2021 Pahrump Balloon Festival April 29-May 2, 2021

The Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce proudly announces that the annual Balloon Festival has been approved by both the Nevada Department of Business & Industry, Division of Industrial Relations and the Nye County Commissioners. The 8th Annual Pahrump Balloon Festival is set to float into town April 29-May 2, 2021, for four days of high-flying fun at its new home, Ian Deutch Memorial Park, located at 1600 Honeysuckle Street, in Pahrump, NV. Hosted by the Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce, the family-friendly festival has quickly become a local tradition and favorite, helping drive both tourism and business into the valley. For four days, the Balloon Festival creates an enchanted world of colored balloons, twilight balloon glows, and vibrant balloon-filled skies. Brisk early spring mornings in the Pahrump Valley surrounded by beautiful mountains create an otherworldly backdrop for the breathtaking majesty of our most popular event.

The Balloon Festival is a 4-day event, and the fun is scheduled to start at 4 p.m. on Thursday, and at 6 a.m. each morning the balloon teams prepare for flights. Balloons are scheduled to begin their assent into the sky at approximately 7 a.m. and residents can watch as the balloonists inflate their massive aircraft and drift up into the clouds. The vendors and the carnival will start at 4 p.m. that Thursday while the rest of the weekend they will open at 8 a.m. That Saturday and Sunday, Balloon Festival patrons will have the chance to experience the balloons themselves during the tethered balloon rides, which open at 8 a.m. The weekend festivities include: 20+ hot air balloons, “Glow Show”, tethered Hot Air Balloon rides, a carnival with fun rides for the whole family, vendors and great food, and the Saturday classic car show.

One of the most anticipated portions of the event each year is the Balloon Glow in the park, where balloon teams inflate their aircraft and set them aglow with the burners used to propel them into the air, to lively music, creating a spectacular spectacle as the enormous balloons are illuminated in the darkness of the park. The Balloon Glow is scheduled to take place at sunset on both Friday and Saturday nights. Colorful hot air balloons, car show, vendors, food, and carnival rides, it doesn’t get any better than that! 

“This is a community event,” said Jenney Sartin, CEO of the Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce, “This was the last big event before everything shut down, and we’re excited that we’re going to be the first big event for reopening.”

As a matter of information, due to criteria stipulated by the state, large gatherings are mandated to submit a large gathering safety plan. Part of the criteria includes that venues for large outdoor events be fenced so that accurate and safe crowd control can be implemented. “We have to be able to be inside a fenced venue, so that we can monitor the number of people coming in, do health checks and remind everyone to mask up and follow CDC social distancing requirements."

Additionally, in order to efficiently track the number of entrants and comply with the State’s COVID-19 safety requirements, a small gate fee will be charged as part of presale tickets through Eventbrite. With exception of the carnival rides, tickets can ONLY be purchased online through Eventbrite. You will be able to select your group time when you purchase your ticket. Eventbrite ticket purchases will begin Monday, April 12, 2021. Carnival tickets can only be purchased at the carnival on the day of attendance. This will be the first major event since events went dark over a year ago due to the pandemic, and while more flexibility is being provided, and local jurisdictional changes may occur, all large gatherings and events statewide, regardless of location, are still under the jurisdiction of the state and must follow all ongoing mandated face coverings in public spaces as well as social distancing. You must wear a mask to be admitted. 

Also, the Chamber is actively recruiting volunteers. “This will literally take a village! So much hard work went into this to be able to meet all the state’s requirements. And we are very grateful for the support we have gotten so far. But we need more than the usual number of volunteers this time, and invite all our friends and neighbors to join our efforts to make this happen,” said Sartin, “Let’s show everyone in the state what Pahrump can do when we all pull together!” Please contact the Chamber’s Event Coordinator, Donna Corey, at Donna@Pahrumpchamber.com to sign-up. All volunteers will be required to attend a training and orientation session prior to the event.