Balloon Festival

For a change of pace we decided to head over to the PNC /Quick Check hot air balloon festival held annually at Solberg Airport in Readington, NJ. The festival features close to 100 hot air balloons , as well as hot air character balloons (similar to those you’ll find in big parades).

You have to get there early ~ 6:30a to see all the balloons lift off, as hot air balloons work best when launched in colder air such as early morning or early evening ( hot air rises and works best when the ambient air is cooler).

The sky’s were overcast so the photos don’t have that iconic colorful balloons against a deep rich blue sky. But its an interesting sight nonetheless.

You can actually ride in the balloons but its pricey about $200/per person. A better bet is to charter a small plane to fly around the airport for about $60 for up to 3 folks, they had those available as well as helicopter rides.

Also believe or not there was a 5k race at the festival and it’s pretty cool to run around the field , the weather was cool and good for running.

Outside of the balloons there were typical festival activities , rides for kids lots of vendors lots of food, and lots of trinkets for sale. Not sure if its worth the $30 price of admission especially when you have to pay an extra $10 for parking…we had fun and its a diversion …