In Pictures: Blue skies as Bristol balloon fiesta gets up, up and away

Dozens of hot air balloons filled the skies above Bristol on Friday for the city’s annual fiesta. The mass ascent for the 48th Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, one of the largest in Europe, took place at the Grade I-listed Ashton Court Estate.

Hot air balloons bobble on the ground at Ashton Court Estate, Bristol, as balloon crews prepare for the 2026 Bristol Balloon Fiesta (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

Crews push hot air balloons into position before lift-off (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

Balloons of all shapes and sizes take part in the fiesta (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

The Bristol International Balloon Fiesta is an annual free festival of hot air ballooning (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

The free, three-day event that began on Friday celebrates the city of Bristol and its links to hot air ballooning.

Imaginative designs are a trademark of the festival (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

A pilot checks internal rigging inside one colourful balloon (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

An alien hot air balloon floats high above the ground (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

Artist Emily Powell took to the skies to paint from a hot air balloon basket (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

A hot air balloon pilot makes his final checks (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

Pilots prepare the hot air balloon burners (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

Crews check the crown of one patriotic hot air balloon (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall

A hot air balloon in the sky over Bristol’s Clifton Suspension Bridge (Ben Birchall/PA)PA Wire/PA Images - Ben Birchall