via hot air balloon - TravelPUNK Backpacker College Student Budget Travel Message Boards!

**pinknic38** · 12-19-2007, 02:13 PM

has anyone ever been in a hot air balloon at all even?

on my top 25 things I want to do before I die, ride in a hot air balloon is in the top 10. I didn't really think about it much in conjunction with travel but I've been looking up some walking tours and other things to do in Krakow and link after link after link I wound up finding the phone number of this dude who does hot air balloon tours in Krakow, it leaves Krakow and goes wherever, all day, then you land and have a bbq (interested to see what the Polish, or Europeans in general, consider to be a 'bbq' haha) and beer and are sent on your way. I call the guy from work and tell him that I definately want to do it, and so we negotiated and finally for 35 bucks, I will be seeing some of Poland via a hot air balloon on my last day in Krakow. I think I got a really good deal, but I laid it on pretty thick with my terrible Polish (I work with the Polish over here, there are a lot of them deployed here and they were trying to teach me Polish phrases one night) and I think he ate it up.

very unexpected to wind up making that reservation, I was just looking for some walking tour ideas and stumbled up that. very sweet. :D

**BigE** · 12-19-2007, 08:22 PM

I have never been in a hot air balloon. I saw several dozen of them in Stockholm. I can imagine it would be a great wy to see a country.

**LiveFreeorDie** · 12-20-2007, 05:28 AM

^^You just better hope that his balloon maintenance is up to par if he only charges $35 for a long ride........I can see it now, you show up and the balloon has patches all over it and the basket is made out of a few sticks and twine......

**MeTurk** · 12-20-2007, 08:01 AM

There are these hot air balloon get together, where a bunch of European ballooners find a secluded spot to do burnouts or whatever ballooners do.

They will usually give people free trips in the balloons as most are sponsored by a large company. I'd say if you did a search for hot air balloon clubs in Europe you would find out where they met up.

**noke_travel** · 12-20-2007, 08:54 AM

i did a 3 hour ride in one several years back in new mexico. def a cool experience. have fun!

**pinknic38** · 12-20-2007, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LiveFreeorDie

^^You just better hope that his balloon maintenance is up to par if he only charges $35 for a long ride........I can see it now, you show up and the balloon has patches all over it and the basket is made out of a few sticks and twine......

LOL I would shit! well, I don't know, shit I'll do anything once! I'm not scared!!!

**jengt** · 12-20-2007, 03:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pinknic38

shit I'll do anything once! I'm not scared!!!

You are my kind of person Nicole. I'm jealous! I've always wanted to go up in a hot air balloon too. I drive Mike batty sometimes when I see a balloon flying high. "Look...a balloon! I want a balloon!!!" (I may be over 40, but I don't have to act it ALL the time

)

Enjoy, and let us know how it was.

**lost in texas** · 12-21-2007, 10:39 AM

That sounds sweet! And if it is a really ghetto rig, that just makes it all the more exciting.

**pinknic38** · 12-21-2007, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lost in texas

And if it is a really ghetto rig, that just makes it all the more exciting.

LOL that's what I say! then I can come back and tell all you TPs how the basket fell through on my hair air balloon and everyone fell out but me, and I had no idea how to land it so I rode it til it ran out of gas or whatever and wound up in Greece!!

or something like that. HAHA.

**DC_Jessica** · 12-27-2007, 08:48 PM

Hmm...if he tells you that YOU provide the air to keep the balloon up...pass!

I wanted to do a balloon ride in Cappadocia, but it was steep! The pics will be amazing.

And, I can also only think of Enduring Love (either book or movie) now whenever I think of hot air balloons...make sure a crazy Welshman doesn't obsess over you!

(Unless you want him to...)

**LiveFreeorDie** · 12-28-2007, 06:26 AM

Quote:

Hmm...if he tells you that YOU provide the air to keep the balloon up...pass

Something tells me that actually might not be a problem for Nicole. Just get her talking about the wonder that is Celine and I bet she could keep a balloon up for hours all by herself........

**pinknic38** · 12-28-2007, 09:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LiveFreeorDie

Something tells me that actually might not be a problem for Nicole. Just get her talking about the wonder that is Celine and I bet she could keep a balloon up for hours all by herself........

my family always did tell me I was full of hot air. I never realized it could save my life, in the event of a great hot air balloon crisis!!!!!