Picture this: it’s a cold December morning (well, as cold as it gets in Southern California) and you’re on a hot air balloon soaring over vineyards. There’s even mimosas waiting for you on the ground below. It’s the perfect romantic Valentine’s Day activity.
Oh wait, you’re single?
Well so am I. Which doesn’t stop me from doing what may be traditionally considered a “couples” activity. Luckily my friend Allison is game to try a Living Social deal ($90 each) and that’s how we find ourselves driving south to Temecula around 5am on a Saturday morning.
Our group meets at a local Starbucks (the balloon company covers our coffees and pastries as part of the package deal). Afterwards they drive us by van to a nearby launching site just as the sun begins to rise.
The combination of gas and fire creates enough hot air to “inflate” the balloon.
Here’s Allison and me… single girls FTW!
As the balloon grows in size, they allow us to walk INSIDE and take photos. I am already blown away by the experience and we haven’t even left the ground.
Finally the balloon is upright and ready for take-off. Around this time it occurs to me that maybe I should be nervous? We’re about to fly into the air in a wooden basket. I channel my inner Dorothy Gale and hope there’s no cyclones today.
The take-off is surprisingly smooth and not at all scary. We gently lift off the ground and slowly float up, up, up. We’re packed in tightly with another couple and our guide, and the basket holding us feels steady as a rock. I relax and start snapping photos as the ground below gets farther and farther away.
It’s pretty in every direction — vineyards below, mountains in the distance, and even a nearby lake.
I love our birds’ eye view of the houses below.
Our guide speaks with a fun accent. It’s been awhile since this trip but I think he was Scottish? He takes good care of us and provides commentary on the landscape below.
The ride is nearly an hour long and we alternate between flying high and dipping down low to get a better look and the vineyards and houses.
The landscape below is colorful and diverse. I snap hundreds of photos; here are some of my favorites:
With the ride nearly over, our guide drops us down very low. He is in communication with a van on the ground via walkie-talkie and they coordinate a pick-up spot in a nearby field.
The landing is not as gentle as take-off, but still not bad. We bend our knees to prepare for the slight jolt of hitting the ground.
And then it’s all over! I really lost track of time up there; it felt like either ten minutes or two hours, I wasn’t sure which. In reality it was somewhere right in the middle.
They allow the hot air to escape and carefully wrap up the balloon.
Our guide breaks out the champagne and OJ to celebrate a successful trip.
Ta-da, it’s official: I have a certificate to commemorate the experience.
Our hot air balloon ride took place two years ago and the company we used has since closed up shop. But for what’s it worth we were quite happy with their business!
There are many other hot air balloon companies in Temecula and occasionally Living Social or Groupon will feature deals. Regardless of the location, if you ever have the chance to ride in a hot air balloon, DO IT! If you have a fear of heights, consider it anyways — we had a smooth and steady experience. Even in retrospect it feels like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And Temecula is a 90 minute drive from Los Angeles, making it an easy day trip. It’d be especially fun to pair a morning balloon ride with an afternoon tour of a winery.
