict so far was "really good".

For the rest of the afternoon, the plan was simple, get some lunch from one of the local food trucks, enjoy a cold drink and look out for the Easter bunny., all of which received Zaylee's seal of approval.

"Yeah!"

In line for the giant slide, Jesse Noronha herded sons Jace and Dusty up the stairs.

For the Shellharbour family this was the first time coming to the Easter Show, and so far it was ticking all the boxes.

"The kids love it," Mr Noronha said.

The bar was already set high after the first few rides, with Jace on the hunt for a tiger - his favourite animal - at the mini farm, but an alpaca would have to do.

Licensee Adrian Hall said the addition of a giant jumping castle and new food vendors was proving popular for punters young and old.

"There's beautiful weather and everyone seems to be having fun already."