Save The Date

Join us October 5-13, 2024 for the 52nd Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta powered by ExxonMobil in Albuquerque, New Mexico. More information available at www.balloonfiesta.com.

If you are planning ahead to 2025, the 53^rd Balloon Fiesta is schedule to take place October 4-12, 2025.

Balloon Fiesta Insider

The numbers are in! The 2023 Balloon Fiesta had a record high 968,516 estimated guest visits at this year’s event! We welcomed a total number of 546 hot air balloons with 107 registered as special shapes with a total of 16 countries represented.



During the two week event, pilots have the option of participating in the X marks the spot competition. Albuquerque area landowners participated by picked up over 800 X-Packs to mark their land as an approved spot for balloonists to land during this year’s event. X Marks the Spot is sponsored by the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce. The winners included:

• John And Jeremy Mechenbier
• Chris Aldrige
• Iris Flechsenhaar
• Viviana Moreno
• Abigail Savage
• Debbie Harlow
• Lance Flemming
• Kelsey Culbertson
• Myia Hackett

Merchandise Update

What’s Up Wednesday is a great way to keep up to date on all things merchandise at BalloonFiestaStuff.com. Whether it’s the upcoming December Sale (Dec 9-10) with huge discounts on Balloon Fiesta merchandise, specialty items that were made for our Pilots, Crew, Sponsors, and Navigators that are now available for purchase, or the year-round updates with all the details about new merchandise, this weekly email will alert you to the sales, deadlines and even provide some insights into both Balloon Fiesta and our line of merchandise. Delivered directly to your email inbox each Wednesday morning, it’s a quick, fun, and informative read and you never know when there will be a special offer in it just for What’s Up Wednesday subscribers. Be the first to know about all things Balloon Fiesta merchandise by subscribing today to What’s Up Wednesday at https://balloonfiestastuff.com/pages/wuw-subscribe

Faces of Fiesta

Name: Stephanie Prendergast

Title: Sponsorship Director

Years with Balloon Fiesta: 9 years

Overview: My first Balloon Fiesta as a spectator was in 1982 after my family relocated to Albuquerque. We had just moved in to our new home and woke up to an amazingly colorful show flying overhead. We were in awe! After seeing my first Balloon Fiesta, I ended up volunteering at the event for the next 20 years. In 2014, I joined the event as an employee. Today, I am the Sponsorship Sales Director and oversee the sponsorship of everything from balloon sponsorships and Fiesta Tents to exhibitor/product sampling booths and official level sponsorships. I enjoy helping to bring Balloon Fiesta to our guests, sponsors and our community statewide. The event brings joy to many, and I am proud to be part of the team that creates this annual show.

Rapid fire with Stephanie:

Time your day starts during Balloon Fiesta: During the event, my day starts at 4:15 am. Our team’s outstanding volunteers also start at 4:15 am gathering at the office next to the Sponsor Hospitality area to start each day greeting our sponsors. The typical day includes checking on our sponsors and any events they might have planned for each morning or afternoon session. Our team also organizes the exhibitor and product sampling areas, located at the north and south-ends of Main Street; we make sure they are all set for each session. We coordinate with the flight operations team to confirm the Balloon Of The Day (always held by a sponsor) and check the popular “corporate row” to ensure our sponsors have everything they need to be successful. 

Favorite spot on the field to watch the balloons: The sunrise views from “West Wind” (the westernmost north/south road) provides a great view of the balloons and Sandia Mountains. Watching the hot air balloons layout, inflate and then come to life as they launch into an Albuquerque Box reminds me of the first morning I saw the balloons fly overhead in 1982.

Current favorite special shape balloon: That is a tough one to answer. We typically have 100 or more shape balloons join us each year, and I can’t say I have a favorite. I “ooh and ahh” over each one regardless of the number of times I see a special shape balloon.

Inside the Basket

We welcomed hundreds of thousands of guests to Balloon Fiesta Park this year; some event veterans, others were visiting us for the first time. It’s our hope that whether new or returning, every guest has a magical visit.

In this month’s, Inside the Basket, we get to hear from first-time Balloon Fiesta guest, Faith Taylor from Phoenix, Arizona who visited Balloon Fiesta with her college roommates.

November in Ballooning

On November 20, 1933 Thomas G.W. Settle set the altitude world record for A-8^th ballooning class. He flew to a height of 18,665 meters before landing in Akron, Ohio. This record is no longer standing.

November Photo-of-the-Month

We have received some beautiful pictures of the 51^st event, submitted through the Cindy Petrehn Memorial Photo Contest. Below is the Grand Prize winner, Richard Gomez!

Do you have a Balloon Fiesta photo that you’re proud of? Share your favorite Balloon Fiesta image on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and tag our page for a chance to be featured in next month’s newsletter!

Read all about it

Check out the latest media coverage about Balloon Fiesta

• USA Today highlights Hot air balloon flies miles away from festival, land in backyard.
• Latrobe Bulletin highlights Albuquerque’s annual hot air balloon fiesta contines to grow after its modest start 51 years ago

Sponsor Spotlight

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta thanks each and every one of our sponsors of the 51st event! It takes a village of balloon sponsors to official sponsors to help make Balloon Fiesta a success. We hope you enjoyed the exposure of your brand to guests from around the world. We look forward to working with you in 2024… as well as welcoming new sponsors! If you’d like more information on becoming as a part of the 52nd event as a sponsor, please contact Stephanie Prendergast at [email protected]

For a complete list of Balloon Fiesta sponsors, click here.