The Putrajaya International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2015 is taking place this 14 and 15 March at Monumen Alaf Baru, Precinct 2 in Putrajaya. This is also the 7th year that the pioneer hot air balloon festival has been happening here and every year, it only gets better and better. For two days, visitors will be treated to spectacular balloon races, the night glow, events and many more interesting things here.
Last year, the Putrajaya International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2014 saw a total of 200,000 visitors over the weekend here where 32% were foreigners and the balance Malaysians which came from day to night. Also at last year's event, Malaysians and foreigners managed to see some unique shaped hot air balloons in Putrajaya such at the Racing Motorbike Balloon, Ice Cream Cone Balloon and an odd shaped Taiwan Tourism balloon.
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| Racing Motorbike Hot Air Balloon at Putrajaya in 2014 |
Participating Hot Air Balloons at Putrajaya
This year, a total of 19 Hot Air Balloons are taking part from around the world. Unfortunately, there is no Darth Vader Hot air Balloon as they were present at the recent Penang Hot Air Balloon Fiesta. Previous years saw many more unique hot air balloon shapes like the Doraemon Hot Air Balloon, a Tree Balloon, A Cat Balloon, Birthday Cake Balloon and many more cute characters.
However, there are some pretty unique shaped balloons this year which include A Green Frog Hot Air Balloon from the UK, a Tourist Panda Balloon from the USA and a hot air balloon with the face of the balloonist from Holland.
These are the odd shaped ones to look out for this year. Other than that, the standard hot air balloon shapes from around the world will be here to entertain visitors from near and afar.
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| The balloons taking off for the race at Putrajaya |
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| Lord Vader arrives at Putrajaya in 2014 |
Overall, Malaysians love to attend festivals like this over the weekend and it would have been nicer if the organizers could have arranged to bring in more catchy shaped hot air balloons as they are always a hit in the day and also night.
Fancy shaped balloons are the pure pulling factor for tourist and Malaysians as they love taking photos of them and also showing the kids these unique balloons. Perhaps, next year, we will see a comeback of the other interesting shaped balloons plus new ones too.
Fancy shaped balloons are the pure pulling factor for tourist and Malaysians as they love taking photos of them and also showing the kids these unique balloons. Perhaps, next year, we will see a comeback of the other interesting shaped balloons plus new ones too.
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| Itinerary and program for Thursday and Friday |
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| Itinerary and Program for Saturday and Sunday |
• Date: 14-15 March 2015
• Venue: Monumen Alaf Baru, Presint 2, Putrajaya
• Time: 7.00 AM onwards
• Tickets: None, it is a free event. However certain areas require you to purchase tickets for tethered rides, cold inflation or helicopter rides.
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| The venue map |
For more information, please visit the official website for the Putrajaya Hot Air Balloon Fiesta. Anyone driving here, you should know that there is loads of parking found all over the venue. If you come early, you can park next to the venue,if you come later, prepare to do a little walking as the car parks are pretty much full.
As for food and drinks, there is a ton of them available at allocated places so fear not if you get hungry or thirsty. There are also many other stalls selling all sorts of souvenirs and items too.
As for food and drinks, there is a ton of them available at allocated places so fear not if you get hungry or thirsty. There are also many other stalls selling all sorts of souvenirs and items too.
I hope to see you there as I will always try to make it a point to attend events like this as it is great for tourism - local and international. Plus it is also one way of getting the country of Malaysia known to the world by using digital and social media in these kind of outdoor events. This is also part of the MyFest 2015 celebrations in Malaysia for the Year of Festivals. See you there at the Putrajaya International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2015.