Top Cappadocia Hot Air Balloon Rides
One of the indispensable activities of Cappadocia is Cappadocia balloon tours, which every tourist wants to do. Balloon tours, which are an important activity for tourism among Cappadocia activities, provide a pleasant and unforgettable memory of seeing the extraordinary formations of Cappadocia from above, as opposed to seeing them up close.
Where do Cappadocia balloon tours depart from?
In Cappadocia, balloons take off from Göreme and Uchisar every morning around 5 am, provided that there are favorable weather conditions, and these trips lay the whole of Cappadocia at your feet for 1-2 hours. It is a wonderful feeling to see the magnificent formations of Cappadocia from above. If you are a nature enthusiast, you should definitely take a Cappadocia balloon ride one day.
Cappadocia balloon tours companies
A balloon tour is a service offered by every hotel in Cappadocia. On the day of your stay at the hotel, you will be asked if you want to participate in the balloon tour that will take place the next day. However, the best ideal way to participate in balloon tours is to agree with a balloon company. There are over twenty balloon companies in the Cappadocia region, but the most preferred ones among balloon sightseeing tours are Royal Balloons, Butterfly Balloons and Kaya Balloons.
Whether you make a deal with the hotel or the balloon company, they pick you up at the earliest possible time of the day with a shuttle bus and take you straight to the area where the flight will start. Since it is not yet light and your opium has not yet burst, you may feel dizzy. After arriving at the airport, you get breakfast according to the quality of your company. It can be a light breakfast with tea, coffee, fruit juice, cake, porridge or a buffet breakfast.
As the balloons are being prepared, we start to make our way to the place where the balloon is. The sun slowly begins to show itself and illuminate the land on the earth. The weather conditions required for the balloons to take off are suitable for about 300 days a year. After reaching the launch site, you can see the balloons and the preparation stages.
In Cappadocia, the standard balloon capacities for tourists are 24+1 person balloons. However, some balloon companies guarantee a maximum of 19 people, which makes visitors more comfortable. As soon as you get into the basket, find a suitable place for yourself in the area divided into 4 sections, and remember that the most suitable place is the corners of the basket. You will not be able to move from place to place on the basket while in the air. Your captain will give you the necessary information about your safety and what you need to do before and during the flight. If you have any questions, you can easily ask them. These people, who are experts in their field, answer all kinds of questions with a smile. The balloons take off in a certain discipline. Everyone is in communication with each other via radios. Finally it is our turn and the ropes are untied. We start to climb and glide towards the sky amidst the harsh sounds of the flame that lifts the balloon into the air.
For an average of 1.5 hours, we witness the sun rising and enjoy photographing the balloon views of Cappadocia. During your balloon ride, you will sometimes fly very high and sometimes you will fly close enough to touch the fairy chimneys. Although it varies depending on the balloon, company and weather conditions, balloons move within a distance of 10-20 km and reach a height of about 600 meters.
So-called hot air balloons are made to fly by creating air that is lighter than the air outside. This is possible by heating the air inside the balloon. As the air inside warms up, the balloon rises upwards, and as it cools down, it descends. In order to steer the balloons, pilots need to switch to layers of air, because there is no concept of right and left in balloons, this is only possible by capturing the right air flow. Although there is a rough route for balloon flights, the wind conditions can also be a factor in determining your route. During the trip, you have the chance to watch famous tourist spots such as Uçhisar, Güvercinlik, Kızılçukur, Göreme, Devrent, Zelve from above.
Towards the end of the balloon ride, a vehicle is following you and your captain is trying to land the balloon on this vehicle. After making contact with the vehicle, stakes are driven in and the balloon is deflated. After the balloon rides, there is a celebration of safe landing with champagne popping and a certificate is given to you. Afterwards, you are taken back to your hotel where you were picked up. The organization takes about 3.5 hours in total.
How much does a Cappadocia balloon tour cost?
Cappadocia balloon tours prices may vary according to the company. These differences may vary according to flight duration, breakfast types, basket size. You can learn the current prices of balloon tours from the websites of the companies.
Where to watch Cappadocia balloon tour events?
If the prices of balloon tours in Cappadocia seem high and you don’t want to participate, watching the balloons take off is a very good option. I can even say that experiencing this visual feast is even more enjoyable than being inside the balloons. The balloons can be watched from many places, 38.65533, 34.84372 are the coordinates of the balloon tour viewing point we can recommend, or another option is to stay in hotels that see the departure points of the balloons.
