“What can we expect when we take a flight with Adventure Balloon’s?” many of our customers ask when they call our office; and it’s not hard to find the answer with us! Our website has all the information you could need from our company history, details on our balloons, customer comments, flight videos and photographs, an explanation as to what weather conditions we need, the history of balloons and how a hot air balloon works, an FAQ and even a News facility. In fact not only will our website allow you to find all the information you need and want to know about us and ballooning, but it will also allow you to check date availability against the location you have chosen, and then book the flight‼ That’s not to say however that you cannot phone us for information and bookings, as of course we’re always happy to take your calls – 01252 844222.

So what can you expect from you flight? Let me tell you…

Well, after joining in fully with the real sense of ballooning by helping to inflate the balloon, you will of course embark upon a truly magical adventure! In fact, there really is no other experience quite like it! You’ll find there’s no sensation of movement, no sensation of rising at all, you’ll just look down and see the world dropping away, it’s quite surreal! You’ll look up and see the inside of the balloons envelope, the burners and feel the heat on your face, then look across in any direction and enjoy panoramic 360 degree views of the world around you! The fields will appear like a patchwork quilt and buildings and famous monuments will look like toys on the ground below. You’ll be flying with the birds, no movement of air, as you’ll be moving with the wind.

During your hours flight you could see heights of up to 3’000 feet! The exact height will depend on the wind however as the balloon rises and falls to find the appropriate wind path. During morning flights you’ll be lucky enough to see the world untouched by human hands, wildlife enjoying the world all to themselves. With the use of rotation vents, the pilot can rotate the balloon to provide you with a complete (and quite literal) birds-eye view, which in turns enables you to take the best possible photographs! Having said this however, the pilot will take an in flight photograph of you in the balloon which you can purchase after the flight.

After your flight and when you’re likely to be quiet speechless (and even feeling a little euphoric some have described), you can enjoy the experience to its max by seeing it through to its real end and helping your pilot to pack the balloon away. The pilot will then present you with a flight certificate which of course is followed by the mandatory (and celebratory!) glass of champagne (or orange juice if you prefer) to toast your very own magical mystery balloon tour.

It really is all that you’ve dreamed of and more and at the cost of just £89 per person, it’s a treat you might just be able to justify! Enjoy and Bon Voyage!

We couldn’t and wouldn’t ever expect you to choose to fly with Adventure Balloons unless you knew more about us. We’re not talking about taking you on a shopping trip here, this is big stuff, a flight in a giant hot air filled balloon doesn’t get more daunting for some and so it’s important that you do your research for your own peace of mind. So let us tell you a little about our background.

Adventure Balloons offers exclusive flights in and around London and the Home Counties and are proud members of Balloons Over Britain, the UK’s national ballooning network. We first took to the skies in April 1985, when at the time, few other companies offered balloon flights in the UK. As demand for our hot air balloon flights grew, by 1988 we purchased a four passenger balloon, which of course was followed by several others.

We are the largest company in the country who offer UK balloon flights, and now boast a fleet of seven hot air balloons with capacities which range from four to sixteen people! These include the following:

• Our eight passenger balloon, aptly nicknamed the “Stained Glass Window”, and felt by many to be so attractive that we have used its design for the Adventure Balloons emblem and mugs, T-shirts and other balloon flight memorabilia.
• Our two traditionally coloured 16 passenger balloons, perfect for big party groups!
• The “North Sea Flyer”, our sixteen person balloon, has another story to tell. We bought it from two millionaires who flew across the North Sea for fun! It was the first hot air balloon of this carrying capacity the Civil Aviation Authority actually allowed to fly in the UK.
• Our Toucan Travel balloon which is a new aerial promotion tool for the Toucan Travel chain of travel agencies. The balloon carries 10 people plus pilot in the latest state of the art basket designed by manufacturers Lindstrand Balloons of Oswestry.
• Let’s not forget our Happy Birthday Balloons. So many passengers buy balloon flight as a birthday gift, so we thought this would be a great idea to create balloons that say HAPPY BIRTHDAY on them, the perfect birthday surprise!

Adventure Balloons are CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) Certified and members of The British Balloon & Airship Club. For more information you can call us on 01252 844222 where you can also make bookings, alternatively you can easily book online.

At Adventure Balloons we first took to the skies in April 1985, at this time passenger Ballooning was a relatively new thing and so there weren’t many of us around! However as demand grew, so did we and it seems our reputation exceeded us! It wasn’t long before our name stood for quality ballooning, excellent customer service and a drive to please. And how true this is, we love ballooning today as much as we ever have and it’d be fair to say that we gain a lot of our appreciation of what we do from giving our customers a good time!

Now, as the largest company in the country offering UK balloon flights, we operate seven hot air balloons with capacities which range from four to sixteen people and even boast our very own HAPPY BIRTHDAY balloons!

So what do our customers say about us? You can take a look for yourself by viewing our ‘customer comment’ section on the site. We’ve taken a few of the best ones below to give you an idea.

It is easy to forget that you are suspended from a large piece of nylon held up with a few canisters of gas. Travelling across the town you can almost imagine you are in a cinema watching a film.” – Reading Chronicle

“Having promised myself a flight in a balloon by the time I reached 40, I was thrilled with the realisation of this dream. It was such a peaceful, surreal experience, made all the more fulfilling by all the people involved, the friends helping to inflate the balloon. – PK – Herts

“Hot air ballooning has to be one of the most romantic ways to fly. Few can resist the attractions, and whether you choose a morning or evening flight, the experience will be remembered for years to come!” - Surrey Advertiser

And one last thing; you have one week to go until the big day! Valentine’s Day falls on Tuesday 14^th February this year giving you just 6 full days to organise that special gift. Are you thinking a box of chocolates just won’t cut it this year? Well imagine the look on their face if you presented them with hot air ballooning vouchers! Although you’ve only a week left, you can leave this one right to the very last minute if you have a printer. You can simply book online and we’ll email you your printable vouchers immediately, or if you’d rather we gift boxed your surprise vouchers (along with a few little extras), get in touch now! You’ve just enough time to order your vouchers and your £15 gift box in time for 14^th!

So you’ve decided on Adventure Balloons as the operator to take you up on your first hot air balloon ride, but now you simply cannot decide which of the fabulous locations to opt for! Tricky one; all our locations are wonderful for their own reasons, we cover the fascinating Oxfordshire, York & Lincolnshire, fabulous Hertfordshire, you’ll see plenty in Berkshire, and plenty more in Essex Kent and Sussex, one of our favourites is North Hampshire and Surrey is simply beautiful. London is of course out of the question with this year’s London Olympics and Paralympics and also with the Queens Diamond Jubilee Celebrations. The Department of Transport have made it clear that for security reasons our flights will preclude for 2012. You can however book for 2013 is you’d like to see London from 3’000 foot in the air!

One of our favourite balloon flight paths is our South Hampshire location taking off from launch sites in Alton, Micheldever, Popham, West Meon and Winchester.

Depending on which site we take off from (which is determined by the wind direction and weather on the day of the flight), you may see the impressive Winchester Cathedral, the breathtaking rolling Hampshire countryside, the tranquil River Test and various small villages such as Laverstoke, Whitchurch, and the Candovers during the balloon ride. However, this too depends on which direction the wind is blowing. You may also see large estates such as Leckford on the River Test where Waitrose produce a lot of their food, the Mid Hants Steam Railway that runs from Alton to Alresford, and if you’re exceptionally lucky, you may even see a glider circling around Lasham airfield, or microlights flying from Popham airfield!

When flying from our South Hampshire launch sites we have to keep clear of Southampton Airport at Eastleigh, and also keep our passengers out of the Solent! So you can see why in order to provide you with a safe and enjoyable flight, the site chosen will depend entirely on the wind direction and speed on the day.

Why not visit the site where you can easily book now in any of our flight locations, you can even click here to see videos of our flights over Hampshire! However if you’re after a more personal touch, then call one of our team on 01252 844222!

Welcome back from us all at Adventure Balloons and a Happy New Year. We hope you’ve all had a wonderful Christmas and an exciting New Year. Many of us have begun the year with big plans and a sense of things to come. Many of us have been very vocal about the hard times of the previous year and are looking at 2012 as the year to break the cycle, the year for positivity and great things. And what better way to bring in 2012 that with a magical hot air balloon ride?!

Imagine rising up into the sky, the sense that the world is falling away from you, the feeling it would symbolise to you; leaving the past behind you. Once up, you’ll drift along with the wind, appreciating a 360° view of the world, from a completely different angle. You’ll look at the land and this New Year from a different perspective, with hope, positivity and a wonderful feeling of absolute calm. There’s nothing like being 3’000 foot in the air to give you perspective!

We tailor every balloon flight to the individual and always welcome the knowledge of each flyers occasion and the reason for their flight. This way we can pull out all the stops to enhance your flight, allowing you to enjoy it to the max. So when booking your flight, let us know what made you decide to fly. You could be looking for an exhilarating way to bring in the Year, a fun experience, a thrill with friends. Maybe you’re after a birthday flight with a big group of you and a party atmosphere, but on the other hand, you might be longing for a solo flight of complete peace where you can gather your thoughts and enjoy the beauty of our world. We get our thrill from seeing our customer’s enjoyment and feel a sense of achievement with every happy customer. So help us to help you get the most from your day with us.

Remember, no flight is complete without a celebratory glass of champagne, complements of us, of course!

For more information, to check date availability or to book your flight, simply visit us at www.adventureballoons.co.uk or call us on 01252 844222.

With so many balloon flights companies to choose from, what is it about Adventure Balloons that makes us so popular and why should we be your first choice? Let’s face it, if you’re booking a balloon flight that’s going to take you 3,000 foot in the air, you’ll want to check out the companies policies, track records, testimonials, reliability and more. We expect this and in fact recommend it, and are 100% confident you’ll be happy with what you find here at Adventure Balloons.  Before you browse through our site, we’ve listed in today’s article the benefits to using our company so that you can decide whether or not you’d like to visit the site or call our team.

• Fast Bookings – Not only can you call us to book your flight, but you can easily book online too where you will even be given the option to choose your voucher design. Vouchers ordered online for e-mail delivery will arrive instantly!
• Check Date Availability – Unlike many other balloon flights companies, you can check our flights schedule so that you can see how often we fly from each of our locations (Berkshire, Essex, Hampshire, Hertfordshire, Kent, Lincolnshire, London, Oxford, Surrey, Sussex and York)
• Low Prices - Book vouchers from as little as £89 – the best value balloon flight in the UK!
• Birthday Balloons – Enjoy special birthday flights in our one-of-a-kind Birthday hot air balloon which features our Adventure Balloons colours and a giant ‘HAPPY BIRTHDAY’ message!
• Great Reputation – Many Adventure Balloons customers come from personal recommendation – check out our customer testimonials to see why!
• Flexible – Adventure Balloons is also able to cater for any special requirements you may have.
• Various Capacities – We have several balloons with capacities ranging from 4-16 passengers!

Adventure Balloons became so popular and renowned for their quality of service and eagerness to please that the only way left for them to continue growing was to create the group Balloons Over Britain. Balloons Over Britain has 10 member companies each offering flights in different locations across the UK. With over 70 different launch sites across Britain, and from Adventure Balloons humble beginnings, it has to be asked…why go anywhere else? So if Adventure Balloons do not cover the location you were after, take a look over at Balloons Over Britain where you will find a member company that does.

In January this year Adventure Balloons experienced the breathtaking experience of flying a balloon during some of the most beautiful weather conditions! With January 2012 fast approaching, we can only dream of having an equally amazing experience! We flew from France through the Mont Blanc Tunnel to Mondovi in the Piemonte region of Italy a place famous for its annual balloon festival which was being held. This part of Italy produces Barolo and Asti Supmante wines, delicious truffles and quality balsamic vinegar.

As the area lies between two mountain ranges, the winds tend to be very light. Thanks to the time of year, the beautiful landscape was sprinkled in snow making the buildings in the city sparkle and shimmer, a magical look that took our breath away. We flew with up to 30 other balloonists over the town and surrounding countryside and found that the Italians are extremely welcoming with a huge fondness for the Balloon Festival. Wherever you end up landing, you can be sure that you will be welcome and you could see balloons as far as the eye can see flying low among the roof tops for all the people to see.

It really was an experience like no other; in fact on one occasion we flew past a church tower as the midday bells were ringing, far too beautiful for words. Spotted by the bell ringer, every bell in the tower began to chime in an amazing peal; we’re still not sure whether this was to warn us off or to participate in our enjoyment!  The whole area was dotted with churches, we were bound to land near one, however our inspiration came from the Cathedral or “Sanctuary” at Vicoforte near Mondovi which has the largest elliptical dome in the world, or so we were told; what a sight it was!

If you’d like to enjoy Adventure Balloons wealth of experience, we are renowned for giving an experience second to none. What gives us our job satisfaction is tailor making every passengers balloon flight to be individual, stunning and ultimately a wonderful experience, one you will never forget. Perhaps you’d like more information? Simply browse our site where you can even book online, or call us on 01252 844222.

If anyone was going to cross the English Channel in a Hot Air Balloon it had to be Adventure Balloons and my how patient we were! Being the only UK balloon flights company to possess a ‘Happy Birthday’ balloon, of course we had to choose this for the trip!

We exceedingly patiently waited on standby from the beginning of October 2010 for the first Channel Crossing by hot air balloon since 2005! But low-and-behold, October and early November simply didn’t provide the North Westerly winds required to blow us to France by the shortest route (from Dover to somewhere close to Calais). In a normal passenger flight scenario, we leave room for enough gas to get us through an approximate hour flight. Making the crossing did not entail the addition of any passengers and so we obviously had more room for gas, however a crossing with a speed or direction in excess of 2 hours would be tricky and could even result in a rather unfortunate wet dip if the fuel ran out. Obviously not wanting to take this risk, we had to wait it out until the ideal weather conditions arose.

As you can imagine, the organisation and preparation required for an event such as this is quite staggering! It was all hands on deck! Another Balloons Over Britain member company Airborne Balloons (http://www.airborneballoons.co.uk/cross_channel.php) organised the event, leaving the matter of getting the balloon ‘ship shape’ in our hands. This involved the addition of further fuel tanks without compromising on space, radios, cameras, sandwiches and of course the essential ingredient, chocolate. We also had to organise immersion suits and a self inflating 4 person life raft (just in case) which was hired from http://www.aerosafe.co.uk/index.html. To save space the life raft was attached to the outside of the basket as was one of the fuel tanks!

Our hopes were raised on Monday April 4^th when weather conditions appeared spot on; however it wasn’t until a few days later that the event went ahead. At five o’clock in the morning we arrived in the dark at Lydden Hill Motor Racing circuit for the mass ascent and an attempt on the world record for the greatest number of balloons flying the channel! Palletways sponsored the event and were very hopeful. At 6am we had our safety briefing which was shortly followed by the very much anticipated balloon take off at 7:15am. Our balloon, carrying probably the youngest person to ever fly over the channel by balloon, then flew over Dover Castle, overtook the ferry as we sped along at speeds of up to 30knots at 1,000 feet (nearly twice the speed we could safely fly passengers) and having flown over Calais Harbour we landed at Calais Airport at 8.45am, covering about 25 miles in a hour and a half!

What an achievement and what a memorable morning it was!

Back in the day, before the government regulated ballooning, Adventure Balloons began as a way to maintain Kim Hull’s hobby. With a real passion for the sport the company soon grew expanding into what it is today; the largest company in the country offering UK balloon flights.

The company first took to the skies in April 1985 and was at the time a rarity! However demand soon grew and by 1988 Adventure Balloons went on to purchase four passenger balloons, which were later followed by many others! In fact, here at Adventure Balloons we boast a fleet of seven hot air balloons each with capacities ranging from four to sixteen people! With this variety we can tailor the ride to suit your needs, whether an intimate, romantic flight, or a lively party, there will be a balloon to suit your day.

Introducing you to;

The “Stained Glass Window” – Its attractive design is used as the Adventure Balloons emblem and will also be featured on mugs, T-shirts and other balloon flight memorabilia.

The “North Sea Flyer” – Our sixteen person balloon which is no ordinary balloon for sure! We purchased this balloon from two millionaires who in fact flew across the North Sea in it for fun! The first 16 passenger balloon authorised by the Civil Aviation Authority to fly in the UK, this balloon has history!

The “Toucan Travel” – The beautiful Toucan Travel balloon is an aerial promotion tool for the Toucan Travel chain of travel agencies. The Toucan business is based in Hampshire, however the balloon will also fly in the Berkshire and Surrey areas and sometimes even London.

The “Happy Birthday Balloon” – In both a 2-4 person capacity and a 16 person capacity, you can book a balloon with HAPPY BIRTHDAY plastered all over it for your friend or loved one, or their party group!

With increasing demand, Adventure Balloons have worked closely with balloon manufacturers in order to develop new ideas which will improve both the enjoyment and the safety of passenger balloon flights. For example, our larger hot air balloons have internal partitions which not only separate the pilot and the fuel from the passengers but also ensure that passengers are in the best safety position for landing.

You can book flights with Adventure Balloons from various launch sites in Hertfordshire, Berkshire, Surrey, Oxford and London.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to fly in a hot air balloon? The chances are you have, many people dream of flying in a balloon, in fact it’s at number 7 on Britain’s most wanted to do list! It’s no surprise really; ballooning is just about the most unique and unbelievable way to fly, there’s no experience quite like it. It was surreal when it first came about and it is rather surreal now!

With Adventure Balloons it has become a long standing tradition to serve chilled champagne on our flights which only sums up the whole days experiences and ads that little bit more perfection. Can you imagine gracefully drifting over the most beautiful scenery or countryside, rolling landscapes, watching the shadow of the balloon pass the ground underneath while sipping chilled Champagne? What a treat and certainly an experience to remember for a life time.

However did you know that there is actually a reason behind the whole Champagne flight experience which dates back to the 1780’s when the first balloons flights came about?

As it happens, during one of the first successful pilot flown balloon flights, the pilots decided they would take along a nice bottle of champagne to enjoy whilst in the air. Unfortunately however the bubbly wasn’t consumed on the flight at all; in fact it wasn’t even consumed by the pilots. Instead of drinking it, they offered it as a goodwill gesture to the farmers whose field their balloon had landed in, convincing them that they were not in fact demons!

To this day the tradition still stands, and here with Adventure Balloons our crew and passengers will enjoy a champagne toast – without giving it to the farmers whose fields they have landed!