Albuquerque Balloon Race

Went last year. Just get there; the worst spot will still be great.

Doug

JMHO, but the cheap seats are the best place to be. Usually the balloons are overhead 15 minutes or so after lift off. We have had them land right in our midst. There is also a large area in the dry camping area where they land & help is always appreciated with the landing. Never get yourself downwind of the basket.

The launch area is something to see but it is jammed packed with people.

We stayed at the dry camping area in 2010 with our dog - you just can't take them to the launch field across the street. The sites with power ($$$) are near the landing zone but we ended up in the front row (well...2 rows back). GREAT experience - balloons overhead every morning. You get the rest of the day to go explore the area (recommend Santa Fe!). ST

We have attended three times and have stayed at the VIP lot at the south end of the field, which includes gate passes for the duration you are there, short walk to the center of field, with chairs outside your RV you can watch the balloons as well as enjoy a leisurely cup of coffee (or other beverage).

We are planning for the Balloon Fiesta in 2015 .. I saw on the Fiesta web site that dogs are not allowed on the grounds - does that include in the vip dry rv camping area?
Thanks.

We attended this year's Balloon Fiesta, our first. It's a grand experience. You might consider signing up in the spring to volunteer as crew - I did and it was great fun, even resulting in going up with my pilot one day. Even if you don't sign up early to crew, you can volunteer each morning and they'll assign you to a pilot.

Depending on winds, some mornings the balloons come south over the south RV parking lot, where we were.

I've described our experience at ABQ Balloon Fiesta.

Ted H.

To the best of my knowledge, this is not a race.

Bill,

We stayed in that southern lot. You don't need to be on the grounds at all. We had a young dog with us, so we just hung on the fence for three hours while 600+ balloons took to the air. The southern lot has(had) some places with power but was otherwise dry camping.

You want to be there for at least one of the weekends because that is when they have the mass ascensions.

Read the posted schedule before you make any plans.

Matt

Lots of folks stay at the lower-priced large lot on the south side of Amameda Blvd. It's not far from the main events, and there's shuttle service.

Better still are the lots just adjacent to the main event. Yes, you pay more, but the views are just spectacular. Quite often, though, those lots are reserved as a block by various RV clubs.

In any event, the main thing is to be right on the main event fields during mass lift-off. It is something to behold.

Oh, and while there is a balloon race, those are gas-filled balloons and really make up a tiny part of the yearly event. The bulk of the show involves hot-air balloons, which rise into the air on propane-heated air and fly only a few miles or so, not gas-filled ones, which rise at the event and then fly many hundreds of miles.

:)
Lynn