This Hot Air Balloon Festival Blew My Mind! Add A BalloonFest To Your Bucket List Now!
Never Been To A Hot Air Balloon Festival? It’s Time You Get It On Your To-Do List!
The simple backstory is that I wasn’t going to go to this balloon festival. It wasn’t going to fit into my plans, or I couldn’t make it work with friends, and I didn’t want to go alone. I wasn’t even thinking of shooting a video while there.
Hi I’m Jason!
I didn’t even see my 3rd country until age 40, then I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 42…in the middle of Covid. This is where I share personal stories, deep thoughts, and travel shenanigans to encourage and empower others with a fear of travel, or of traveling with major medical conditions, to push through and live an unconventional life!
Honestly, I was concerned it would be kind of boring for a single guy to go alone. (Solo travel can suck…) Yeah, clearly I was being a negative Nancy. And clearly, I was wrong! Once you watch the balloon fest video you’ll understand!
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So I pulled the trigger at the last second on a beautiful Carolina Friday afternoon in October. I headed up to Statesville, North Carolina for the annual Carolina Balloonfest. It totally blew my mind! They had a giant crab balloon! Hell, they had two married penguin balloons too!
Things To Do At The Balloon Festival
So of course, this balloon festival wasn’t just about the balloons. There was a ton of fun stuff to keep everyone occupied for hours before, or during, the ascensions. See, balloon festivals seem to typically have 1-2 times throughout each day designated for a “mass ascension” of all of the balloons. That’s when each crew will lay them out and fire them up. Since it was Friday, there was only one ascension.
The sun was setting and there were some beautiful shots of sun-drenched and back-dropped orbs of color!
There was live music, all the fair food you could eat, and a beer garden. For the kids, there was an entire row of blow-ups, bounce houses, face painting, and other shenanigans. Truly a place where family or friends could spend quite a few hours waiting for the grand finale of balloons taking off!
A Balloon Festival Video Doesn’t Do It Justice!
Seriously, you need to get yourself out there and find your own Balloon Festival to run around like a kid at! If possible, make sure that it’s one that you can get up close and personal with the process.
I have a feeling some of the bigger ones may not allow the option, so don’t swear off the smaller ones. You can check out the Carolina Balloonfest details here on their site.
Cheers!
— Jason
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About Jason Robinson
Jason is the author of “The Beginner Traveler’s Guide” as well as the voice behind the words and the eye behind the lens for The Nomad Experiment. “Planning to travel at some point” wasn’t actually getting the job done, so nearing 40 he decided to make it a priority, nomatter how scary that was. A few years later—through the pandemic and a type 1 diabetes diagnosis at age 42—now living a life of nomadic travel, he’s speaking out to encourage others of any age, or with any serious medical diagnosis, to live an unconventional life.
Travel Planning Tips
Figure out where you are going & how are you getting there…
I suggest using at least 2 to 3 different travel search sites. Start with Skyscanner or Orbitz or Booking …or whatever aggregator site you prefer. Then when you see what airlines to use, check their respective sites for better deals or rewards flights.
Figure out where you’re going to stay…
If you’re interested in hostels, search Hostelworld or Hostelling International. For longer-term or more private digs, look at Airbnb, VRBO, colivings, or you can look for hotel rooms in the links from the search engines listed above.
Get comprehensive travel insurance, or in the least, travel medical insurance if internationally…
Especially with COVID not going anywhere, you need travel medical insurance nomatter what! Start with an insurance aggregator or with SafetyWing, World Nomads, or another. Then decide what is important to you; trip cancellation, baggage coverage, medical, or all of the above. And get a yearly evacuation plan, since you’ll have to get home after your emergency!
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