For our 20th wedding anniversary we wanted something romantic and unforgettable. This hot air…read moreballoon ride was the perfect thing. (I try not to overuse the word "perfect" but my goodness, in this instance, other words fail.) Early yesterday morning, we met up in a designated parking lot where my husband and I got in the truck with pilot Liana and her ground woman/daughter, Nicole, for the rest of the drive to the launch site. It's a multi generational family business; we absolutely loved the dynamic between these two. They are a delight! ... As Liana started to go over some instructions, I got butterflies realizing this is actually gonna happen! (The website explains that a significant percentage of flights are canceled due to unsuitable weather conditions, but yesterday was, well, PERFECT.) We arrived at an open field where Liana and Nicole set up a balloon called "Renaissance." It looked enormous to us but apparently it's their smallest balloon, mostly reserved for private flights like ours. We got to help a bit which was SO COOL getting to be hands on with some of it. Takeoff was absolutely smooth and beautiful. Anyone fearing heights and/or motion sickness take it from me - I experience both in every day life and neither sensation at any point on this hot air balloon flight. It's a weird disconnect, Liana is good at explaining it, but I was perfectly at ease with the heights the entire time, and never nauseous. If either of those things are holding you back don't let them! You will love being in the basket of the hot air balloon and you will feel so proud of yourself for doing it! The ride itself is almost impossible to describe. Breathtaking views of fog resting above the winding river, the sun rising over the mountains, looking down on the backs of high soaring birds, all the neighborhoods that seem like toys from that height, tiny cars moving along ribbons of highway , ... so much natural beauty it was quite overwhelming to take it all in. A highlight was when Liana brought the balloon down for a "splash and dash", letting the bottom of the basket kiss the top of the water. Our balloon cast a rainbow reflection in the water and a heart shaped shadow on the trees. GUYS!! What could be more perfectly romantic than that!? Nicole met us w the truck at the landing site and was on the ground guiding the balloon with a tether as we came in. We were warned about a potential bumpy landing but it was so gentle and quiet, like a butterfly alighting on a twig. While the balloon was deflating on the lawn, a bald eagle flew over us, as if to tip it's wing to a perfect morning in the skies. Once Renaissance was rolled up and basket & balloon put away in the truck, we headed back to the parking lot for a post-flight toast with nonalcoholic bubbly. Everything about yesterday was even more wonderful than I imagined preflight. I highly recommend this experience and specifically this company and crew to anyone interested in hot air ballooning.

Liana and team made our July 3rd sunrise hot air balloon ride a fantastic experience. The night…read morebefore they have a 8:30PM decision on if the weather looks like it will co-operate. They will text you (or you can contact them) to determine the tentative launch location. We were lucky and the launch was at our hotel (Boars Head Resort)...which made it easy in the early morning so that we did not have to drive to the event. One person in our private group doesn't love heights but had no issues on this trip because Liana did a wonderful job controlling the balloon. Everyone commented how smooth the take off and landing went...it was impressive. We enjoyed smooth sailing over the countryside of Charlottesville. Lots of photo opportunities! We landed in our target area (farm field) and the crew quickly packed up the balloon in the company truck. We were driven back to the hotel in the truck and enjoyed a sparkling grape juice toast (and learned a bit of history on the post-flight toast). I would highly recommend this company to check hot air balloon ride off your bucket list.

Good service and fun event. The people were very friendly. Professionally operated. Fair price and…read moresafe

This was my first time in a hot air balloon and it was amazing! It was a great price and our guide,…read moreRick, was awesome. He knew about the area and could answer any questions we had. He's been doing rides over the Charlottesville/Albemarle are for quite a while and had some great stories about his days up in that balloon. I really felt involved the whole time. My mother and I, along with one other couple, all helped "inflate" the ballon together as well as deflate. He even let me help fly for a short period of time!

Poor customer service and communication. Save your money or find another hot air balloon.read more

I had the opportunity to take a balloon ride for our 15th anniversary. It was everything that I…read moreexpected. When I was doing the research, it says that the activity would take 3-4 hours, with the flight time maxing out at an hour. I didn't really believe it, but it's the truth. The time they take to prepare once at the launch site made me feel safe. They even had a backup plan depending on the wind direction. Speaking of wind, it typically has to be around 5 mph or less. The weather is a big limiting factor. We had to call multiple times during the day to check in on the weather forecast. Originally we didn't think we were going to be able to go because of the wind, but it settled down for a great ride. A word to the wise; I asked about the odds of being able to go daily due to the weather, 60% chance of going in the morning and only 30% in the evening. Keep that in mind when booking. There are no refunds due to weather. You only have the ability to reschedule. The group that was supposed to be didn't have the flexibility so we were on the flight by ourselves. We were in contact with the chase van during the entire trip. Once we found a place to land, they were there to greet us, load up the balloon, and head back to our vehicles. I would not hesitate to do it again.