The state’s favorite summer event won’t light up the skies next year. The New Jersey Lottery Festival of Ballooning team has pulled the plug on their 2025 plans. Financial challenges and logistical problems have grounded this popular event at Solberg Airport.

Last summer’s 40th anniversary brought out huge crowds.155,000 people watched in awe as nearly 100 balloons took to the sky. Live music played while food vendors kept busy and air shows captivated the crowds below.

The fallout from 2020 brought heavy financial strain. Howard Freeman, The Executive Producer Of The Event, explained: “We have seen an exponential increase in operational costs. Inflation, supply chain interruptions, vendors who went out of business during the pandemic, competition for scarce resources from festivals worldwide, along drastically increased fees set by musical talent, make it extremely difficult to present a quality event in its current form without passing rising costs onto our guests.”

Starting small in 1983 with just 10 balloons at a Route 78 truck stop, the festival took off. The year 2000 marked a big change when The Beach Boys launched an era of big-name performances. Later, fans jammed to The Doobie Brothers, Hall & Oates, and KC & the Sunshine Band.

Weather challenges and tough competition for artists put pressure on the small crew running the event. They’ve kept their promise to keep tickets affordable while delivering great entertainment.

The Children’s Miracle Network got help from the festival’s success through the years. While 2024 is canceled, organizers hope to bring the event back in 2025.