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“Adventure Balloons 2011”

Written on: 03/10/2011

Received an Adventure Balloons flight voucher in summer 2009. Two plus years later I was finally able to use it!
That said, when the day came it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience from start to finish and another thing ticked off life's 'to do list'!
Having finally succeeded to get airborne I can confidently say that ballooning is certainly not an activity for those who expect to be able to ring up/go online, book, turn up, fly and go home. The whole process is so completely dependent on the prevailing weather patterns that you should expect the worst, even if to the uninformed it appears to be a 'perfectly good day' for flying. The balloon flight itself will also require you to 'muck in' and help out with both pre-flight preparations and post-flight packing up.
My experience with Adventure Balloons was fairly extreme; sixteen (16) failed attempts at flying (including one on-site cancellation) over a 2+ year period, and a change of venue on the day of the actual flight. A straw poll of others on my flight did show two 'first-time' bookers and a range of others with between 2-8 previous cancellations.
All-in-all however, a great adventure and a perfectly pitched landing to get us all to the ground safely. At all times (including the change of venue for take-off), Adventure Balloons' priorities were on passenger safety and a successful flight. Getting access to the landing field for both the support crew and return passenger transport did prove time-consuming. It was just as well that all the passengers were good-natured and accommodating of the challenges involved. Again, be prepared for logistical issues on your landing.
Taking all of the above into consideration, I would recommend Adventure Balloons to anyone who wants to experience one of life's unique experiences.
Sep 2011