Day 01
Sunrise Balloon Safari Over Ruaha
- 0400 - 0515hrs: From Your Camp To The Balloon
- Rise before the birds and drive through the pre-dawn darkness, eyes fixed on the glow of the headlights in case they catch a night-time beauty still out on the prowl. You arrive at the launch site as the crew prepare the balloon and light the burners.
- 0615 - 0645hrs: Keeping Safe & Preparing To Fly
- Our experienced Captain takes you through the important safety procedures and explains the launch and landing positions while the gold and green of the balloon billows against the lightening sky. It's time to embark.
- 0645 - 0815hrs: Journey Through The Soft Winds
- As the balloon glides gently upward, your pilot gives the signal to rise from the launch position in the basket.
- Your first glimpse of Ruaha from the sky reveals a landscape of meandering river courses, towering baobabs, granite outcrops, and acacia woodland stretching as far as the eye can see.
- Among them move big cats on early morning hunts, herds of hundreds of elephants seeking water at the riverbank, hippos wallowing peacefully, and birds giving accompaniment to the rising sun. Our experienced pilots interpret the sights and sounds as you drift low across the treetops, scan the riverbanks, or climb into the deepening blue of the sky to gaze down at this great wilderness.
- After about an hour aloft, you return gently to the earth, exhilarated and ready for the next part of your adventure.
- 0815 - 0830hrs: Celebrating A Tradition
- We have flown so high and so well that God has joined you in laughter and set you gently back into the loving arms of Mother Earth.
- As is the tradition of balloonists, we toast the flight with sparkling wine before boarding a safari car for a short game drive to breakfast.
- 0830 - 0930hrs: Breakfast As Nature Intended
- Our crew have laid an immaculate table under the spreading boughs of a baobab tree in the wilds of Ruaha and are waiting to serve fresh coffee and juice, tropical fruit, and freshly baked bread.
- They will cook a full English breakfast while you relax and relive your flight with your fellow passengers. The time will come to move on, but right now you can just "be," soaking in the warm sunshine and the feeling of having let your soul soar free for a moment.
