Post Travel: Balloon Festivals, Tiny Hotels, and Big Flavors

Balloon Festivals

Up, up, and away! A hot-air balloon ride is a whimsical experience any time of year, but — thanks to calmer and more predictable wind — there’s something extra magical about soaring into the wild blue yonder in autumn. Across the U.S., balloon festivals bring together a colorful kaleidoscope of food, music, family-friendly fun, and the wonder of flight.

The granddaddy of them all is the legendary Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta (balloonfiesta.com), a nine-day aerial extravaganza held October 4-12, 2025. With more than 500 rainbow-hued air vessels lifting off from a sprawling 365-acre balloon park at the foot of the Sandia Mountains, it’s the largest ballooning event in the world, with concerts, chainsaw carving competitions, skydiving performances, and popular events such as Balloon Glow and Mass Ascension.

Head west to the Great Reno Balloon Race (renoballoon.com), the world’s largest free hot-air balloon event, turning the skies above the Nevada city into a cloud carnival September 5-7, 2025. What began in 1982 with a humble fleet of 20 has, ahem, ballooned into a sky-painting spectacle at Rancho San Rafael Regional Park, just north of the city, with food trucks, kids’ crafts, music, and more.

Down south, history and high-flying entertainment collide at the Natchez Balloon Festival (natchezballoonfestival.com), held October 17-18, 2025, at the antebellum Rosalie mansion in Mississippi. Now in its 40th year, the extravaganza offers a lineup of tethered rides, balloon glows, fireworks, live music, and views of the mighty Mississippi River serving as the festival’s backdrop.

Micro Hotels

Small is big these days: Micro hotels, compact and efficiently arranged accommodations, are blooming in urban centers around the country. What they lack in space, they make up for in low rates, high efficiency, and amenities.

Check in via a mobile app or kiosk at Now Now NoHo (staynownow.com) in New York City, featuring 33-square-foot, lockable, single-occupant sleeper cabins with twin bed, free Wi-fi, communal bathrooms, and women-only floors. On the opposite coast, Marriott’s Moxy Downtown Los Angeles’s (marriott.com) well-equipped rooms might have petite footprints (standard rooms start around 180 square feet), but also come with large-hotel perks such as multiple bars, a pool with a view, and tech-centric spaces for Zoom calls and socializing.

Hot Off the Grill

The world’s first Museum of BBQ (museumofbbq.co) flamed to life in Kansas City, Missouri, in April, and it’s smokin’ with flavor, history, and interactive fun. Visitors are invited to learn about the sizzling heritage of this quintessentially American food while discovering the difference between KC, Memphis, Carolina, and Texas styles. Then dive into a bean-themed ball pit and sniff spices in the rub room before dropping by the museum store to stock up on saucy souvenirs.

This article is featured in the September/October 2025 issue of The Saturday Evening Post. Subscribe to the magazine for more art, inspiring stories, fiction, humor, and features from our archives.