To get floating presents from balloons in Animal Crossing: New Horizons (ACNH), equip the slingshot and hit the A button to shoot down the balloon. Read on to learn about balloon patterns and what presents you can get from balloons!

How to Pop Balloons (Floating Presents)

Use a Slingshot

A slingshot is required to pop balloons. It is available after completing the DIY workshop tutorial at the start of the game. Craft a Flimsy Axe to obtain materials from trees, allowing you to craft a slingshot right away.

How to Get the Slingshot

Hit the A Button and Let it Fly

To see the balloon properly, point the camera upwards with the right control stick.

Equip the slingshot and hit the A button to fire off a volley. If you're standing in the right spot, you'll be able to shoot down the balloon.

Floating Presents Can Fall and Disappear

Watch Out for Rocks, Water, and Items Below!

If you shoot down a balloon over a river, rock, or displayed furniture, the present will fall and disappear, and you will lose your chance to obtain it. Be careful to time your shot when the ground below is clear of any obstacle.

Presents You Can Get from Balloons

Present Contents Depend on the Balloon Color

Balloon Color	General Contents
Red Balloon	DIY Recipes
Blue Balloon	DIY Material
Green Balloon	Furniture Clothing
Yellow Balloon	Bells (Money)
Golden Balloon	Golden Slingshot Recipe

This is based on the contents of the balloon presents that our walkthrough team gets.

You will generally get items of a category depending on the color of the balloon. Though not always guaranteed, there is a higher rate of getting items of that category with the given balloon color.

The exception to this is the Golden Balloon, which will always give you the Golden Slingshot Recipe.

Seasonal DIY Recipes are Only Available through Balloons

During events such as Cherry-Blossom Festival, there are seasonal DIY recipes that are only available for a limited time. You will receive 1 free recipe of that series during the island-wide broadcast, but the rest of the recipes can only be obtained from balloons.

Series	Appearance Time
Spring Bamboo Series	Northern Hemisphere: February 25-May 31 Southern Hemisphere: August 25th-November 30th
Cherry-Blossom Series	Northern Hemisphere: April 1st-April 10th Southern Hemisphere: October 1st-October 10th
Summer Shell Series	Northern Hemisphere: June 1st-August 31st Southern Hemisphere: December 1st to the end of February
Tree's Bounty Series	Northern Hemisphere: September 1st-December 10th Southern Hemisphere: March 1st-June 10th
Mushroom Series	Northern Hemisphere: November 1st-November 30th Southern Hemisphere: May 1st-May 31st
Maple-Leaf Series	Northern Hemisphere: November 16th-November 25th Southern Hemisphere: May 16th-May 25th
Snowflake Series	Northern Hemisphere: December 11th-February 24th Southern Hemisphere: June 11th-August 24th
Ice (Frozen) Series	Northern Hemisphere: December 11 to February 24 Southern Hemisphere: June 11 to August 24
Festive Series	Common: December 15 to January 6

Feng Shui Effect on Balloons

Although Nintendo has yet to confirm this, we suspect Feng Shui may affect the rates of certain items in balloon presents.

Rates of Items from Balloons

Feng Shui	Furniture	Bells	Clothes	DIY Recipes	Materials
Bells	3	5	2	0	0
Items	5	1	2	0	2
Overall Luck	3	2	1	4	0

The table above is a compilation of our finding from opening each color balloon.

DIY Recipes are more difficult to collect, so we suggest raising your Overall Luck to increase the probability of getting them from balloons.

Feng Shui Color and Effect Guide

How Often Do Balloons Spawn?

Balloon Spawn Times and Patterns

Regular Balloons Spawn Every 5 Minutes

Regular balloons, which appear in colors of red, green, yellow, and blue, appear every 5 minutes in multiples of 5. For example, a balloon will spawn at 7:00, another one will appear at 7:05, then 7:10, and so on.

Balloons during events such as Bunny Day will appear more frequently, spawning each minute, and they move faster than regular balloons.

Balloon Type	Spawn Times
Normal Balloons	Every 5 minutes (Multiples of 5)
Event Balloons	Every 1 minute

Wind and Weather | Special Weather

How to Quickly Spawn and Farm Balloons

Check the wind direction. Balloons disappear when entering buildings. Check the beach every 5 minutes. Pop at least 1 balloon before entering a building. Leave events to get more normal balloons.

Ballons Float Depending on Wind Direction

The smoke is going to the right, which means the wind is blowing from the west.

Determine the direction of the wind by looking at the smoke coming out of chimneys from houses. Expect the balloons to come in from that direction.

Note that wind direction may change every time the clock strikes new hour.

Listen to the Wind

You will hear whistles of the wind when a balloon is nearby.

Floating Presents Disappear When Entering Buildings

When you enter a building, balloons floating on your island will disappear. Make sure to pop a balloon first before going inside!

Events Will Hinder the Spawn Rates of Normal Balloons

When there is an ongoing event that also spawns balloons, it will decrease the amount of normal balloons spawning. If you want to only get normal balloons, you can time-travel to get out of the event if you want to.

What to Do When Balloons Don't Come Out?

Enter a Building

If balloons are not spawning, we recommend entering a building once to reset the appearance rate of a balloon. After that, you can head to the coast of your beach where balloons usually appear.

Check if You Are Connected to Another Person

Balloons do not spawn if you are connected to another player. If you're hunting for balloons, make sure your airport's gates are closed.

Rewards for Popping Balloons

Get Nook Miles!

The more balloons you pop, the closer you are to getting more Nook Miles with the activity It's Raining Treasure!

It's Raining Treasure!
Activity Summary	Miles	Titles
Shoot down 5 balloons.	300	Easy-breezy/Slingshot Ace
Shoot down 20 balloons.	500	Atmospheric/Floaty Thing
Shoot down 50 balloons.	1000	Restless/Hunter
Shoot down 100 balloons.	2000	Flying/Paradise
Shoot down 300 balloons.	3000	Elusive/Vagabond

Nook Mileage Program Activities & Rewards List

Get the Golden Slingshot Recipe

Upon popping 300 balloons, you can now get the recipe for the Golden Slingshot.

How to Get All Golden Tools

Related Guides

All Tips & Tricks

Tips and Tricks
ACNH 100% Checklist	Daily & Weekly To-Do List
Island Designer Unlock Walkthrough	How to Raise Your Island's Star Rating
How to Kick Out Villagers	How to Get New Villagers
How to Get Specific Villagers You Want	Time Traveling Guide
How to Get Villager Photos and Posters	How Often Does a Message in a Bottle Spawn?
How to Increase Inventory Space	How to Get Presents from Balloons
Jolly Redd's Treasure Trawler	List of Haunted Art
How to Get Infinite Tarantula Island	How to Get Infinite Scorpion Island
How to Get All Fruits	Secrets and Hidden Content
What is Luck?	How to Use the Warp Pipe