ORGANISERS of the first ever Balloon Fiesta held on the outskirts of Chester in the summer have announced it will return next year.

The event took place earlier this month at Bolesworth Castle, near Tattenhall and was hailed a success.

Now it has been announced that the Cheshire Balloon Fiesta will return next year for August bank holiday. 

This year’s Fiesta, which was its first year in Cheshire, proved to be a resounding success with more than 15,000 tickets sold.

Visitors were wowed by the stunning mass balloon launches of more than 30 hot air balloons, which included shaped animal balloons and night glows which took place against the beautiful backdrop of Bolesworth Castle.

Next year, the event will be extended to four days from August 23-26, 2024.

Early bird tickets are already available to be purchased online through the Cheshire Balloon Fiesta website.

Visitors are encouraged to purchase early bird tickets quickly as they are limited.

Once again, there will be a star-studded line-up of musical acts and entertainers and a whole host of family-friendly activities.

This year’s acts included Gabrielle, Disco Classical, Sister Sledge, Rak-Su, Phats & Small, Scouting for Girls, Ministry of Sound, The Vamps, Megan McKenna, Boyzlife, Chris Moyles 90s Hangover and Heather Small and family-friendly activities which included Cosmic Kids Yoga, Raver Tots Big Top, Roller Rink, ParentFolk, Angel and Butterflies craft tents and character meet and greets with Bluey and Paw Patrol.

Camping will again be available onsite for the 2024 Fiesta so visitors can stay for entire four days, weekend and day tickets are also available.

Balloon Fiesta Organiser, John Lowery, said: “We are thrilled to be returning to Bolesworth Castle for the 2024 Cheshire Balloon Fiesta over the August bank holiday weekend.

"We were delighted with the incredible reception we received for our first ever year in Cheshire and with the amazing feedback that we received from visitors, so we can’t wait to return.

"Next year’s event has been extended to four days so visitors will be able to enjoy an additional day of family-friendly entertainment.

"We are looking forward to continuing to work with the Bolesworth team as our Cheshire partners and making next year’s Fiesta even bigger and better! We encourage visitors to purchase tickets soon so they can take advantage of our early bird prices.”

Nina Barbour, owner and managing director of Bolesworth Castle, said: “We are delighted that the Cheshire Balloon Fiesta will be returning to Bolesworth next year.

"It was fantastic to see so many visitors from all over the UK enjoying this year’s Fiesta, it’s star-studded line-up of entertainment and of course, the stunning displays of hot air balloons over the castle."