Yorkshire Balloon Fiesta

PR & Media Relations to get the Yorkshire Balloon Fiesta flying!

The Challenge

In 2022, the Yorkshire Balloon Fiesta announced that it would be the event’s final year in York before moving to a new venue in Yorkshire. Following the success of the previous year’s event, the organisers, Events by Cynosure, wanted as many people as possible to attend the weekend and drum up excitement for the event’s future.

Our solution

Having worked with the organisers for the past few years, we had experience in running the event’s PR and media relations, and we were accustomed to the challenges that could arise, including possible weather issues!

We developed a PR campaign in the run-up to the Fiesta to reach a local, regional, and national audience, issuing a series of releases announcing the line-up and weekend schedule to drum up excitement and generate ticket sales.

We also invited selected journalists, photographers and TV producers to go onboard the weekend’s first hot air balloon flight to secure exclusive coverage at the start of the Fiesta. Success required a carefully coordinated approach, mainly due to the health & safety requirements and the flights being weather dependent.

The Outcome

We secured pre and post-event coverage across local, regional, and national media outlets, including BBC, ITV and the Yorkshire Post. Footage taken from a balloon, filmed by our team in the sky, was transferred mid-flight to the ground team and featured on Look North that same evening.

We also coordinated a live broadcast from the event on BBC Radio York, which included interviews with the event organiser, John Lowery, balloonists and musical acts.

The press and social media coverage generated helped to secure a record attendance of over 60,000 visitors attending the Fiesta across the weekend and a spectacular few days of family fun!

We’re excited to be working with Events by Cynosure to announce the exciting plans for the Yorkshire Balloon Fiesta 2023.