Things to Do in Los Lunas

From owner/proprietor Paula Manning Lewis's harmonic interpretations of guitars to painterly creations by Caroline C. Blaker, Chroma Studios houses a bevy of local and cultural pieces. This month, the creative hub hones in on the works of New Mexico artists and celebrates its two-year anniversary. View a list of showcased artists here to get a feel for featured talents. Chroma's collection includes jewelry, ceramics, photography, and mixed media.

A project of Feel Good Festivals, the New Mexico Cup celebrates the area's fine wines and craft beers while also supporting a worthy cause. This year's beneficiary is Tricklock Company, a theater organization dedicated to examining the human experience through poetic theater and absurdism. Festival-goers first sample adult beverages from regional wineries and craft breweries, then cast their vote for the tastiest pours. Professional and celebrity judges also weigh in on their favorites. The Albuquerque Convention Center echoes with the sounds of live music, the names of raffle winners, and the excited shouts of anyone who didn’t realize Prohibition ended 80 years ago.

Not Made in China Pottery Studio's seasoned potters mold minds with instructive, hands-on pottery classes. Stocked with all necessary clay, wheels, and tools to transform amorphous blobs into useful shapes—such as a jellyfish cage—the studio offers a host of practical classes. In approximately 2–2.5 hours, instructors help students develop techniques for creating one-of-a-kind bowls, sake pitchers, vases, and teacups during Tea for Two, The Sushi Date, or Ghost-inspired classes.

Across 7,000 square feet of open space, kids tumble, slide, and climb through Hoot’s Ultimate Party Zone’s brightly colored attractions. Bouncy castles and a soft 20-foot-high slide stretch their wobbly peaks toward the center’s towering ceiling, and a 40-foot-long obstacle course challenges runners to cross canvas bridges and pretend to jump tricycles over 40 school buses. Open-play times allow kids to drop in for bursts of energy expenditure, and weekend party packages provide balloons, pizzas, and goodie bags for birthday celebrations. Additionally, all play structures are made from strong materials, allowing adults to accompany their kids into the bouncy arenas or retire to the lounge to recline in leather chairs, watch television, and connect to the free WiFi.

The Funtastic Jumps crew brings smiles to adults and children alike with rentals of towering inflatable castles, bouncy water slides, and carnivals filled with dunk tanks and interactive games. After the team sets up the gear, kids can frolic amid colorful, themed bounce houses, or zap each other with laser-tag markers. A portable family movie night setup brings enormous screens and high-tech projectors to events, letting groups watch films or make detailed shadow puppets under the stars or at any venue. Funtastic Jumps' extensive arsenal of concessions also equips block parties or birthdays with the likes of cotton-candy machines and other vital party needs, such as chairs, tarps, and tables.

Fire and wind: that’s all it takes to fly. Hot air ballooning’s sheer simplicity sparked pilot Scott Appelman’s interest in the sport 30 years ago. “In a lot of ways, it’s the exact opposite of the way the world is today,” says the Rainbow Ryders, Inc. founder. “And I think that gives it a certain degree of romance.”

Further evidence of ballooning’s inherent romance can be found in the number of proposals and weddings that have taken place aboard Rainbow Ryders’ fleet of 19 balloons, earning the company a spot on Yahoo’s list of top five places in the nation to pop the question. Even if engagement is not on passengers’ agendas, the crew still strives to ensure a memorable expedition. Guests can join the launch crew to help inflate the balloon before takeoff, and upon landing, pilot and passengers clink glasses in a champagne toast to celebrate another successful flight.

Though whimsy and romance may prove the biggest draw, Rainbow Ryders’ untarnished safety record is what ultimately keeps the balloons hovering. Since 1982, experienced pilots have safely floated 160,000 people over the Rio Grande Valley. Pilots not only helm top-tier equipment, but carefully monitor the region’s weather patterns to ensure smooth thermal drafts and minimize hitchhiking requests from migrating geese.