Is a hot air balloon ride on your bucket list? Thanks to Plano being the Hot Air Balloon Capital of Texas, there are a few local opportunities to make your dream come true! For a good portion of the year, you can look up into the morning sky in Plano and find hot air balloons soaring by, especially in the late summer as they gear up for the annual Plano Hot Air Balloon Festival*.
*The annual Plano Balloon Festival has been cancelled for 2021 due to the pandemic, but we are eagerly looking forward to the 2022 festival.
The Plano Balloon Festival offers tethered rides weather permitting, but for a full hot air balloon experience, there are a few hot air balloon companies in our area that specialize in flights for anniversaries, birthdays, bucket lists, weddings, and engagements.
Air Adventures Aloft
Air Adventures Aloft serves the DFW Metroplex and North Texas year round for hot air balloon rides, sales, training, special events, and promotions. With over 28 years of aviation experience, this company has the highest level safety rating attainable.
The owners are as passionate today as when it all began over a quarter of a century ago. They have experienced hot air ballooning in Europe, Asia, South America and the Middle East, and that doesn’t include flying all over the United States.
Harold “Bubba” Cliver is a professional pilot with an Airline Transport Pilot Certificate. Flying both airplanes and hot air balloons, make for an unmatched and safe experience. Bubba is a graduate of Texas A&M University and has been a North Texas resident since 2000. With a vast experience in the hot air balloon industry, and a focus on customer service, your interactions with his personable style should come as a added benefit to your air adventure.
Balloon rides can be scheduled year around, weather permitting. Bubba recommends morning flights over the evening flights because the winds are gentler and more predictable at sunrise and coupled with cooler temperatures during the hotter months, your experience will be more comfortable. Morning flights are available year around, while evening flights are available October thru May.
Air Adventures Aloft specializes in private groups from 2-5 people. In addition, VIP service is available (2 or more people), private flights for couples or parties up to 5, engagement proposals, wedding ceremonies or other special requests. They also offer hot air balloon sales for new or used equipment. They can help find a balloon that fits within a particular budget, while also help you determine what type of balloon might be the right fit.
Rohr balloons
Rohr is a family-owned and operated business founded in 1972 by Chuck Rohr, with over 40,000 satisfied passengers flown to-date.
Chuck Rohr has quite an extensive history in hot air ballooning and stunt work, including the movie, “The Great Balloon Race” from the 1970s. He flew and manufactured hot air balloons and cold air advertising inflatables for decades in Fort Lauderdale, FL, before retiring.
In 1994, his son Brian Rohr launched Rohr Balloons in Texas and continues to fly passengers and attend balloon races with the help of his team of pilots and crew. Rohr Balloons has eight hot air balloons of various sizes and can accommodate multiple hot air balloon flight packages for special occasions, weddings, engagements, team building, corporate events, and much more.
Rohr Balloons specializes in aerial entertainment, offering champagne hot air balloon rides, private engagement flights, tethered rides, and weddings aloft in North Texas, as well as corporate hot air balloon advertising programs.
Rohr Balloons typically launches from Plano’s Oak Point Park & Nature Preserve, dependent on wind conditions.
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