Booking Policies and Physical Requirements
Young children
We recommend that children less than 7 years of age should NOT be pushed into flying in a balloon. Many youngsters are frightened of the noise of the burner. Others will be bored by the experience. Also, since our insurance limits the number of persons carried (not the number of pounds), our price is the same for little ones as for big ones! The little ones will grow up too soon anyway…let them wait for their balloon ride until they will really enjoy it. We will still be here.
Elderly or frail passengers
We have carried many. Do not assume you can’t take the flight you have always dreamed of!
But as calm and placid as a balloon flight may be, it can also turn into a fairly athletic experience with a small increase of wind speed upon landing. So we ask that elderly or frail passengers be sure to get their doctor’s approval before the flight. Further, it is absolutely essential that you let us know in advance of any physical limitations that might affect your participation. Your pilot may need to take your situation into consideration in deciding whether today is the right day for your flight.
Weather cancellations
We will do our best to reschedule any flight that is cancelled by weather. If a mutually satisfactory reschedule is not possible, your payment is refundable. WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE WEATHER! All flight safety decisions are at the sole discretion of the Pilot In Command, and his decision is final.
Other cancellations
We do not overbook our flights, like the airlines do. When we reserve a space for you, we count on your presence on that flight. Cancellations less than 72 hours in advance will be charged at the full price, unless special dispensation has been approved.
Gift Certificates
Gift certificates are issued with an expiration date of one year after the date of issuance. Refunds are not available after that time. Gift certificates are transferrable.
Per FAA regulations, intoxicated persons are not allowed on any flight. No refund will be issued.
Flight Time
Our goal is about an hour of time in the air on a passenger flight. But there is no guarantee on this. Your pilot will be considering many safety factors as he determines when to make the final landing. Your flight could be a little less or a little more than the time we aim for. By the time we prepare and inflate the balloon beforehand, fly the flight, land, pack up the balloon, conduct our flight celebration afterward, and drive back to the launch site, expect the total experience to take 3 to 4 hours.
Privacy Policy
Any and all personal information such as telephone numbers, email or residence address, etc. that we acquire in the course of our dealings will only be used to facilitate our business relationship with you and we will not sell or share that information with anyone else.
Assumption of Risk and Release of Liability
Please make yourself familiar with the Adult Release of Liability & Assumption of Risk Agreement (PDF). Use the link at the bottom of this page to sign your waiver online. Or if you prefer, you may download it, print it out, sign it, and bring it with you to the flight.
We want you to be aware of two facts and a conclusion.
Fact One
A balloon flight is usually a very gentle, beautiful, peaceful, serene experience. Therefore we have been able to share this experience with hundreds of handicapped, aged, fragile, frail, and terminally ill people. We have given tethered rides, dozens of times, for Camp Good Days And Special Times camps, both for adults and for young people. We have flown several people in wheel chairs. We took Rae Hargrave of Manhattan on a flight celebrating her 100th birthday!
Fact Two
But a balloon flight can become a fairly rigorous athletic adventure with a minor increase in wind speed. If the wind reaches 6 to 8 mph during the takeoff process, the balloon will sway in the breeze, causing the basket to tilt sideways, back and forth. This tilting stops when the balloon becomes airborn, but the same 6 to 8 mph of wind (or any greater wind) will again cause excitement on landing. Even with perfect pilot technique, these winds will cause the basket to bump and drag along the ground during landing. The pilot may have to deflate the balloon to control the bumping and dragging. This will cause the entire balloon to gradually tilt over on its side and lie down on the ground. Pilot and Passengers remain low in the basket, hang on, relax, and lie over with the basket as it tilts. This bouncing and dragging might be similar to standing on the second step of a stepladder and jumping to the ground. This windy landing is considered a “normal operation” and for this reason the basket is built like a roll cage. And we always explain and discuss this procedure in our preflight briefing. This briefing is your “last chance to back out”!
Conclusion
It is the pilot’s responsibility to exercise extra care with fragile passengers. The more fragile the passenger, the more nearly perfectly calm the wind conditions must be, or the flight must be postponed. Therefore it is the passengers responsibility to advise us when scheduling the flight of any physical or other limitation. We should know of any bad back, bad knee, pregnancy, recent surgery, illness, or other limiting factor! Any questionable condition must be cleared with your doctor before the flight.