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Adirondack Hot Air Balloon Festival | Queensbury, NY | Sept. 17-20, 2026


  • Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport 443 Queensbury Avenue New York, 12804 United States (map)

Adirondack Balloon Festival Fills the September Sky With Color

Hot air balloons taking flight at the Adirondack Balloon Festival in Glens Falls.

Adirondack Balloon Festival in Queensbury, NY.

Few Adirondack events make an entrance quite like this one. From September 17–20, 2026, the Adirondack Balloon Festival returns to Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport in Queensbury, bringing more than 60 hot air balloons, special-shape balloons, live music, food, crafts and family activities to the southern Adirondacks. Now in its 53rd year, the four-day hot air balloon festival also begins with an opening-night celebration at Crandall Park in nearby Glens Falls.

The spectacle is difficult to oversell. At launch time, burners roar, enormous envelopes rise from the field and suddenly the Adirondack horizon is dotted with color. Add the first hints of fall foliage, cool September air and mountain views, and even committed late sleepers may reconsider their relationship with 5 am.

Food vendors will be on hand throughout the weekend, with festival favorites including pizza, barbecue and other portable fare suited to wandering the airport grounds while keeping an eye on the sky. The Zonta Craft Fair adds more than 50 vendors to the mix, alongside kids’ activities, games and live music.

Want more worth-the-drive Adirondack finds? In Good Taste delivers a weekly guide to Adirondack food, stories and events.

Hot air balloons take over the Adirondack sky.

Opening night unfolds Thursday, September 17, at Crandall Park in Glens Falls, where festivities begin at 4 pm. Opening ceremonies and family activities start at 5 pm, followed by a scheduled launch of about 15 balloons from 5:30–6:15 pm. A Moonglow is planned for approximately 7:45 pm, with music continuing until 9 pm.

Aerial view of Adirondack Balloon Festival at Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport in Queensbury, NY.

A spectacular sight in the southern Adirondacks.

The action shifts Friday to Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport in Queensbury. Gates open at 3 pm, followed by music and a scheduled mass ascension from 5–6:15 pm featuring dozens of balloons, including special shapes.

Saturday is the festival’s marathon day. Gates open at 5 am, with a mass ascension scheduled for 6:30 am. Activities resume through the afternoon, followed by another balloon flight from 5–6:15 pm and the annual Airport Moonglow at approximately 7:45 pm.

Sunday offers one final early-morning spectacle: gates open at 5 am, with the festival’s last balloon flight scheduled for 6:30 am. Gates close at 10 am.

All balloon launches and Moonglows are wind and weather permitting.

Experience Adirondack Balloon Festival.

The Adirondack Balloon Festival transforms Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport in Queensbury from an open airfield into one of the Lake George region’s most colorful September gathering places. This video captures the scale, atmosphere and spectacle of hot air balloons rising over the southern Adirondacks.

Hot air balloons fill the sky during the Adirondack Balloon Festival at Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport in Queensbury, near Lake George and Glens Falls.

The annual Queensbury balloon festival has become a signature fall event for visitors exploring Lake George and the southern Adirondacks.

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The Moonglow earns its marquee billing. Balloons remain tethered on the ground while their burners illuminate the envelopes from within, creating giant glowing lanterns against the September night.

Bring a flashlight for navigating the grounds afterward—and remember that the Moonglow, like the launches, depends on cooperative weather.

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For the classic Adirondack Balloon Festival experience, arrive well before a scheduled launch rather than treating the published flight time as an arrival time. Traffic can back up significantly from 5–9 am and 3–8 pm, and premium parking can sell out.

Dress in layers, wear sturdy shoes and check the official festival website or Facebook page before leaving. Ballooning is exceptionally weather-dependent, and schedules can change.

Dogs, drones, remote-control aircraft and smoking are not permitted. General admission and general parking are free.

Why this Lake George-area tradition endures.

For more than half a century, balloonists from across the United States and beyond have gathered here each fall. The setting helps explain the festival’s staying power: Lake George lies just to the north, Glens Falls just to the south, and the Adirondack foothills provide the backdrop.

It is part aviation, part outdoor festival and part fleeting spectacle. No two launches look quite alike—and sometimes the weather decides there will be no launch at all. That uncertainty is part of ballooning, which makes the moment when dozens actually lift into an Adirondack sunrise all the more memorable.

Hot air balloons in the Adirondacks at dawn.

We ride at dawn. Early morning mass ascension of balloons.

For current schedules, parking routes, balloon ride information and weather updates, visitors should check the official Adirondack Balloon Festival website and Facebook page before traveling.

And for more hand-picked reasons to explore the Park, subscribe to In Good Taste, ADK Taste’s weekly guide to Adirondack food, stories and events.

Adirondack Balloon Festival FAQ.

When is the 2026 Adirondack Balloon Festival?

The festival runs September 17–20, 2026. Opening night takes place Thursday at Crandall Park in Glens Falls, with Friday through Sunday activities centered at Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport in Queensbury.

Is the Adirondack Balloon Festival free?

Yes. Admission to the festival and general parking are free. Premium parking may be available for purchase and can sell out.

When is the best time to see the hot air balloons?

Balloon launches are scheduled around sunrise and late afternoon or early evening, when conditions are typically more favorable. Saturday and Sunday morning launches are scheduled for 6:30 am. Arrive early and always verify conditions before traveling.

What is the Adirondack Balloon Festival Moonglow?

A Moonglow is an evening display in which inflated, tethered balloons remain on the ground while their burners illuminate them from within. The Airport Moonglow is scheduled for Saturday at approximately 7:45 pm, weather permitting.

Can visitors take hot air balloon rides at the festival?

The festival does not book balloon rides directly. Individual pilots may offer rides independently, with availability and pricing determined by the pilot. Check the official festival website for current information.

Are dogs allowed at the Adirondack Balloon Festival?

No. Dogs are not permitted at the festival for the safety of animals and visitors. Drones and remote-control aircraft are also prohibited.


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