ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Another Balloon Fiesta is in the books. In addition to the weather hiccups, there were notable changes for the 53rd edition of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.
Los Ranchos held the first ever Fiesta event outside of Balloon Fiesta park with the Globito Glow event along Fourth Street.
The gas balloon races were skipped this year due to a scheduling conflict in France.
Eleven special shapes also made their debut this year, even as the future for the fan favorite “Darth Vader” balloon remains uncertain. A fundraising effort is underway to rebuild Darth Vader’s fabric. Until that happens, the 2025 Fiesta could be the sith lord’s last.
Of course, there were also weather issues. Several sessions of the Fiesta got changed or canceled due to wind or rain.
“We all knew through the weather briefings, that we all received, by way of text message, that there was a chance for, you know, some challenging, little sporty weather,” said Tom Garrity, a spokesman for the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.
Local hospitality groups told us early on that they weren’t seeing as many international visitors as usual, but they were hoping to see more in the later days of the Fiesta. Hotel owners did say they were seeing an increase in visitors from people in neighboring states like Texas, Colorado, and Arizona. We are awaiting a full report on visitors from Balloon Fiesta officials.
