A balloon called Lucy, with plaits, red ribbons and a colourful bow has been announced as the newest addition to the Enlighten Festival.
The balloon was specially selected because of its connection with International Women's Day on March 8, the day before the Canberra Balloon Spectacular begins on March 9.
Lucy has travelled around the globe and will feature alongside 40 other hot air balloons at the event. The balloon hails from Bristol in England, toured the Netherlands, and now lives in Montreal, Canada.
"The special shapes prove to be very popular every year and particularly those balloons that have some personality," Events ACT executive branch manager Ross Triffitt said.
"Lucy, we think will be a great addition this year and particularly with the alignment to the International Women's Day."
He said about 40,000 people attended Canberra's balloon spectacular over two weekends and noted it was one of the few locations where balloons can fly over a national capital.
"Canberra with its green spaces, is quite unique and lends itself to to one of the greatest balloon festivals in the world," Mr Triffitt said.
The balloon spectacular will be held over nine days between March 9 and 17. Like last year, the festival will take place at the Patrick White lawns, surrounded by food trucks and coffee carts.
"It's a great time for people to be in Canberra and it's certainly bringing in tourists and bringing out any Canberrans at a very early hour in the morning to enjoy the event," Mr Triffitt said.
"People will get a great kind of lively atmosphere in the morning ... we'll have pastries, crepes hot breakfasts."
He said the event injected about $2 million into Canberra's local economy in 2023, making it a significant contributor in its own right.
