Hot Air balooning
 

Tanzania in June we are balooning over the Sarengeti would love to hear from anyone who has done this I am a little aprehensive But on the other hand I really would love to try it Can you get good pictures and how bumpy is the landing Thanks

We did the hot air ballooning in the Serengeti in early March. I will be posting the details soon. I do not think you should be apprehensive at all. They told us that they had never had an accident, We had a beautiful day, the breeze was mild, and I think the 16 people in our balloon all had a good time. The only bad part was having to get up at 4:00 in the morning, and the hour drive to the launch site.

The take off was very gentle. We loaded into the basket while it was on its side, and then as the balloon went up it lifted the basket vertical, and then up into the sky. We never went above 100 feet high, although we could have, because the pilot said the aim is to stay low enough to see game. Everyone took lots of pictures, but they are mostly just skyscapes and landscapes. The experienced pilot warned us to expect a few bumps when we landed, but they were not bad at all.

The champagne after landing, and then the very nice full English breakfast under a large acacia tree far from anywhere, were also fun.

As I have said in a trip synopsis, we enjoyed it and I am glad we did it, but I do not know if I would do it again. There was nothing wrong with it at all, but it is pretty expensive. But it was a different experience, and helped fill out our safari with something new.

If you really want to do it, do it, with no worries. Hakuna matata.

Hi Zania,
We too are going on a balloon flight in June over the Serengeti what date are you going? our balloon I believe holds 24 people I hope their not all overweight.(I am, I just hope everybody else isnt)

Each of the two balloons holds 16 people. They are the 3rd largest balloons in the world. I don't think that weight should not be a problem. They told us 28 balloons fly in the Masai Mara.

Thanks for the confidence hguy47 I am a whole stone overweight and frantically dieting

hguy47,
If the balloon is on it's side when you get in how are you positioned as you obviously can't be standing up you must be laying on top of each other or is my imagination running wild?

It's a little hard to visualize, but I'll try. There are 8 passenger compartments (plus one for the pilot), each one about 2 feet wide by 3 feet long, and about 3-4 feet high. When the basket is lying sideways, there are 4 compartments on the ground with the other 4 above those. About 10 inches from the floor of the basket, each compartment has a small "seat" extending from what will be the side nearest the ground, with the "seat" extending about halfway across the compartment.

To get in to the compartment, you grab handles on the top of the sideways compartment, and lift up one leg and then the other onto the edge of the compartment while kind of hanging from the handles. Then you "wiggle" yourself further into the compartment, ultimately resting your "bum" (you sound like you are from England) on the small seat, with your legs extending the rest of the short distance onto the floor. Then you will be lying on your back, with your knees bent and your head at about the actual top of the compartment.

It does take a little gymnastics to get in, but I'm sure the crew or captain will help you if there is a problem. And you will quickly become best friends with your compartment companion, since the two of you will essentially be lying very close beside and to some extent on top of each other. It is pretty tight.

Wow, that sounds harder than it really is. Did it make any sense at all? If only I could draw a picture. I'll try to post one soon, but it only shows the basket empty -- no chance to take pictures once your loaded, until after the basket turns upright and floats up, at which time you are allowed to stand up. Have fun.

Thanks for the info hguy47 it sounds like it could be quite a funny experience I think I get the jist of it
it was quite a clear explanation ( I think! )not sure how my hubby will get on though he's very unagile But I guess that will make it funnier.
Determined to lose my stone more than ever now I don't want to get stuck else it will be my hubby laughing
Guess the "stone" was my brit give away.

As funny as the "take-offs" are the landings are even funnier. Everybody gets back in landing position and holds on. As your guide says "This could be a little bumpy, we are going kind of fast." Everybody is laughling like little kids as you get drug along the ground with grass flying in the basketed until the pilot gets it stoppped. YOu can get pretty good pictures. Because after all you are balloning in Africa!

We ballooned in the Mara - and absolutely LOVED it last year! We are going back, but it was with 'skimping' in mind this time, so we (hubby & I) decided that due to the cost, we really shouldn't do it again this year. Three seconds later, we looked at each other and almost changed our minds - but then stuck to our guns and said, no , we'll do it again next year instead!

Budget this year aside, it was worth EVERY penny we spent though. I am afraid of heights, and I was a little aprehensive - but once you are floating above the trees, all that goes away and you just enjoy the moment - <i>because it truly is one of those moments that take your breath away </i>- well, actually the full hour does. We didn't want it to end.

A few notes on a couple of your concerns - I am 'rocks' overweight, not just stones :-)) and I was quite concerned. The pilots eyeball everyone and tell everyone which compartment you will get in. The balloons also usually always go up in pairs, so they can split the weight between the balloons. Fortuantely, for all that I am overweight, Jim (hubby) is underweight, so we were able to very nicely fit together in the compartment - the pilots will even everyone out like this - but will always try to put a couple in the same compartment of course.

The other note is that we loaded in an upright basket - both baskets were sitting upright, and we had to climb up and over the edge. No problem for everyone else in the group - they all practically bounded in - even the 70 year olds - but I had to have help. A little embarassing, but what the heck, it got the job done! I just had a little trouble hoisting my weight over the edge &amp; into the basket. Same with landing - we landed straight up, all we felt was a few gentle bumps and that was it. And, of course I was the only one that needed help getting out - althought it was easier as I stood on the seat, which is higher that the ground to sit on the 'edge'. Two guys helped me down from there to the outside &amp; off we went to the MOST delicious breakfast I had had since my days as a Boy Scout leader!

I believe that the captain discretely assesses his passengers and assigns them to compartments with some consideration of their size and agility, so the less-gymastic passengers would likely be assigned to one of the &quot;lower&quot; (i.e., resting on the ground when sideways) compartments. I'm still not quite ready to post my pictures, but I can send a couple of (poor) pictures of what the basket looks like pre-loading, if you will tell me your e-mail address.