East Africa is blessed with a number of wildlife species that can be viewed in the major national parks. The most outstanding attractions include the big five in Maasai Mara national park, the great wildebeest migration, impressive relief landscapes like mountains, rift valleys, escarpments, lakes, rivers and unique ecosystems and vegetation types.
For many decades, all the above-mentioned wildlife attractions have been explored using the usual and ordinary means (game drives) and yet there are more ways that may seem better options of exploring the wilderness using hot air balloons. Using a hot air balloon on an African safari expedition trust me is one of the better ways of having clear views of the typical African wilderness, wildlife and relief with the unavoidable on going wildlife activities like the great wildebeest migration.
Hot air ballooning provides tourists with the usually admired birds eye view of all things from the top. Firing propane burners into the balloon to get pressure of lifting the balloon starts a hot air balloon and once it gets up in the air, it moves in the direction of the wind.
For greater tourists experiences, Maasai Mara and Serengeti national parks in east Africa adopted the air balloon safaris to enable tourists view the major wildlife species in the parks on an aerial view. Tourists for this expedition are always picked from their lodges or camps and then taken to the hot air balloon launch site.
At the launch site, there is always the balloon pilot who offers briefing on the fabulous ride and the way every one is expected to behave while on board. The ride is usually done early in the morning before the sunrise or in the evening when the sun is setting down mainly because in the morning and evening the winds are relatively light making it easy for launching, navigation and landing the hot air balloon.
Tourists are therefore picked from their lodges at around 5:00 am after having their breakfast and then taken to the balloon’s launch site. The balloon then takes off at around 6:30 am or late in the evening from around 5:00 pm.
The Real Balloon Safari Experience
While in the air, the balloon pilot rides the balloon at different altitudes of the blowing winds even at a treetop height, which gives tourists clear views of the animal species, birds, landscapes and fantastic photography chances of the wilderness beneath. Quite a unique view to have!!
The air balloon rides are very unpredictable because they offer a wide range of wildlife views and one can therefore not know which exact wildlife species they will view on the ride. However the pilots knows the national parks very well and therefore ride the balloon in areas with outstanding and most memorable attractions.
The hot air balloon safari depending on the day’s weather takes about an hour of great panoramic views of African wilderness and enjoyment and on landing; most tourists celebrate with champagne while relaxing in the bushes.
All the participants are given certificates of the safari balloon flight and then driven back to their respective lodges for other game activities like game drives however en route; they get more chances of viewing other wild animals thus getting a double experience.
There are no specific requirements to enable one participate in the hot air balloon safari. This means that any one can do it however its not recommended for individuals who have great fear for heights, those with weak health conditions as their condition may worsen while in the air distracting all the other tourists and even to children below the age of 10.
The hot air balloon prices are between $500 to $550 and they include the hour spent on the ride, guiding services on board, champagne, certificates of participation, transfer to the lodge and en route game drives. For greater remarkable experiences in Serengeti and Maasai Mara, just try out the hot air balloon safari.