Posts Tagged ‘hot air balloon flight’

Father’s Day Hot Air Balloon Ride Gift Certificates

Saturday, May 16th, 2009
Father’s Day is coming soon, and there is no better gift for Dad than a Father’s Day Hot Air Balloon Ride Gift Certificate from Bella Balloons.
Dad can receive his personalized gift certificate printed on white Bella Balloons linen either directly from you of via the mail.  When Dad calls to schedule his flight, he’ll have the ability to choose sunrise or sunset.  His entire experience will last 3 hours, with a flight duration of approximately 1 hour.  The Bella staff will call Dad 24 hours in advance of the flight to confirm all logistics, including meeting time and place with the flight crew, then confirm once again on the same day.
Our Dayton & Cincinnati Hot Air Balloon Rides include champagne or non-alcoholic wine, glass souvenir champagne flutes, flight certificates, and more importantly-an experience Dad will remember for a lifetime!!!!!   Watches, ties, or dinner out is no comparison to a 3-hour hot air balloon ride experience.  He is guaranteed to talk about his hot air balloon flight for years!
Don’t believe us-just check out our Testimonials!!!  Let Bella Balloons spoil Dad, and the rest of the family for that matter!  Bell’Aria, Bella’s newest balloon holds up to 6 passengers!
For more information about Hot Air Balloon Ride Gift Certificates or Reservations, please visit www.FlyBellaBalloons.com or call 513-932-3552.

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Do We Walk Back?!?!?

Saturday, March 28th, 2009
One of the most common questions asked by passengers or those booking hot air balloon flights is, “How do we get back to the launch site?”.
Good question. We mention in the website that a typical hot air balloon rental flight travels between 6 and 12 miles, but in which direction?  Hot air balloons travel in the direction of the prevailing winds, which on any given day could be east, west, north or south.  That’s right-you CAN travel west in a hot air balloon.  In fact, you can launch a balloon from the same location on 7 consecutive days of the week and travel in 7 very different directions.  The prevailing winds are dictated by the position of high and low pressure systems, which move continuously.
The answer?  A hot air balloon rental not only includes a flight, champagne, souvenir glasses, certificates, etc but also includes transportation back to the launch site by our professional and courteous flight crew!
Once a launch site is determined, the pilot and crew team study both the projected flight path as forecasted from multiple weather sources, but also build their own projection by launching small latex pilot balloons at the launch site to confirm current wind direction/speed.  Based on the direction of the pilot balloon(s), the flight crew builds a theoretical flight path.
Following the launch, the crew chief travels in the chase vehicle and trailer underneath the balloon.  During the hot air balloon flight, the pilot and crew chief remain in contact via radios.  Towards the end of the flight, the crew coordinates the exact landing location.  Since Cincinnati and Dayton Hot Air Balloon Rides don’t include any mountainous terrain, radio transmissions are very reliable, but we also carry cell phones for back-up communications.
Upon landing, the crew team packs up the hot air balloon and transports everyone back to the launch site.  So, no walking or hitch hiking is required!!!

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Reschedule My Hot Air Balloon Charter Flight??? Why????

Friday, March 6th, 2009

Unfortunately, rescheduling some passenger flights will always be a reality of Ohio ballooning.

Although temperatures are finally rising, blue skies and warmer temps don’t necessarily equate to good balloon flying weather. Interestingly, blue skies are one of the least considerations when deciding a hot air balloon flight go or no go decision.

As mentioned in our website, hot air balloon passenger flights are only scheduled in the mornings near sunrise or late in the day near sunset. The reason- safety. Typically, sunrise and sunset are the times when daily wind speeds are the lowest. Mid-day flights are avoided by hot air balloon pilots because of presence of strong wind gusts, rapidly changing wind directions, and thermal activity which leads to loss of vertical control of the balloon.

So, we look for the forecasted winds to be less than 9 mph during the launch and landing times of your flight. For inflation, winds great er than 9 mph can make a 70 foot balloon very difficult to handle, to say the least! And when it comes to your landing, we want to be shielded from the wind to provide a soft, comfortable landing.  

Besides favorable winds, we also want to ensure that all precipitation remains greater than 75 miles away throughout your flight.

Wet ground can also cause a flight to be rescheduled. If we’ve received accumulating rain for several days, ground conditions may not be dry enough for layout, inflation, landing, and pack-up.

Rest assured that the staff at Bella Balloons LOVES to fly, but safety is never compromised. Many factors are thoroughly considered prior to each and every hot air balloon flight.

So, if your flight is rescheduled, just relax, and we will get your reservation right back on the flight calendar. We’re committed to provide you the quality experience you expect and deserve.

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