Hot air balloons gift riders with views once enjoyed only by migrating birds, dragons, and human cannonballs. Partake in scenic surroundings without uncomfortable landings with today's Groupon: for $339, you get a private hot air balloon flight for two from Arizona Hot Air in Peoria (a $680 value).
Arizona Hot Air's gravity-defiant captains usher passengers across awe-inducing desert landscapes inside a multicolored balloon. An air balloon pilot slings trivia factoids from ballooning history as the ground crew prepares the afternoon's air-filled transport. Then passengers—equipped with a first-flight certificate and a precautionary jetpack—ascend into the skies for a gentle flight over North Phoenix's picturesque desert, clinking glasses with the pilot during a complimentary toast. The balloon's intimate cabin offers passengers unhindered views of the seemingly endless terrain during a personal ride, devoid of large groups of spectators or throngs of mail haulers training their carrier-pigeon flocks.