Hot Air Balloon Festival

2013 was full of weddings for us and included not only wonderful celebrations with great friends, but also the opportunity for some fun travel.

Taylor’s wedding was in New Mexico in October and with great timing- the same weekend as the International Hot Air Balloon Festival in Albuquerque! And what a fun weekend it was.

All photo credit for these shots goes to Pablo as I was still struggling to fully wake up and enjoy the skies literally full of balloons. We were up at 5am in order to make it in time for the mass ascension! For all of you who know much of a morning person I am not, and how much I love my sleep, you’ll understand the significance of me saying that this was totally worth it and I’d definitely do it again!

Tips:

1. My mom is a genius when it comes to travel, and did not disappoint when it came to making arrangements for the balloon festival. She had reserved for us to take group transportation into the actual festival which worked out perfectly. No waiting, and no traffic to deal with. Just showed up at the parking lot at a certain time and followed the group of people onto the bus to find seats. We were there at the festival in no time.

2. DRESS WARM! I was not prepared for how cold it would be, especially when leaving the hotel before dawn! I would have enjoyed the experience much more if I had packed appropriately.

3. Plan for about 2 hours total at the festival. The balloons launch in waves, so there are always new ones floating into the sky for you to check out. It all happens in one, big open field as well so you actually get to walk among in and among the balloons! Plus there’s lot of food and hot drinks available for purchase while you explore as well.