🎈 Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta (Annual Event)

I attended twice while living in ABQ! The fiesta usually takes place over 9 days, starting on the first Saturday of October and running through the following Sunday. There are two sessions each day: 🌞 Morning session: Balloons lift off, followed by landings and activities like woodcarving demos. 🌛 Evening session: A magical "glow" event where balloons light up like giant lanterns—almost like a bonfire party! 🐄 Thursday and Friday mornings feature the Special Shape Rodeo—a crowd favorite with fun character-shaped balloons! 🎈 There’s also a balloon museum nearby. It’s small but definitely worth a visit. Official name: Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta Tickets can be bought online (around $15 per person + convenience fee), but I recommend buying them on-site. Lines aren’t too long, and you get a cool paper ticket as a souvenir! 🎫 Online packages are also available for balloon rides, VIP areas, and more. 📅 2022 Edition: This was the 50th anniversary! 🎉 ABQ boasts 300 sunny days a year—but somehow, almost all 9 fiesta days were cloudy or rainy 😅 I went three times: Opening morning: Bad weather delayed launch until after 9 AM. One evening: It rained… the session was canceled, along with several other nights. Thursday (Special Shapes): Still cloudy, but slightly better. And there was drama! One of the balloons—the baby bee 🐝—was stolen before the event! The pilots of the bee family said they wouldn’t fly without the baby. Thankfully, it was recovered just in time! 🐝❤️ The fiesta began in 1972—so much history! 📅 2021 Edition: COVID was still affecting events—fewer balloons participated, so it felt smaller. But the weather? Perfectly sunny! ☀️ Then I moved away… so no more fiesta for me 😢 #BalloonFiesta #Albuquerque #ABQ #NewMexico #BalloonGlow #SpecialShapeRodeo #TravelNM #NewMexicoTravel #HotAirBalloon 🎈🍂🪂