The Ultimate Visitors Guide & Travel Vlog | Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

#balloonfiesta #balloonfestival #albuquerque #albuquerquenm #newmexico #newmexicotravel #albuquerquenewmexico #newmexicotrue #placestogo #placestovisit #travelvlog

Maren makes it…through the full Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta experience.

In this week’s special edition vlog, I will take you through the entire International Balloon Fiesta experience. You will not only get to experience this unique event with me (starting with me waking up long before dawn at 3:30am!), but you will also get travel tips for planning your own visit to the fiesta. This event draws over 800,000 visitors over the 9 days of the event, so making a plan for attending is absolutely necessary. Where do you park? What is the shuttle system for remote parking from the Coronado and Cottonwood Malls? What food options are available at the park? How long is the fiesta? What happens when it rains? How to dress for the fiesta? What to bring and what not to bring? All of these questions and more will be answered.

Along the way I’ll give you some background on the actual event as well as the city of Albuquerque. Why did Albuquerque evolve as this hot air ballooning hub? How big is the city? What’s the weather like? What are the nearby Sandia mountains and how can you see them best?

You will experience aspects of traditional New Mexican culture with me from Piñon coffee to Navajo and other Native jewelry. You can actually order Pinon coffee online if you want to have part of the experience I had in this vlog from the very same coffee company I showed at the fiesta:
https://a.co/d/2qRofcT

Of course, you will also get to watch the balloon set up and launches with me as the sky fills with colorful floating globes. This will include clips of the Dawn Patrol, Krispy Kreme Morning Glow, Mass Accession, and the Special Shape Rodeo.

I had to go three times to this event to get enough footage for the making of this video. The years the footage is from are 2019 and 2022, both of which were quite special years for the event. 2019 the world record for most hot air balloons in the sky in one place at once was broken. 2022 was the 50th annual event. They started in 1972 with 13 balloons. In 2019 the Guinness world record was set with 524 balloons in the sky at once. In all those years, the event has only been fully canceled once and that was in 2020.

The footage used of the team setting up the balloon, I know I asked permission to take, but because this took me so long to edit (almost two years arghhh), I unfortunately misplaced their info. If anyone knows how to tag them or give them credit, please let me know. I would love to promote their balloon business and link it here.

This event holds a special place in my heart as it's absolutely ethereal to watch these colorful globes float through the sky. The video truly doesn't do it justice, but maybe it does inspire some of you to visit one day. Please let me know in the comments below, have you ever been here? Would you like to go visit now? Had you ever heard of this before?

As always thank you so much for watching! It means the world to me.

—xoxo Maren

Here is the link to the Official Event Website (plan your visit for this year!!):
https://balloonfiesta.com

Balloon Fiesta Museum:
https://balloonmuseum.com

If you liked this video, check out my other similar New Mexico travel videos:
   • New Mexico  

Contact Info:
Maren Harcken
Instagram: @ marenharcken
YouTube: Maren Makes It

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Music Credits (courtesy of YouTube Audio Library):
(1) "Headlands" by National Sweetheart (1st driving song)
(2) "A Truly Dazzling Dream" by National Sweetheart (2nd driving song)
(3) "Arm Wrestler" by National Sweetheart (lining up on buses)
(4) "Beyond" by Patrick Patricios (Dawn Patrol)
(5) "Construyendo en el Espacio" by Luna Cantina (getting food)
(6) "Center Isn't Holding" by National Sweetheart (balloon team set up)
(7) "Koto San" by Ofshane (start balloons)
(8) "Espeluznante" by Luna Cantina (2nd balloon song)
(9) "Trabaja Duro Juega Duro" by Luna Cantina (3rd balloon song, world record)
(10) "Glass" by Anno Domini Beats (end balloons, leaving park)