A week ago Justin and I checked something off from both our bucket lists..
WE FLOATED OVER THE DESERT IN A HOT AIR BALLOON! Gah! I’ve always wanted to do this and Hot Air Expeditions gave us an amazing experience! We chose the sunrise ride and had to arrive at the check-in location by 5:00 AM. SO early right? SO worth it though. Promise! I read that the temp in the air would be about the same as on the ground, but I wore jeans anyways (shocker) and brought a jacket, just incase. To prepare for this adventure, I made sure my camera was fully charged, charged phone, sunscreen on my face, sunglasses, and water bottles.
When we arrived the parking lot was pretty full (they’re located at the Phoenix Deer Valley Airport). We signed in, filled out a form and waited for our driver, Jim. Jim was so awesome! Very funny and informative, he made the drive over to the take-off spot entertaining. When we got to our destination, we met our pilot John, and he told us a few rules and safety procedures. I wasn’t feeling nervous AT ALL, which was crazy to me. I typically get anxious and nervous, but I thankfully didn’t feel any of that! Once our balloon was filled up with air and heat, we all hopped in and off we went! Jim took pictures of everyone from the ground and told us the shots would be up on the website the next morning. Here’s ours:
The whole flight was incredible. It was peaceful, relaxing, and the views were GORGEOUS! My only complaint would be the heat. It was definitely toasty up there, especially with the propane fire. I ended up taking my jacket off, and once we were high enough, there was a slight breeze! The breeze felt AWESOME! Justin and I got lots of pics, memories we’ll have to look back on forever! The flight was probably about an hour, give or take. We had a smooth landing in the middle of the desert, and when we touched down to the ground we had breakfast waiting for us! Jim and his crew set up tables, linens, champagne, etc. It was so perfect! The food was catered by Vincent’s On Camelback and included a southwestern veggie quiche, cheese, fruit, and croissants. I loved it! After eating, we were taken back to our cars and said our good-byes. We were home by 8:30-9:00am-ish!
We’re so thankful we got to experience this balloon ride with Hot Air Expeditions and cant thank them enough for the amazing time! If you’re interested in booking your very on flight, click HERE for available times! There’s shared morning flights, sunset flights, as well as private flights! Visit them on Instagram by clicking HERE
If you have any questions, please leave me a comment! 🙂
