Frequent Questions

Find answers below. If anything's unclear, we're only an e-mail away!

1. What does the service look like?

Our driver picks you up at your hotel or in its close vicinity. The car may stop by 1-3 other hotels to pick up other passengers and then head to our launch site (usually 40 minutes drive).

At the launch site your pilot and his team are preaparing the balloon. The pilot gives you a safety briefing in English and answers all of your questions.

Then the inflation of the balloon takes place. During the 10 minutes you are welcome to have a little snack, take photos, wander around the balloon and enjoy the show.

You will be then invited on board. After take off you are welcome to take pictures, wave at locals on the ground, talk to your pilot and enjoy the scenery. After 1 hour the pilot searches a landing site (we are not landing where we took off from).

Once landed, we toast to the brave aviators with a bottle of champagne, everybody receives a flight certificate and our car takes you back to your hotel.

Within the next days you will receive pictures from your flight.

2. How can I book a flight?

Choose one of our flight options and fill out our „Booking“ form. We will check our availability and get back to you shortly. We will also ask you for details such as weights, names, hotel address, etc.

3. How can I pay?

With the reservation we collect a deposit via PayPal or by card, which is refundable in case of cancelation of the flight, or it will be deducted from the total price. The remaining amount can be paid by card (Visa, Mastercard, American Express) at the launch site once we fly. You can also pay in cash (CZK, EUR, USD).

4. What is your cancelation policy?

In case of cancelation due to unsuitable weather conditions or insufficient capacity, you will be offered an alternative option or your purchase will be refunded in full amount. Once you have scheduled a flight, we require at least 72 hours notice for cancelation. If you do not show up for your scheduled flight date, we will keep the deposit.

5. Why should I provide alternative dates & times?

Ballooning is weather dependant. Choosing only 1 date or flight slot (sunrise or sunset flight) may not be sufficient. We will do our best to reschedule you in case of unfavourable weather situation, however we need to know your available times.

6. Where do you fly?

Most of our flights take place in the area of Chateau Konopiste.

In case the weather conditions are unsuitable for ballooning there, we head for the Natural reservation of Bohemian Paradise.

From the basket of our balloon you can see: castle gardens, sandrock towers, river meanders, castle ruins, wild animals, and much more...

7. Are the Classic flights crowded?

Not really! The availability shows available spots altogether, for all our balloons that will operate on the particular slot.

Our balloons have names. Each balloon has a different capacity and we always use those we need:
- Cameron: ....... 2-4 passengers
- Carrington: .... 6-12 passengers
Most importantly, the balloon gondolas, or baskets, have compartments. Don't expect to stand in the middle or with 16 people around you! Each compartment fits 2-3 passengers, so that everyone has comfortable space, great view and handles to hold onto.

With Balloon Adventures everyone has a window seat! 🙂

8. When do you fly?

Our flights are scheduled daily with sunrise and sunset, whenever the weather allows, between April 1 - October 31.

Timing of everyday's flights depend on the time of sunrise and sunset. Generally, the hotel departures are:
- Sunrise flights depart between 4:30 - 7:00 am
- Sunset flights depart between 4:00 - 6:00 pm

See more specific time schedule at our instructions page.

Each flight takes around 1 hour, you will spend around 3-4 hours with us (incl. transfers).

9. What is the dress code?

Ballooning is an outdoor activity, we recommend to dress accordingly (it is not recommended to wear skirts, suits or white clothing). Please wear solid shoes (no slippers, no high heels), long pants, light jacket or a sweatshirt.

10. Are there any passenger conditions?

Each passenger must be in a good physical condition to participate in a balloon flight. You must be able to climb in and out of the basket, stand for the entire flight, walk out of a field if necessary and keep in mind there always is a possibility of a rough landing.

We cannot fly any passenger who has had a recent surgery, injuries, hip, back or knee problems, has any health concerns, physical limitations, is/or may be pregnant or has severe auditory restrictions.Passengers under the influence of alcohol or other substances may not fly. Children must be a minimum of 100 cm tall and accompanied by an adult.

11. Don't need a shuttle?

Own transportation is possible upon prior agreement. This is due to the limited car capacity for the return journey from the landing site back to your car.

If agreed on own transportation: Park directly at the launch site. Please, park on the edge, by the entrance. The exact launch site will be provided with the Flight Status Update (depending on the wind direction).

Full Terms & Conditions

Do you have a different question? Let's hear it! We're one e-mail away!

Flight Area

Château Konopiste & Franz Ferdinand

Our flight area is located about 40 minutes southeast of Prague, near Château Konopiste.

Château Konopiste is famous for being the last residence of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, whose assasination in Sarajevo triggered World War I.

Besides the castle, the entire area is in the heart of Central Bohemia offering beatiful views of the river meanders of Sazava, little lakes, meadows and much more... It is the closest gateway for Prague residents, offering a relaxing scenery and the feel of a countryside.

Activity timeline

1
Booking
Booking is automated via our booking calendar. If you have questions before booking, e-mail us.

Select your flight slot, provide basic information and pay a refundable deposit (you can cancel up to 3 days prior to your flight, also refundable in case of bad weather). You will get a booking confirmation with further instructions.
2
Flight status update
Your flight status is updated according to this schedule:
• 14:00 o’clock on the day of your sunset flight, or
• 22:00 o’clock on the day before your sunrise flight.

With the flight status update, you will also receive the exact pickup time at your hotel. This is dependant on pickups of our other passengers and on the final take-off time, which is decided by your pilot during his flight planning.
3
Hotel pickup and transfer to the launch site
At the time stated in your Flight status update, our car will await you in front of your hotel / accommodation. It is labeled with a "Balloon Adventures Prague Balloon Shuttle" sign. Greet the driver, hop in and rest for about 40-60 minutes, until you reach our balloon launch site.
4
Welcome to the launch site!
Your pilot and his team are getting your balloon ready. Did you know it only takes around 20 minutes to get the entire balloon ready to fly?!

At this time, your pilot gives you instructions for boarding, the flight itself, and landing. He also checks on your current overall condition to make sure everyone is ready for the flight. He has the responsibility over you - he has the last word! Make sure to read our pre-flight instructions so that you are ready!
5
BALLOON FLIGHT
After the briefing by your pilot, our team starts the balloon inflation process. It takes around 10 minutes to stand the balloon up. You are welcome to watch, take pictures and enjoy thee scenery.

Once the balloons are up, you will be invited to jump on board.

In the sky we go! The pilot ignites the burners and lifts the balloon off the ground. Hot-air ballooning belongs to the most peaceful and romantic activities one could ever experience. Once airborne you'll be amazed by the silence and infinite space around you. The flight level ranges from the tree-tops all the way up to 5 000 feet above ground. Spot wild animals, wave at locals and take millions of pictures!
6
Landing
After about 1 hour the pilot searches for the best place to land. You will be instructed to get into a "landing position" and to await further instructions.

The landing is usually soft as if you landed into a blanket. However, it also very much depends on the wind speed. If the wind is stronger, you might experience a little bump, or in rare cases, a short drag-landing. All of the landings are safe, the more wind we have the more fun our passengers actually have at the landing. So no worries!
7
Champagne toast & Aviators' certificates
Once landed, your pilot will pull out a bottle of wine, glasses and aviators' certificates. He is also going to tell you a bit about the history of ballooning and why we do toast. You are then welcome to take more pics, watch our team pack the balloon and get ready for the way back.
8
Transfer back to Prague
Time to go. Our drivers will take you back to your hotel, in the opposite order they picked everybody up.
9
Pictures and memories
Balloon is spectacular! We are aware of that and so are our pilots. During the flight your pilot takes a few pictures and lets you use the camera to take some for, and of, yourself. He will then download them and send them out to the passengers.
10
Thank you for flying with us!