Putrajaya Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2019

Recently I won two tickets to the Putrajaya Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2019.

The tickets were sponsored by OPPO Fans Club Malaysia. They also had a balloon at the festival.

The 2019 Putrajaya Hot Air Balloon Fiesta was the 10th. I had always wanted to go but never found my way there because of fear that the crowd would be too large, the parking and jam would be real bad etc. Those were my thoughts.

I wanted very much to bring my kids but since the next day was a back to school day and they would be having tests etc, I went with my sister, my brother in law and their Taiwanese friend instead. It was a good opportunity to show him some Malaysian sights and eat Malaysian food.

The Putrajaya International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta is open to everyone for free. However, you can purchase tickets to be at the launch pad (called the Blue Zone). At the launch pad, you can observe the pilots set up their balloons from close up. They may even oblige by letting you climb into the baskets for a photo or two.

You can purchase the Blue Zone tickets for morning or evening. For the morning tickets, you can watch the pilots set up and see the balloons take flight (RM20). There are two types of evening tickets, one that comes with a kit of night glow sticks (RM50) and the other without (RM30). We got the RM30 one.

Our tickets were the night glow tickets. What time should we go? Since we were very much afraid of the jam, we decided to arrive there at 5.30pm.

Upon arrival, we found that there weren't enough signages to point us to the Blue Zone and ticketing area but it is very straightforward. You just park your car when you arrive at the location and keep walking and asking. You will find it. It was quite a long queue to get the extra tickets and by the time we got it, it was just nice to watch the pilots set up their balloons. It was really fun and quite an experience. Kids should enjoy this very much. Even adults too.

After the balloons were up, we went for dinner. There were many stalls set up nearby at the eating area. They also provided lots of dustbins and sinks with water taps so the place was clean. There were plenty of choices and stalls.

Finally we went back to the blue zone for the night glow activities. Unfortunately, there was a strong wind blowing and they had to call off the balloons. Only the gas lights and fireworks at the end remained. We didn't stay for that.

With hindsight. in future, I would go for the morning show. In the evening show, the balloons were on parade but they did not take off but hot air balloons belong in the sky don't you think? We would definitely want to experience the excitement of watching them take off one by one after the set up.

Another note. There were 20 balloons but we managed to see only half of them because the zone cannot fit all of them at once. The other half was being set up half way when the winds arrived so too bad, we didn't get to see them.

It is worthwhile to get the tickets as the launch area is less crowded and you can watch the activities from very close up.

Future plan: Plan to arrive around 6.30am to avoid jam. The parking is not so bad when you plan to arrive early. There is ample parking. Purchase tickets online to avoid queue.

Enjoy watching the balloons set up and take off, followed by brunch. That is half day of fun for the family.