The colorful balloons will also visit Te Awamutu this year. Photo / Supplied
The colorful balloons will also visit Te Awamutu this year. Photo / Supplied
Waikato skies will soon be filled with colour as the Balloons Over Waikato festival returns under the banner Keeping it Kiwi.
After a Covid break last year, the event will head upwards without the overseas special balloons in 2021 due to international travel restrictions.
Event manager Michele Connell says this year will be a little different, but she is thrilled to still be able to deliver Waikato's favourite event to the community.
"What most people do not realise is that the huge wonderfully shaped balloons do not live in NZ, they come in from all around the world like the USA, UK and Europe, which this year is difficult to achieve.
"However, we are proud to have a strong contingent of New Zealand owned balloons, which are all beautifully coloured, that will ensure the magic of this event can carry on this year," she says.
The Balloons Over Waikato Festival will take place from March 16 until 20 this year. Photo / Jeremy Ward / www.shot360.co.nz
From Tuesday, March 16 to Saturday, March 20, a full week of action-packed ballooning and two new events is awaiting visitors and residents.
The Hamilton City Opening Fiesta kicks off on March 16, at Innes Common, Hamilton Lake, from around 7am.
As every year, the Walk-Thru Balloon will also be available for visitors to enjoy daily from March 16 until 19 at Garden Place. March 16 until 18 it will be in the CBD from 4pm until 5pm, on March 19 it will be available from 12pm until 1pm.
Also, the Resene Colourful Candy Floss Fun Tether balloon is new this year and will inflate at Innes Common each morning. Children can have a 'short lift' for a gold coin donation with all money raised going to KidsCan.
The Grassroots Trust Lift-Off will take place on March 17 from 7am at Innes Common.
On Thursday, March 18, the organisers have planned the Wel Energy Trust Muffins in the Morning from 7am, also at Innes Common.
You can enjoy an exciting morning with games, prizes and balloon lift-offs on March 19, from 7am at Innes Common at the First Credit Union Fun Friday.
For the first time, Balloons Over Waipa will come to Te Awamutu's Albert Park, after years of Cambridge hosting the event. The balloons will be there on Friday, March 19 from 5pm until 8pm.
Also on Friday, one of the highlights, the Base Basket Burn will be firing up in the Te Awa shopping centre carpark in Hamilton from 6pm until 8.15pm.
The Pilot Cash Grab Spectacular is back this year for the final day of the festival on March 20, from 7am at Innes Common.
Be amazed by the skill of the pilots as they attempt to win $1000 cash from the top of a pole.
The ZURU Nightglow will also be this year's grand finale of the Balloons Over Waikato festival. Photo / Supplied
The Balloons Over Waikato grand finale, ZURU Nightglow, will light up the University of Waikato on Saturday, March 20 from 4pm until 9pm.
The Nightglow features five hours of live entertainment on the main stage along with amusement rides, carnival games, and a huge range of food options with the Waitomo Groups Fireworks Extravaganza finishing off the 2021 festival.
