Balloons over Waikato
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Balloons over Waikato is an annual hot air balloon festival held in Hamilton, New Zealand since 1999 by the non-profit organization Balloons over Waikato Trust. The event spans five days during autumn and attracts both local and overseas balloonists. The Festival is held primarily at , at Hamilton Lake, which gets an estimated 130,000 visitors during the festival. The highlight of the festival, the "Night glow"[1] is held at the University of Waikato where an estimated 80,000+ people attend to watch the lighting of balloons putting on a spectacular glow to music.
Events[]
Events in the festival include sunrise and sunset launches, a balloon basket glow in the city's Garden Place, the "Nightglow", a morning "Key Grab" competition where balloonists must attempt to secure a key placed on a pole in Innes Common and a Dawn Patrol where a select number of balloons inflate and lift off at dawn creating a magical glow in the sky.
Day 1: The Mass Ascension, Afternoon Flight
Day 2: Dawn Patrol, Breakfast as Dawn, Afternoon Flight
Day 3: Morning Flight, School Hop, City Burn
Day 4: Cash Grab, Nightglow
Day 5: Final Morning[citation needed]
History[]
Balloons over Waikato won the Best Not for Profit at the Westpac Business Excellence Awards in 2008.[2] In 2014, free bus services were offered for the night glow event.[1] In 2015, Balloons Over Waikato was named Best Established Community Event at the New Zealand Association of Event Professionals awards ceremony.[3] In 2017, a hot air balloon landed in the middle of a Hamilton intersection.[4] In 2019, the event celebrated its 20th birthday.[5] That same year, the City Burn event as part of Balloons Over Waikato was recorded as a summer month highlight.[6] The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic saw the Nightglow not go forward in 2020 for the first time in its 21 year history, while the Innes Common morning showcases continued with no audience allowed.[7]
See also[]
- Hot air balloon festivals
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Free buses for the Night Glow". 21 March 2014. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
- ^ "About B.O.W". Balloons Over Waikato. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
- ^ Lewis, Geoff (3 August 2015). "Balloons Over Waikato takes out top event award". Retrieved 8 October 2019.
- ^ Moorby, Caitlin (24 March 2017). "Hot air balloon lands in the middle of a Hamilton intersection". Retrieved 8 October 2019.
- ^ "Balloons over Waikato festival starts in Hamilton next week". The New Zealand Herald.
- ^ "Reports paint positive picture for Hamilton". Scoop. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
- ^ Mather, Mike (15 March 2020). "Covid-19: Nightglow snuffed out, lights flickering on other major events". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
External links[]
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Coordinates: 37°47′57″S 175°16′06″E / 37.79906°S 175.26847°E
- Hot air balloon festivals
- Tourist attractions in Hamilton, New Zealand
- Sports festivals in New Zealand
- Autumn events in New Zealand
- Festivals in Hamilton, New Zealand
- 1999 introductions
- New Zealand stubs
- Festival stubs