Has anyone done the balloon ride over Bagan? Is it easier to book in Myanmar or would you suggest booking in advance. Advice on cost?

Did not see any balloons over Bagan in Apr 2004. I'd think it would be better to wait until you get to Myanmar. Make certain your travel insurance covers you for this type of stuff. I wanted to do this in Cambodia and my very sensible husband reminded me of all the balloon accidents in the world. I'm a fraidy cat! Good luck!

hi there,
depends on how long You wanna stay in Bagan. Normaly I would say to book in Bagan, but if You have only one or two days there it could be hard to get a ride (even in high season when a lot of groups coming to take a ride). But now they have 4 ballons, perhaps there is a better chance. Prices are about 280 - 300 US $ pp. Lyndie perhaps did not see them for they starting very early, they cant go up when it is getting hot.
Have fun
Gar

I would book it now rather than waiting. I'm going in December and wanted to take the Pandaw 1947 from Mandalay to Bagan. On two of the dates that would have worked for me they are already sold out.

Sfsoma: 7 Aug 05

We booked our balloon flight 90 days in advance for $250.00 each. Our departure and pre-flight info, coffee/tea,danish scheduled for 4 AM. After flight champaign and fruit included. All arranged by our incomperable guide Kn-ygn (AKA Joe) E Mail [email protected]. We last contacted him in Jan 05. He's the best!!!

We just did the BALLOONS OVER BAGAN on Saturday, October 22, 2005. It was great! You take off in the middle of the temples and fly over them. We were again lucky as our ballon was brand new on its maiden flight.

The pilots are all English and have Myanmar crews. The balloons fly 7 months per year and the crews still get paid for 12 months. Therefore they have very little crew turnover.

You start early in the morning during October. They only have limited seating on the three balloons. My recommendation would be to book as early as you can.

When i was there in Feb 2005 they were launching at sunset. It was too costly for my budget, but we have some spectacular photos of the ballons floating over the temples with the sun setting in the background. (We were up on top of one of the temples for sunset...the perfect vantage point.)

We did the early morning balloon trip a couple of weeks ago on Oct 29 and it was spectacular. The price was part of a tour booked through Myanmar Travel Ltd. We were really lucky. The balloons had not gone up the previous three mornings because they couldn't get the equipment out in the rain, and also could not go the following day for the same reason. It was one of the highlights of our trip.