This year, the Cherry Blossom Festival’s Tunes and Balloons event will occur on Saturday, September 12, 2015 on the campus of Middle Georgia State College. After consultation with various Festival event partners, the decision was made to shift the event from a springtime occurrence during the Cherry Blossom Festival to a late summer date. Factors for shifting the scheduling of the event include conflicts with other Cherry Blossom Festival events, suitable weather conditions, event partner scheduling, and the goal to increase year-round awareness of the Pinkest Party on Earth. The 2015 Tunes and Balloons event will feature an increase in programming that will delight guests.

"Middle Georgia State has been honored to partner with the Cherry Blossom Festival to host Tunes and Balloons for the past several years," said Dr. Christopher Blake, president of Middle Georgia State College. "This event brings thousands of people to our beautiful Macon Campus. We consider it a golden opportunity to practice community engagement, one of Middle Georgia State's core values. We welcome the chance to continue hosting this popular event as it moves from the spring to the fall, and we are confident it will remain one of the region’s top entertainment draws."

Over the last few years, the Tunes and Balloons event has gone through multiple transformations, moving from its longtime location at Wesleyan College to one-year stints at Macon Downtown Airport and the Shriners Park, before eventually settling at Macon State College, now known as Middle Georgia State College. Hot air balloons and cherry blossoms are synonymous in Macon and the Cherry Blossom Festival organization takes pride in working with partners to preserve the event legacy, all the while improving the guest experience.

"On behalf of the entire Cherry Blossom Festival organization, we are honored and privileged to have such a terrific partner in Middle Georgia State College,” Jake Ferro, President of the Festival, commented. “Without their passionate and dedicated support, the Tunes and Balloons event would not be possible, and we look forward to once again working closely with MGSC for a first-class, family-friendly event.”

More information on the 2015 Tunes & Balloon event will be made public in the coming weeks. In the meantime, we encourage guests to visit CherryBlossom.com to view a full schedule of all the events occurring during the 33^rd annual Cherry Blossom Festival, March 19 – April 4, 2015.