by Tom Bastek
Last updated: 8:00 PM ET, Thu February 12, 2015
All photos courtesy of respective festivals.
Maybe it's on your bucket list (or in this case basket list) to take a trip in a hot air balloon or maybe you're fine to keep your feet on the ground. Either way, one of the coolest experiences to take in is a hot air balloon festival, and here are a few of the best.
The New Jersey Festival of Ballooning
Although the dry, warm weather of the west makes for the most ideal ballooning conditions, there are still festivals all over the country. One of the best is in Readington, New Jersey. The New Jersey Festival of Ballooning will take place on July 24-26, 2015 and there is still room to take a flight. There are five scheduled ascensions of over 100 ballons, balloon rides, live music, fireworks, and over 200 crafters and vendors.
The Great Texas Balloon Race
The originator of the Balloon Glow, in which competitors leave their balloons lit up and tethered in the sky at night, the Great Texas Balloon Race is also the location for the U.S. National Balloon Race Championships. Longview, the town that hosts the race has been designated the balloon capital of Texas and they live up to it. The five-day festival includes flights from Tuesday - Saturday with the national race taking place on that Tuesday. Balloon glows take place on Friday and Saturday nights plus they have a kids area, artisans, crafters, and food vendors as well.
The Great Reno Balloon Race
It seems like every balloon event either has a claim to fame or pioneered something in the ballooning world. In this case, the Great Reno Balloon Race pioneered the Dawn Patrol and they also claim to be "The World's Largest FREE Hot-Air Ballooning Event." Scheduled the first weekend after Labor Day, the event consists of a morning glow show each day, followed by the dawn patrol taking off at 5:30 a.m. as well as three mass ascension launches. The bonus here is that you are done by 10 a.m. and you are free the rest of the day to go and gamble your tail off.
The Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival
Each year during the first weekend of May, Foley, Alabama lights up with balloons galore for two whole days. Morning and evening flights and nightly balloon glows are the standard here with tests of pilots' skills in the mornings as well. There is also live music, antique tractor displays, kid's entertainment, unique arts & crafts, and local cuisine, too.
Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
The granddaddy of them all in the world of ballooning, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is the cream of the crop. This nine-day festival has day and night events and if you like balloons that are special shapes such as characters, animals and vehicles, this is the event for you. They routinely have over 100 special shape balloons that fly during the festival and even have dedicated events just for them.
So just do it! Make 2015 the year you scratch hot air balloon flight off your bucket list. Have you seen hot air balloons at festivals before? What was your favorite? Would you take a ride in one? Or just ride it out on the ground? Tell me all about it in the comments below.
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