The sights, sounds and smells of the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) have returned to Toronto for 2024, which means long lineups for bizarre food offerings and even longer queues for thrilling midway rides.

CNE attendees this year can expect a healthy dose of slow shuffling through lineups, but it begs the question of just how long people are willing to wait to get a dose of calories or adrenaline.

blogTO hit the crowds at Exhibition Place to learn how much time attendees were prepared to sacrifice to ride their favourite attraction or test out this year's outrageous deep-fried fare.

Here's long would Toronto wait in line at the CNE. How long would YOU wait? pic.twitter.com/mUPutcwq3T

— blogTO (@blogTO) August 23, 2024

One attendee said they'd be willing to sacrifice an hour to wait in line for rides, saying it's no different than enduring the gruelling lines at Canada's Wonderland.

At the other end of the spectrum, another visitor to the CNE said their wait tolerance maxes out at seven minutes, saying that they just don't have the attention span to stand around.

A fellow visitor agreed with this take, but with a slightly longer window of 10-15 minutes, saying that there's "so much to do" at the CNE.

"If it's taking too long, I don't want to wait all day," they said.

However, the same pair admitted they'd wait longer for carnival eats, with one of the couple saying, "I love to eat."

Others' wait tolerance moves on a sliding scale in relation to the food item or attraction offered. One CNE-goer said they'd wait as long as 45 minutes for rides like the iconic Polar Express, while their partner said they could only stand about half an hour in line.

Another pair of visitors said they'd wait in line for anywhere up to an hour to board a CNE ride, but with a shorter ten-minute wait tolerance for food items.

When pressed why they'd wait so much longer for rides, one noted that many CNE food items are available elsewhere, and considers the rides a more important experience to allocate wait time to.