IKEA INTERNATIONAL BALLOON FIESTA  
Ashton Court, Bristol  
 Thursday 12^th – Sunday 15^th August 2004

Sunday

The Fiesta draws to a close, and the sun sets on another fantastic year. Bring on 2005...that's what we say! 

Saturday

Sun, Fun and balloons! What more could you want? Check out our great lot of images from the Launch and 2nd Night Glow.

Friday

Another cracking day...the site was full and the balloons were great...then it rained and the balloons in the evening didn't go, boooo...fingers crossed for Sat!

Thursday:

Nowt2Do.Com were there, amongst tens of thousands as the Ikea Bristol International Balloon Fiesta light up the night sky on Thursday 12th August with a dazzling display of night glow balloons, pop music and fireworks.

Check out our full report here.

If you weren't there you can check out our photo galleries by clicking here.

The nowt2do.com team are on site throughout the weekend giving you full fiesta coverage...why not pop over and say hello if you see us?! 

The 2004 nowt2do balloon fiesta team are:

Chris Cox - Editor
Julia Causton - Sub Editor
The Shackelford Brothers - Photographic duo. 

Preview

Organisers of the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, Europe’s largest annual hot air balloon festival are promising a bumper programme of activities for this year’s event, thanks to new title sponsor IKEA Bristol.

The four-day festival takes place from Thursday 12^th to Sunday 15^th August in the beautiful rolling parkland of Ashton Court, on the edge of Bristol. It regularly attracts up to half a million people from all over the UK and abroad and offers free admission to the public.  It officially kicked off on Tuesday 10th August with a press launch...click here for all the details!

This year, the Fiesta will be bringing over some special shape balloons from America, never seen before in the UK, which will join a host of other weird and wonderful balloons at the event including Van Gough Head, Mr Beaverhead and the Scottish Piper. They will be joining the new IKEA shape, specially commissioned to celebrate the new link with the Fiesta, which is shaped like a giant heart with waving hands based on the Swedish retailer’s famous cushion.

A range of former Fiesta favourites will be making a rare re-appearance at the festival, courtesy of the Balloon Preservation Trust. These special shapes have been retired from flying but will be inflated and tethered in the main arena for crowds to enjoy over the weekend.

A new area of tranquillity and calm called ‘Heaven’ will give Fiesta-goers a chance to enjoy a different experience away from the bustle of the main arena. A partnership with international street theatre and circus production company Cirque Bijou, it promises to provide a surreal world of entertainment, a ‘festival within a festival’.

Between the balloon lifts, the main arena will welcome a range of new acts including junk percussion group Weapons of Sound, who will produce incredible sounds on a multi-coloured array of industrial waste and, for one day only, IKEA furniture. Bristol Year of Sport, the initiative which aims to encourage more people to take up sport, will be showcasing a range of activities, a Rugby tag tournament run by Bristol Shoguns and a mass aerobics session organised by Bristol Community Sport.

This extra entertainment will enhance a packed programme of firm Fiesta favourites, including mass launches of 120 hot air balloons each morning and evening from Friday to Sunday (6am and 6pm), Night Glow shows of illuminated balloons and firework spectaculars on Thursday and Saturday evenings (9.30pm) and arena displays and entertainment throughout the daytime.

A massive music stage will host a concert of chart-topping pop stars on Thursday (2-9pm), the national final of the Sennheiser Best Unsigned Artists Contest 2004 on Saturday (2 pm – 9pm) and, following the success of the Fiesta’s first live classical concert last year, the Bristol Symphonia will perform a range of popular classics on Sunday afternoon (3.30pm-5pm).

With a wide range of entertainment from arena events, aerial displays, funfairs, a huge trade show and food from around the world, the IKEA International Balloon Fiesta is an ideal trip out for the whole family.

Carl Taylor, store manager IKEA Bristol said: “This is a fantastic opportunity to be part of this great event. The Fiesta promises to be inspirational and fun for the whole family, contributing the same values as IKEA culture”.

Susan Tanner, Fiesta event director says: “IKEA’s early commitment to the event this year will allow us to plan a really special event.  We are particularly excited to have a sponsor who has such a strong reputation for innovation and creativity”.

Nowt2Do @ The Bristol Balloon Fiesta 2004

Main Page

Night Glow

Music & GWR Concert

Our Launch Flight

Photo Galleries 

Programme Highlights

A little bit of the Circus

Babe Appeal

Getting There

Staying There

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