Balloon Aloft Camden

Review: Balloon Aloft, Camden

I like getting high, any way I can. I have been sky diving in Picton, buzzed over Victoria Falls in a Microlight, choppered over snowcapped NZ peaks and Hawaiian lava fields, and survived heart stopping joyrides in light aircraft. Gleefully, I can now add ‘hot air ballooning’ to my list of highs, thanks to Balloon Aloft Camden.

Getting up super early on a Sunday morning was the only downside of this otherwise pleasing experience.

Check in takes place at Rydges Campbelltown and then the mini-buses take you to wherever the wind is favourable. It can be as far away as Tahmoor but we went to the paddocks adjacent to Camden Park House.

Balloon Aloft Camden
The balloons are inflated with huge fans

The team inflate the balloons while guests wait in the grey dawn.

There’s a quick safety briefing from the pilots and then you clamber into the basket (there were twenty people in our basket) and the propane delivers heat – and buoyancy – into the balloon above you.

And then you’re away. Up, up, up but ever so gently.

The quiet of the morning is broken with ongoing blasts of propane, and informative narration from the pilot who points out various local attractions and explains how to manoeuvre the balloon on the whims of the breeze.

Spot the balloon in the Nepean River

The flight lasts for about 30 minutes as you drift dreamily above suburbs full of barking dogs, Camden town, and its surrounding sports fields.

We landed at Camden Airport, and then helped the crew pack up the balloon.

And then it’s back on the bus and back to the hotel for mimosas and a surprisingly excellent buffet breakfast with the new friends you’ve been squished into a basket with.

Have you flown with Balloon Aloft Camden? What did you think?

Click here for more info.

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