Overview The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is nine days of hot air balloons launching at dawn from Balloon Fiesta Park in Albuquerque, and in 2025 it registered 537 balloons, 103 of them special shapes. At a mass ascension the whole field goes up in two waves, and the Albuquerque Box, low winds from the north under higher winds from the south, lets pilots steer by changing altitude. Fourteen sessions run from Dawn Patrol and morning ascensions to evening balloon glows, when the balloons stay on the ground and light up together, and AfterGlow fireworks. The Fiesta calls itself the largest hot air balloon event in the world, and ExxonMobil presented the 54th edition in 2026, themed on Route 66's centennial. On site The launch field is the center of the park. Main Street runs about half a mile along the field's east side with exhibitors, a stage and sampling booths facing the concession stands. The Corporate Village sits at the south end of the field, and the Fiesta Deck, 6,000 square feet and partly covered, looks out over it. The program adds a Special Shape Rodeo, Flight of the Nations, Night Magic and Twilight Twinkle glows, flying competitions, chainsaw carvers and radio-controlled balloons. The Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum, opened in 2005, stands on the grounds. Audience Most guests travel in. In the Fiesta's 2024 study, 73% of guest visits came from out of state, from 45 states and 16 countries, 58% of guests came to Albuquerque only for the Fiesta and 61% paid for a place to stay. In 2025 most visitors were attending for the first time. Track record The Fiesta began on April 8, 1972, with 13 balloons in the parking lot of the Coronado Center mall for KOB radio's 50th birthday, and 20,000 people came to watch. The 2024 edition was measured at $216.33 million in economic benefit to New Mexico. In 2025 participants came from 41 states and 12 countries, and 138 media organizations covered it. Brand presence Sponsors can own a session and theme it, from a weekend mass ascension or Dawn Patrol to the Special Shape Glowdeo and the AfterGlow fireworks. The most popular buy is a custom banner on a balloon envelope, large enough for guests on the ground and the media to read, and it comes with a balloon ride for two; the Fiesta will match a sponsor with a pilot. Exhibit space on Main Street is sold by the square foot, sampling booths hand out product but may not sell it, and hospitality runs from 40-by-20 tents in the Corporate Village to the Fiesta Deck by session.