The event has grown steadily over the years and for 2026, organizers say they are ready for Monroe’s annual Balloon and Bands festival to blow up big here on June 19 and June 20.
Formerly The Monroe Balloon and Blues festival, the lineup has been broadened this year to reflect more types of music and bands but the family appeal of the event remains — and the lineup is full of activities for all ages.
“But let’s be honest, it’s the magic of the balloons and the balloon glow that is the most amazing thing in the world, and the star,” said Savanna Andrews, of the ARC of Green County’s Board of Directors. The ARC is a local charity that organizes and benefits from the event.
Toward that end, this year’s event includes 19 balloons, an increase of four over last year. Organizers expect about 20,000 to descend on Monroe for the spectacle and fun.
The annual summer event — with a few stops, starts and name changes over its now 37-year run in Monroe — is a fundraiser for ARC, which serves and promotes the rights of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the area. In addition to ARC, the festival over its run at the Fairgrounds has also supported numerous other charities, including the community-led effort to build a “pocket park” downtown in 2025.
Bands in this year’s lineup include: Dylan Doyle (4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., Friday, Band Tent), Blue Steel (7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Friday, Band Tent); Grass Attack (12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Band Tent); 5 p.m. to Nowhere (2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Band Tent); Ivy Ford (4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday); Chris O’Leary (7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Saturday, Band Tent) and Brian Fisher (9 p.m., Saturday, Band Tent).
The carnival rides return again this year, along with crafts, pony rides, tethered and non-tethered balloon rides. Along with the other scheduled balloon glows; the weekend culminates in the big balloon glow at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday night.
Admission is still only $3, with kids under 12 free; and $3 for parking. Organizers said they have tried to keep costs down for the activities to make it easier for families to attend together. For example; a tethered balloon ride is only $20 per person. Carnival rides cost $3-4 each, or — for Saturday only — $30 for an unlimited ride wristband between 1-5 p.m.
“We’ve even tried to keep the cost of the carnival rides down,” said Andrews. “There really is something to do for everyone.”
For refreshments, over 18 food-truck type vendors attended in 2025 and many of those are expected back this year. Meanwhile, the ever-popular pancake breakfast set for Saturday has sold out in recent years. (Breakfast runs from 7 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.).
Andrews, who volunteers with her 19-year-old daughter, learned to help at the festival from longtime volunteer Nick Faessler, a critical part of the dedicated team who works to coordinate the balloons, she said.
At this stage, just days before the weekend event, all that’s left to chance is the weather — and that’s not something organizers can control.
“We have been blessed in the past with good weather,” she said, unbothered by the uncertainty. “If for some reason the balloons can’t go up in the morning, well then they can go up in the evening.”
