Friday 9 – Sunday 11 August
The iconic Bristol International Balloon Fiesta is a free to attend, three-day event that celebrates the city and its heritage links to the remarkable world of hot air ballooning.
For the 9-11 August, the rolling hills of Ashton Court on the outskirts of the city of Bristol are home to a temporary playground of entertainment, and a stage set ready and waiting for over 100 hot air balloons to take flight.
At the heart of the experience of this unique event, is a game of chance – will these feats of engineering take flight. In the chance that they don’t fly the Fiesta has refocussed attention to introduce multiple opportunities for visitors to still experience the magic of ballooning regardless.
In the chance that they do, visitors are given a spectacle like no other. The compact central arena becomes awash with a rainbow of colour at dawn for a peaceful morning song to awaken the city, and at dusk to mark the closing of the day and the start of evening celebrations.
On Friday and Saturday, visitors stay beyond nightfall to experience the event’s infamous Night Glows. After dark, dozens of hot air balloons inflate, and use their burners to glow in time to a soundtrack of inspiring music to bring the party atmosphere and bring the crowd of spectators to their feet.
Monday 5 August – Thursday 8 August
From Monday 5 August to Thursday 9 August, fleets of hot air balloons will pop up in local communities across Bristol with a series of local launches, weather permitting.
Bristol residents are invited to suggest launch sites for these community ascents and nominate their local hero to take to the skies with one of the participating balloon teams.
Nomination forms are now live. Please visit our community launches page to nominate your community space, and, or local heroes. The deadline for nominations is Friday 5 July.
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Tuesday 6 August – Sunday 11 August
For 2024, the Fiesta will host the British National Hot Air Balloon Championships which will take place from Tuesday 6 August to Sunday 11 August across the city and wider region.
Approximately 15 teams will compete, twice daily, tasked with completing a series of set challenges, including flying over the Fiesta site, and dropping markers into Ashton Court Estate on the mornings of Friday 9, Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 August.
Unlike the traditional round and special shaped hot air balloons seen at the Fiesta, competition balloons are smaller, slimmer, and more agile.
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