An international hot air balloon festival will take place in Israel from late September-October 2015, at two locations in the country – at Park Maayan Harod near Mount Gilboa in the Galilee, and at Park Eshkol, in the northern Negev. The festivals bring hot air balloons to Israel from around the world and offer fun and family friendly activities in some of the most beautiful parts of Israel.
International Balloon Festival 2015
The Gilboa Balloon Festival will take place on September 29-30, 2015, in Ma’ayan Harod National Park. Mount Gilboa is one of the most beautiful spots in Israel, overlooking the flat plains of the Jezreel Valley in the Lower Galilee where this festival will take place. This unique setting, a landscape of beautiful fields and reservoirs, amid a striking mountainous backdrop makes the Gilboa International Balloon Festival something really special.
The Gilboa Balloon Festival will bring hot air balloons and their pilots from around the world, as well as the Galilee region (where hot air balloon rides are a popular activity – read more about hot air balloons in Israel.) The festival will be family friendly with food stands, shows, and concerts by Israeli singers. There will be camping with more displays on the second day, before the balloons leave in the afternoon of September 30.
The Gilboa section of the balloon festival will take place on September 29, 2015 starting at 10:00 and ending in the late afternoon on September 30.
Hot Air Balloons at Park Eshkol

On the evening of October 1 and the morning of October 2, the balloons which were at Gilboa previously, will arrive at Eshkol Park in the northern Negev region (about 1 hour from Tel Aviv). The balloons will arrive the evening of October 1, and there will be a ‘glowing’ spectacular (see the image) as the sun sets over the beautiful landscape.
The following morning, from 5am, the balloons will take off at dawn in what will be a spectacular sight over the northern Negev desert landscape.