Out of all of my favorite travel memories of my life so far, hot air ballooning in Cappadocia tops them all. I’m a firm believer in doing the thing you’re supposed to do in the place you’re supposed to do it (like visit the Pyramids when you’re in Egypt) and hot air ballooning here was just one of those things you HAVE to do if you visit. It was a once in a lifetime experience to witness the sunrise over the otherworldly landscapes of Cappadocia while floating a couple hundred feet above. If you’re ever in Cappadocia, I urge you to splurge on this treat, you’ll thank yourself later. Everything can be booked through your hotel or hostel, so just go up to the front desk and discuss how to plan your trip to the sky.
The prices can range anywhere from €60 to €110€ depending on the experience you want to have. The cheaper tours will take you in the air for much less time, and you will share the basket with upwards of 25 other people. The more expensive you go = less people and more time in the air. I opted for an 80€ tour, where we got 70 minutes in the sky and I was only with 8 others. Coincidentally, I was put with a family from my HOMETOWN in Virginia, what a small world!
The tour starts with an early morning pickup from your accommodation around 4:00-4:15 a.m. From there you will drive to the launching point and breakfast will be set up for you – this might have been an added perk of the more expensive tour I bought. After they blow up the balloon and make sure all systems are go, you get in the basket and take off.
The flight takes you over all of the best sights in Goreme, the primary tourist town in the region of Cappadocia. You will float over the Rose Valley, the White Valley, and the unique fairy chimney rock formations that Cappadocia is famous for. I was in complete and utter awe the entire time, jaw on the floor, eyes bugging out of my face trying to just see MORE of this insane view. Just when you think it can’t get any better, the sun starts to peak above the horizon and gives the entire atmosphere an ethereal, orange glow. I just about died. If there’s a heaven out there, this is definitely the ideal setting for it.
My tour guide told me that there’s anywhere from 80-120 balloons that go up every morning. So in addition to the beautiful landscapes, your lucky eyes are also treated to a view of hot air balloons of all colors and sizes, silhouettes against the rising sun. We eventually reached an elevation of 1500 m, he said we were the highest in the sky that morning! I had taken another hot air balloon once before in my life in Laos, and was sorta freaking out the whole time from fear. But in Cappadocia, I was far too stunned by the natural beauty around me to feel anything but pure euphoria. It was one of the travel moments I know for a fact that I’ll remember the rest of my life.
Unfortunately, I am not a wizard and couldn’t freeze time to stay up there forever and ever and ever. Eventually, we slowly started to float down and landed in a field, followed by a champagne toast and group photos, all sad that it was over.
Some quick things to note: the hot air balloons don’t go up every single morning. Some mornings, weather conditions are not ideal (specifically wind) and they cancel all flights. This would be super unfortunate if you came here primarily to do hot air ballooning and weren’t able to, so plan accordingly and spend at least a few nights here so that your chances increase. On my second day, the balloons were cancelled, and I was just hella thankful that I choose to do the tour my first day instead of the second.
The tour guides drop you back at your hotel before 8:00 am. I was on a natural high for the rest of that day, still so blissed out about that priceless experience.
