Hot air balloon rides shatter the stork community's monopoly on carrying humans in baskets. Democratize the skies with this Groupon.
Choose Between Two Options
- $180 for a one-hour weekday-evening sunset flight (a $300 value)
- $195 for a one-hour flight during any available flight time, including weekends and holidays (a $325 value)
Passengers arrive at a chosen launch location, which can vary depending on the date and weather, to be briefed by the crew on safety measures before witnessing their multicoloured vessel blossom into a six-storey-tall balloon. Passengers then board the gondola and set off for the sky, the upward ascension revealing a widening landscape below as they soar to heights of up to 3,500 feet. After touching down, passengers celebrate with champagne and are granted a balloon-flight certificate to commemorate the occasion. In-flight time is approximately one hour, and the entire trip, including briefing, boarding, riding, and disembarking, may take up to three hours.
Skyward Balloons
Through the 80s and early 90s Graham Rawlinson accumulated more than a decade of experience piloting jets, hot air balloons, and ultra lights. Knowing how moving soaring through the sky can be, he opened Skyward Balloons in 1993 to share the experience with others. Today, Graham leads a team of Transport Canada–approved commercial pilots that ferry guests into the sky in kaleidoscopically coloured balloons. Leisurely sky-floats take guests 500–3,500 feet in the air, cruising over cities and the countryside for scenic champagne tours. Sightseers revel in aerial views of yawning pastures as they soar along, waving to earthbound onlookers and comparing lakes and ponds to unassuming puddles as lush treetops appear small enough to use for cleaning one's ears. The crew can accommodate corporate and group outings and are also certified to train student pilots. Their fleet of 10-storey-tall balloons can even help companies and public communication programs get the word out through airborne advertising.