Readington Balloon Festival

Has anyone ever gone to the balloon festival? Was thinking of taking the kids. We figured we would get there around 3 on Sat. Are there enough activities to keep the kids entertained for the day?

Thanks in advanced.

emaxxman July 21, 2008 9:31 pm | Link

I have gone in the past but it was my "pre-kid" days! Its important to know that they HUGE balloon lift off's are at 6am and 6pm. You would want to make sure you are there for that. Its pretty amazing!

LadyBug July 21, 2008 9:36 pm | Link

Readington hasn't finished stealing the Solberg family's property yet?

I am a vendor at the balloon festival and I can tell you that there is plenty to do for kids. Saturday night is the balloon glow...very cool. The launch of the balloons happens on Friday evening and Sunday evening. Lots of good freebies too. check out the website for the schedule.

what is the website, zoe?

happy2bhere July 23, 2008 2:52 pm | Link

oops!!!

here you go...
www.balloonfestival.com/

Approximately how far is Readington from Hackettstown?

The way the crow flies - about 45 minutes (or less). The way the balloon flies - well, pack a lunch!

John C July 23, 2008 4:21 pm | Link

It's by Raritan Valley Community College, Bridgewater area

We took our daughter last year to the Warren County Fair to see the balloons launch that they have I believe nightly...She was 3 at the time and was very scared by the loud noise that they make as they fill up( very sensitive to load noises) but once they were up she really enjoyed it. Plus you get to enjoy the animals food and rides makes for a pretty fun day and close to home too!!

Cherie July 23, 2008 6:47 pm | Link

We have made it an annual outing to attend the Readington Balloon Festival. I have two boys both ages 3 3/4 and 15 months. My older son was very amazed at the balloon ascension and enjoys it very much. We normally get there early enough to pick a spot and set up camp on the lawn in front of the fence where they inflate the balloons. They have amusement rides for kids and they also have other activities that the kids can participate in. It is a lot of fun but make sure that you pack lots of snacks and box juices since the food can be quite costly. You can easily take Mountain Avenue over Schooly Mtn and continue to take 523 until you reach Rte 22; the festival is 10 minutes from there.

I know that we enjoy it I am sure you would as well.

Jennifer July 24, 2008 3:25 pm | Link

do the balloons just go straight up and down or is there a place you can sit to watch them drift overhead without paying the 25 bucks for admission to the whole event?

cdog

We did that last night, you can either go to Hillcrest Field where there were about 100 people spread out (not crowded) or you can go past Hillcrest (the street) and turn left for Raritain C.C. where the balloons flew right over our head, BUT its hard to tell where a good spot is because they go with the wind. So the Hillcrest site was not that good because the wind took the balloons away from there. But in past years, and a good wind day it must be a good spot because of the crowd there. Last night the air was to still.