I heard that the best thing to do is stay in ABQ for several days to insure that you can see the lift off of the Balloons, but I doubt we'll do that. We are headed to Santa Fe for hiking and being outdoors, and I really don't want to give up so much time for the chance to see the lift off at day break. We are planning to find a place and sleep there every night.
So I am wondering what others think about getting to see this event. We are in Santa Fe form October 3-10, planning day trips to Taos and Bandolier for sure, and we could do ABQ as well, but will we be unimpressed if we don't see the sunrise liftoff? Is there anything else we should aim to see? Seems like a shame not do catch any of it since we're coming in from Boston!
Thanks.
Balloon Fiesta
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You just need to stay in ABQ for one night. Yes you need to be there well before sunrise and yes it is totally worth it. But he whole thing is over by around 9AM. We stayed in ABQ the night before and got up at 4AM and left the hotel at 5AM and wish we had left an hour earlier. Traffic is bad and by the time you park and get inside you're only there for a couple of hours. It is an awesome sight and I highly recommend it but the best viewing is before sunrise -- spectacular (driving in the dark we could see the illuminated balloons rising in the distance and it was absolutely magical). We will go back again someday and next time we will definitely go earlier.
As I already mentioned - the launch is VERY weather dependent and as such, you take a big risk in only planning to be there one morning. lisa was luck; there have been years where they don't launch for several mornings.
As lisa mentioned, the big event is done by early morning and leaves you time to drive to Santa Fe or other places equally good for hiking, exploring etc. in the ABQ area. A stay of 2 nights or 3 in ABQ area would work well and then you could head up to SF to do your day trips to Taos etc.
I am starting to be convinced to spend an overnight in ABQ....but do hey do the launch as early as October 4th? It seemed like it didn't begin until a few days later. Haven't really researched ABQ at all and everyone here ( boston) talks about SF. And it also sounds like even if I am in ABQ I could miss the launch due to weather. Do they make those decisions in the morning, the night before, when?
The first day [launch] is Oct 6th. The decision to launch the morning of the flight. A select few balloons go up in the dark [The Dawn Patrol] to check out wind speed around the field and other conditions. They report back to the field and the decision is made whether to launch or not.
While SF is nice and certainly worth spending time there, it is not the only place with spectacular outdoor adventures, hiking, culture, museums, and more.