A general admission ticket to the 2026 Balloon Fiesta costs $20 a person, per session. Last year it was $15.
What it costs
- Tickets: $20 a session, plus a $2.24 fee if you buy online. Kids 12 and under still get in free.
- Parking: $20 a car, cash only, every time you park, with no in-and-out.
- Two adults driving in: $64.48 a session, with tickets bought online.
- Park and ride: $32.59 for an adult bought ahead, with admission included. For one adult, that beats $42.24 for a ticket plus parking. For two adults, the bus costs 70 cents more than driving.
- All-session pass: new this year, $208.54 with the fee for all 14 sessions. It saves money once you go 10 times.
- Bad weather: if a session is canceled, your ticket works for another 2026 session.
Getting there by bus
- Buses leave from Cottonwood Mall, Coronado Center and Hoffmantown Church, plus the Intel lot in Rio Rancho on weekends only.
- Morning buses run at 4 and 5:30 a.m. Inbound service ends at 7.
- There is no park and ride Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.
- Buy ahead, because the remote lots do not sell tickets. Advance fares are $32.59 for adults, $30.52 for seniors 62 and up, and $20.17 for kids 6 to 12. Kids 5 and under ride free.
The schedule
Balloons go up at 7 a.m. every morning of the Fiesta. Gates open at 4:30 a.m. for morning sessions, and on weekends you should be there by then. Evening sessions open at 3 p.m. There are none Monday through Wednesday or on the last Sunday.
Balloons up at 7 a.m., opening day. Evening glow at 6:30 p.m., fireworks at 8.
Balloons up at 7 a.m. Balloon Glow at 6:30 p.m., fireworks at 8.
Balloons up at 7 a.m. New Mexico Day, free for residents. No evening session.
Balloons up at 7 a.m. No evening session.
Balloons up at 7 a.m., Flight of the Nations. No evening session.
Balloons up at 7 a.m., with the special shapes. Special shape glow at 6:30 p.m., fireworks at 8.
Balloons up at 7 a.m., with the special shapes. Kids' Day. Special shape glow at 6:30 p.m., fireworks at 8.
Balloons up at 7 a.m. Night Magic Glow at 6:30 p.m., Russell Dickerson at 7:30, fireworks at 9:15.
Balloons up at 7 a.m., the farewell flight. No evening session.
Source: Balloon Fiesta 2026 Schedule of Events, read Sept. 14, 2026. Morning gates open at 4:30 a.m., evening gates at 3 p.m.
A free day and a concert
- New Mexico Day: Monday, Oct. 5, is New Mexico Day. Residents with a New Mexico photo ID or a utility bill with a New Mexico address get in free at the gate. Parking still costs $20, and that day’s tickets get no rain checks.
- Russell Dickerson: he headlines Music Fiesta on Saturday, Oct. 10. The concert takes its own ticket, starting at $30 for the lawn, and you still need general admission to get into the park.
What the Fiesta is worth to New Mexico
- $216 million: the estimated economic impact of the 2024 Fiesta, from a third-party study the Fiesta published. That is the study’s estimate of the benefit to New Mexico’s economy.
- 838,337 guest visits in 2024, by the same study. Forward Analytics did the work, based on interviews with 913 adult attendees.
- About 852,000 visits in 2025, up 2 percent.
Reader comments
What do you think?
Burqueños know this city best. Add what you've seen, ask a question, or push back on the story.
Loading comments…
New here? Sign up with your email. Confirm it and you're in, no password.
Comments are closed on this story.
Comments are the commenter's own words, not the Ledger's. Comment rules