New York 42 Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta 2026
Balloon Fiesta Park, Albuquerque · Organized by Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
Sessions and tickets Add to calendar
- Dates
- Oct 3, 2026 – Oct 11, 2026
- Format
- In person
- Where
- Balloon Fiesta Park, Albuquerque
- Tickets
- $22.24
- Organizer
- Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
The unit of this festival is not the day. It is the session — all of a morning's activities, or all of an evening's — and every ticket, every schedule and every weather cancellation is written in those terms. The 2026 Balloon Fiesta runs nine days, Saturday October 3 through Sunday October 11, at Balloon Fiesta Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
What a Balloon Fiesta ticket costs
General admission is $22.24 per person, per session — $20 plus a $2.24 fee — and children 12 and under are free. One ticket is good for one session on any day, which is worth reading twice: a morning mass ascension and that same evening's glow are two tickets, not one.
Weather is part of the deal
Balloons do not fly in bad air, and the organizers say so in writing: this is a weather-dependent event, tickets are nonrefundable, and if a session is canceled it is rain-checked. A rain-checked ticket reactivates as a general admission ticket valid for any remaining session in the same year, and the park's other amenities stay open for the rest of that session regardless. Session status goes out on the official app and the Fiesta's own social channels.
Buy from one place
The Fiesta states that it authorizes no third-party vendors to sell its tickets online, and that only tickets sold through balloonfiesta.com are valid. Fees are added at checkout per ticket.
Music Fiesta
Music Fiesta, presented by New Mexico Honda Dealers, returns Saturday, October 10 — the second Saturday of the run, and a separate ticket from general admission. The ticket menu also carries Park & Ride, Gondola Club, Chasers' Club, glamping, Camp 505, a concierge program and the Fiesta Sky Box.
Getting to Balloon Fiesta Park
Balloon Fiesta Park sits off Alameda Boulevard on the north side of Albuquerque. The Fiesta's own Park & Ride is the option it points at first, and for a morning session that starts before dawn it is the one that decides whether you see the ascension or the parking lot.
Two things decide whether this trip works. The first is that a ticket buys a session, not a day, so the real question is which half of the day you are coming for — and the Fiesta's own first suggestion for getting there is Park & Ride rather than driving in, which for an early start is the difference between seeing the field and parking beside it. The second is the rain-check rule, which is quietly generous and quietly restrictive at once: a canceled session gives you another session that year, so a ticket bought for the final Sunday has nothing left to reactivate into. Buying early-run sessions leaves the back half of the nine days as insurance; buying the last morning leaves none.
Balloon Fiesta Park on the map
Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta 2026: questions
When is the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta 2026?
Saturday, October 3 through Sunday, October 11, 2026 — nine days at Balloon Fiesta Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
How much are tickets?
General admission is $22.24 per person, per session: $20 plus a $2.24 fee. Children 12 and under are free. Additional fees are added at checkout per ticket.
What counts as a session?
One session is all of a morning's activities or all of an evening's activities. A general admission ticket is good for one session on any day of the event.
What happens if the balloons can't fly?
Tickets are nonrefundable, but a canceled session is rain-checked: the ticket reactivates as a general admission ticket valid for any remaining session that year, and guests can still use the park's amenities for the rest of the session. Session status is posted on the official app and the Fiesta's social channels.
Where should I buy tickets?
Only through balloonfiesta.com. The organizers state that they authorize no third-party vendors to sell tickets online and cannot vouch for price, legitimacy or validity elsewhere.
When is Music Fiesta?
Saturday, October 10, 2026, presented by New Mexico Honda Dealers. It is sold separately from general admission.
Source: Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta checked against the source
