RV Park - Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta Week?

Here's the RV parking information. Unfortunately, it seems you're too late to stay on the grounds. Why not try much earlier for next year? It's well worth it to stay on the grounds. The dry camping spots are great and the balloons can land right in front of you. The free shuttle begins at 6am each morning and runs to late evening. We got picked up right at our door. If you'd rather walk, it only takes 15 minutes or so. Dry camping is easy to do if you have a generator.

Parking and traffic are absolutely horrible for those that drive in daily from outside the park. Also, RV parks raise their rates during this time period so it's not going to be cheaper staying off-site. A dry camping spot is only $30. People drive from as far as Santa Fe to stay in a RV park.

We spent 10 days there with a group of full-timers and we crewed for a balloon. You can volunteer to do so. For our time, we got an awesome long ride and other perks.

Don't pass up the Fiesta!

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

The old field has room for more than 10,000 RV's. They also like to park them 8 feet apart. On the day I moved my camper, the two neighbors where really happy to have the extra space between their RV's. When they where backing me into my 'site' I kinda backed up terribly, and barely go get it within the 8' from my neighbor, was more like 9 or 10 feet. .. .

Once they parked my motorhome facing the field that had the targets in it! That was fun too!

Fred.

PS: Yes I have been there many times. 92, 93, 94, 97, 2000 and 2008 and probably a couple more years.

I would pay for the camping pass about 3 days at a time. If you take them the old one, you can buy another 2-3 days without moving the RV. Once I was a couple of days late in paying, and drove out, and back into the lot, bought another day, and left early the next morning.

By the way, most years I did not stay until the last Sunday. Many times the winds pick up on the last weekend, and I would leave on Friday morning if the prediction was high winds for the next couple of days.

Fred.

I have always dry camped across the street from the main launch field. The best reason to park there is that most of the balloons will fly over your RV's one morning or another during the week. Many times they will have a target in the middle of the RV's (not close enough to hit one though) in a dirt area, about 300' X 400' without any RV's and target in the center.

The pilots toss bags filled with bird seed (non-toxic) and their name on the bag, the closest ones win a prize. $100 or more?

One day they have the pilots launch off site, and try to fly over the main field and grab a prize off the poles set up for this reason. Prizes can be more than $500 and they all try for them! It is a morning that they launch the special shapes from the field, and other balloons try to fly over low and slow.

You can walk back and forth from the 'old field' to the main field. Google it - you will get the idea of what it looks like. It is on Alameda St, Albuquerque, NM. It is about 2 miles west of I25 and about 5 miles north of I40. The new field has grass on it, the old field is south of it, and across Alameda. There are shuttle busses going between the two fields. I prefer a bike! It leaves when you want to, and no lines of other people trying to leave at the same time.

Say you go to the 'night glow' on the first Sunday or on Wednesday. There will be about 100 hot air balloons set up on the field, tethered to not launch. Just after sunset, they will listen to the radio, and the DJ will do a count down 3-2-1, and they will turn on their burners all at once. It lights up the center of the ballons! Ones that are special shape look especially wonderful! Once it gets to windy, or after about 90 minutes, all of the balloons come down, and 80,000 people go to their cars or line up to catch a school bus across ALameda to the old field RV park. Crowds? Lines for the bus? THey can not just go 20 MPH across the street filled with people walking and cars also on the same roads. It has improved a LOT, but still it takes time. . . I ride a bike. It needs a light because it will be dark out.

The 'old field' RV park does not require or even need reservations. Sure they would like to sell you a 14 day pass a month in advance, and give a discount for buying one. If you plan to stay put all 14 days then it might be for you. However I NEVER stayed put. I normally was out driving my camper around, or the times I showed up with a motorhome and towed a car, I would take the RV up to Santa Fe, or other places on windy days.

So imaging this. You are in a hot air balloon - wind picks up to about 15 MPH. You are thinking (like I did when I was there in 1992) How exciting, you get to see more land, and go faster! It is exciting, and landing is kinda like stepping out of a pickup going 15 MPH too! So most pilots will not launch when the winds exceed 10 MPH, because normally it will get windier later in the day. So on Tuesday if they are predicting wind tomorrow, I will leave at noon, and go to Santa Fe, or plan on going to the zoo the next day, ect.

You can not say today that Wednesday will be a no fly day. They figure that out the day before, or even in the morning. I even got all ready to launch the balloon I Was helping with, and the pilot said "NO WAY" at the last minute, we put everything back into the trailer. I was taking pictures of the other balloons launching around us. We went back to the field, and watched some others fly around. Then heard about their landings. One was dragged a dozen feet across a field.

Have fun camping! It is a LOT of fun. Go to the "Pilot Volunteer" station. They will sometimes give you a free pass to get back on the field, and sometimes offer snacks to the helpers!

Fred.

Dave5143 wrote:
Wow! You've given me some compelling reasons to stay right there at the field. Not sure how the DW would feel about dry camping. Main problem would be limiting battery usage (assuming no power hookups).

That is what a genny is for. Upgrading the battery bank would be good too & opens you to a whole new world of RVing. There are all kinds of festivals, air shows, music festivals where there is only dry camping. Install a small inverter for things like phone charging & you are good to go.

The nice thing about being set up for dry camping is that you don't have to pay the high FHU prices anymore. Instead of pricey crowded private CG you can now do the roomy & beautiful NP CGs for less than half the price.

Wow! You've given me some compelling reasons to stay right there at the field. Not sure how the DW would feel about dry camping. Main problem would be limiting battery usage (assuming no power hookups).

Veebyes is right - if you can get a spot, the Fiesta's "VIP" dry camping spots are ideally located - within a very short walk to the field for the event you came for in the first place - and they do include passes for two people throughout your stay.

If you buy daily tickets separately, you need to factor in the cost for both morning and night tickets - one ticket no longer covers you for both. The evening glow events are beautiful.

The Fiesta's own standard spots are much cheaper and further away (no tickets included), but a shuttle runs to the launch field, and they are an alternative if you didn't book early.

It's often below freezing and dark when things get decided and start getting underway (or not) on launch field. It's fun to relax in your RV with coffee before dawn and watch the local TV station that broadcasts on-the-spot reports on the status of the launch that morning. I'd really hate to schlep in the dark and cold for an hour and walk to the field only to find out the ascension is cancelled that day. The convenience of that section is definitely worth every penny.

By the way, non-Fiesta commercial RV parks as far away as Santa Fe have special higher rates for the Fiesta.

It is not just about the price. Staying away from the festival is cheaper but then there is the hassel factor. You have to get up extra early, fight the traffic, find somewhere to park, pay for it, walk walk walk, get to the field, spend money on food, watch em go, walk walk walk back to your vehicle, fight traffic again back to your money saving CG.

Or you can stay at the festival, the dry camping area really is the best at less than a mile from the launch field, ride the frequent shuttles if you want to go to the field or stay put right at your unit. Most mornings the air currents are such that the balloons launch & 10 minutes later are right overhead. Some even land in an open area right in the middle of the dry camping area.

A honey truck is on the prowl all day as is a freshwater truck. First weekend is really busy but by Monday there are plenty of open spaces. Second time we went we arrived on Monday. No reservations. Got a recently vacated prime spot.

Yeah, you can save $ by staying offsite but by the time you add all the extras plus inconvenience, have you really saved anything?

Don't know about shuttles to the festival, but I agree that Enchanted Trails is nice. We stop there twice a year because it is a Passport America park.

Directly across the highway is American RV Park newer with more amenities, also very nice with a helpful staff.

Try Enchament Trails on I40 West. It is run by a Good Sam Ambassor