Most weeks, Craig Ranch Regional Park at 628 W. Craig Road is a city park where parking costs nothing. The City of North Las Vegas says parking there is free across several lots, and rideshare is available. That changes tomorrow. Starting Friday, Oct. 23, the park hosts two separate ticketed events on back-to-back weekends. Each has its own entry prices and its own rules. The second weekend runs into Halloween.
Each weekend works differently. The first has a $10 parking charge, and the second starts on a state holiday. The busiest day of the whole stretch is Saturday, Oct. 31, when a free city event and a paid festival share the same park.
This Weekend Comes With a Parking Fee
The Balloon Glow runs Friday, Oct. 23, and Saturday, Oct. 24, from 5 to 11 p.m. The city lists it as a third-party event. The ticket listing calls it the Las Vegas Hot Air Balloon Festival, put on by HABM/Laser Event Management. Tickets are sold through Balloon Shows USA, which lists prices from $10 to $75.
Here's what the event listing on FreshTix says to expect:
- Gates open at 5 p.m. each night
- Tethered balloon rides for $35 per person, sold onsite only, in limited numbers and weather permitting
- A DJ, festival food, craft and retail vendors, and a kids zone
- The main balloon glow and laser show at about 9 p.m., with balloon burns timed to music
- General parking for $10
- No coolers or outside food and drink
The organizer also says the balloons go up only when the wind is low enough to be safe, and that announcements are made during the event. The listing suggests bringing chairs and blankets. The main show doesn't start until about 9 p.m., so there's plenty of time for dinner first. EllaEm's Soul Food is at 775 W. Craig Road, Suite 146, on the same road as the park. The Review-Journal's Neon put it on its Oct. 2 list of North Las Vegas favorites, with oxtails, fried chicken, ribs, meatloaf and Southern sides on the menu.
Next Weekend Starts on a State Holiday
Nevada Day falls on the last Friday in October, and the Nevada Department of Taxation lists this year's closure on Oct. 30. Craig Ranch's park offices also close for Nevada Day. VIVA Taco Fest opens that evening.
The City of North Las Vegas calendar lists these hours:
| Day | Date | Festival hours | Also at the park |
|---|---|---|---|
| Friday | Oct. 30, Nevada Day | 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. | Opening night |
| Saturday | Oct. 31 | Noon to 10 p.m. | VIVA Soccer Tournament; free Trunk or Treat, 6 to 9 p.m. |
| Sunday | Nov. 1 | Noon to 8 p.m. | VIVA Soccer Tournament |
The festival's own site calls this its 11th year. General admission is $15 and works on any one festival day. Children 43 inches tall and under get in free. VIP costs $90, is for ages 21 and up, and includes front-of-stage access, a lounge with a private bar, better restrooms, separate check-in and a Casa de Agave tequila tasting.
Several parts of the weekend are booked separately from the gate ticket. VIVA's event page lists the VIVA Soccer Tournament, the VIVA Los Muertos 5K Glow Run, the 360 Carshow, the Tequila Tasting and some competitions as needing their own registration or ticket. You can buy the Tequila Tasting without VIP. It's good for one festival day, and you pick up your credentials at the Will Call booth. If you're signing up for the 5K, VIVA says shirts are guaranteed only for people who registered by Oct. 18. Later sign-ups may still be able to run, but a shirt isn't promised.
Also on the festival schedule:
- A taco eating competition
- Lucha Libre wrestling
- The Catrina Competition
- Chihuahua races and a beauty contest
- Día de los Muertos altars and memorial displays
- Carnival rides, vendors and live entertainment
VIVA says the full vendor lineup will be announced closer to the event and that the music lineup "is still coming together."
Halloween Puts Everything in One Park
Saturday, Oct. 31, is the busiest day of the stretch. Several things happen at Craig Ranch at once:
- Taco Fest runs from noon to 10 p.m., its longest day.
- The VIVA Soccer Tournament plays its first of two days.
- From 6 to 9 p.m., the City of North Las Vegas holds its free Trunk or Treat. On its Halloween events page, the city calls it "the largest Trunk‑or‑Treat in North Las Vegas," with costumes, candy, rides and a car show. The city's calendar says no registration is needed.
The festival's FAQ also lists a free "VIVA Trunk or Treat" at Craig Ranch, 6 to 9 p.m., with no registration, and calls it part of the VIVA weekend on Saturday, Oct. 31. One line of that FAQ calls the date "Friday, October 31, 2026." Oct. 31 this year is a Saturday, which matches the city's calendar and the rest of VIVA's own FAQ. The Review-Journal's Halloween guide also lists the Craig Ranch Trunk or Treat as free, 6 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 31, with carnival rides, candy and a car show.
On Halloween night, the city's free family event and a paid three-day festival share the same park. If you're going to either one, plan for festival-day traffic. The Amp alone, the park's concert area, is a 7-acre space that holds 10,000 people, according to Neon.
The Rest of the City's Calendar Stays Away From Craig Ranch
While Craig Ranch hosts the big events, the city's own Halloween programs are spread across its recreation centers. They're small, cheap or free, and none of them are at the park.
Friday, Oct. 23, the night the Balloon Glow opens:
- Spooky Splash, a Halloween pool party with a spooky movie by the pool, at SkyView Multi-Generational Center, 5 to 8 p.m. Registration is $2.
- The Rec's Spooktacular Movie Night, showing ParaNorman, at Neighborhood Recreation Center, 5 to 7 p.m. Entry is $2 with registration. Bring blankets or chairs; popcorn is provided.
Saturday, Oct. 24:
- SkyView Spooktacular Trunk or Treat, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. It's free and done long before the balloons light up.
Thursday, Oct. 29:
- Nightmare on Neighborhood Street at Neighborhood Recreation Center, 6 to 9 p.m., with spooky mazes and trunk-or-treating. Free, with registration.
The festival altars aren't the only Día de los Muertos event this fall. On Friday, Nov. 6, Neighborhood Recreation Center at 1638 N. Bruce St. holds its own celebration from 5 to 7 p.m., with a Catrina costume competition, altars and crafts. The fee is $3.
If you'd rather end a festival night somewhere quieter, North Fifth Brewing at 60 W. Mayflower Ave. is a short drive away. Neon calls it North Las Vegas' first brewery and points to its Southwestern-style beers, including the Picklas Cage Cucumber Sour.
One Park, Two Sets of Rules
Here's how the two weekends compare:
- Balloon Glow, Oct. 23–24: tickets from $10 to $75, $10 parking, no outside food or drink, rides sold onsite only, and the main show around 9 p.m.
- VIVA Taco Fest, Oct. 30–Nov. 1: $15 general admission good for one day, children 43 inches and under free, separate registration for the soccer, 5K, car show and tequila tasting, and Halloween evening shared with a free trunk-or-treat.
The city's usual free parking across several lots is what Craig Ranch offers on a normal day. For these two weekends, check each event's own page before you leave.
Robert Plummer has lived in Las Vegas for more than 50 years and has seen what busy weekends like these do to traffic on North Las Vegas streets. If you're weighing how close you'd want to live to a park that turns into a festival ground a few times a year, he's glad to talk it through with you, whether you live nearby now or are thinking about it. Robert Plummer is happy to help. Make It Happen — Contact Robert Today.
