It isn't too late Constantine675 to plan a visit to the balloon festival. The balloon fest is in about 9 days time (starting in Oct 1 and ending on the 9th). If you really want to go, you do need to arrange for accomodation like now...
As far as parking at the
Albuquerque Balloon Festival, you will definitely need to do the park and ride. It's so much easier than waiting in line to get into the fiesta parking lot. As far as other stuff to do, if you plan to visit with kids you could go to the Natural History Museum and Explora.