Hot Air Balloon Marrakech

An online booking agency for balloon flights near Marrakech

Hot Air Balloon Marrakech sells hot air balloon flights over the countryside around Marrakech, Morocco. The site introduces itself as "an independent, online booking agency" that uses "companies that have exceptional safety records" and selects "only the most highly qualified and experienced pilots." It lists a Moroccan address in The Palm Grove (Palmeraie), Jbilets Zone, 40000 Marrakech, and a second address in Sheridan, Wyoming, USA. Everything it sells is in the Marrakech area: the flights pass over what the site calls Berber villages, desert oasis, deep valleys and the front of the High Atlas mountains. There is nothing on the site about flights in any other part of Morocco or any other country.

One thing to know before booking: the homepage calls the business an agency, but the FAQ is written in an operator's voice. It talks about "our pilots" and "our balloons", says "our activity is under the control of the Air Authority DAC", and describes its own maintenance plan. The site does not name the balloon company that actually flies the passengers, so a reader cannot tell from the site alone whether the agency and the operator are the same business.

Two flights: Classic and Private

The range is short. The site sells two packages, and it lists the same set of details for each.

The Classic Flight is the shared option. The site lists transportation from and to your hotel by vehicle, a Berber breakfast at a caïdale tent, a flight of "40-60 min appx", a basket capacity of 20 people, insurance included, pre-flight coffee and Moroccan tea, a souvenir flight certificate, and an early morning pickup that depends on hotel location.

The Private Flight carries the same inclusions: hotel transfers, the breakfast in the tent, a flight of 40 to 60 minutes, insurance, coffee and tea before launch and the certificate. The one difference in the table is the basket, listed as "Depending on group size."

Neither package shows a price. Both the adult and the child price fields read "Please ask availability and price." The booking form has a currency field set to EUR, and the FAQ says the balance can be settled in Moroccan Dirhams, Euros, Pounds or US Dollars.

Children are covered in a few places that do not quite line up. The package tables list a child age of 4 to 9, the booking form asks for the number of children aged 5 to 10, and the FAQ says children aged 0 to 4 fly free, 5 to 10 year olds get a 50% discount, and anyone over 10 pays the adult price. It is worth confirming the child rate in writing when you ask for the quote.

What the morning looks like

The FAQ lays out the day in more detail than most balloon booking sites. The whole outing lasts about 4 hours from start to finish. The company emails, phones or contacts your hotel one day before the flight with the exact pickup time, then collects you from your hotel or riad and drives you to the launch site. Transfers are by 4X4.

At the launch site, preparing and inflating the balloon normally takes about 30 minutes, which the FAQ calls "quite interesting to watch." The flight itself normally lasts roughly one hour for standard flights, and the FAQ says the balloons carry fuel for more than 2 hours plus a reserve tank for another 30 minutes. Take-off sites vary from day to day with wind speed and direction. The FAQ says balloons travel between 4 and 20 km depending on the wind and fly anywhere from tree level to roughly 2500 feet (750m) above the ground. It also says flights usually take off with the sun.

Landing is wherever there is a large open space the ground crew can reach, such as fields, parks, school grounds or roadsides. A chase vehicle follows the balloon with the crew in radio contact with the pilot. After landing and packing up, the 4X4 takes passengers to the breakfast area and then back to the hotel.

On basket sizes, the FAQ says balloons range in capacity from 2-8-12-16 people, with passengers standing in separate compartments. That sits a little oddly beside the 20-person basket in the Classic Flight table, and the site does not explain the difference.

For clothing, the FAQ advises long trousers, long sleeves or a jacket, because it is cooler in the air than on the ground, and comfortable shoes, since you stand for at least an hour. It suggests bringing a camera, video camera or phone.

The site also sets its own limits on who flies. The FAQ says pregnant women should not fly "due to the possibility of a bumpy landing," though they can ride to the launch site and meet the group at landing. It says its pilots only fly children old enough to understand a preflight briefing and tall enough to see over the side of the basket unaided.

Licences, payment and weather rules

On regulation, the FAQ says pilots hold a valid European licence and are certified to fly over Morocco by the Moroccan DAC (Direction de l'Aviation Civile). It adds that each balloon has a navigability certificate checked in control visits every 6 months, that it follows a maintenance plan it describes as stricter than the manufacturer asks for, and that it holds a CTE, a technical certificate for air operations covering paying passengers. The FAQ says flights run 12 months of the year.

Booking starts with a form: name, email, mobile number, nationality, hotel name and room number, flight type, a flight date and an alternative date, and the number of adults and children. You can either pay a deposit or send an enquiry. The FAQ says a deposit is due at booking, paid online through 3D Secure, and the balance is paid in cash or by credit card before the flight. The form carries a box for agreeing to the Terms and Conditions, which are linked from the footer. The FAQ recommends booking in advance, especially for a particular date, without giving a number of days.

The weather rules are clear. The FAQ says there are no flights in wind consistently above 15 kmph, or in rain, snow, fog or threatening thunderstorms, and that the pilot has the final decision. A weather cancellation is rescheduled at no extra cost, and if you cannot reschedule, all payments are refunded in full. If a flight is delayed and you are leaving the next morning, the FAQ says payments are refunded in full as well. It suggests booking your first available morning in Marrakech so there is room to move. Tickets can be moved to another date and are valid for one year, "subject to our cancellation policy."

For contact, the site lists a chat widget, the phone number +90 532 331 17 19, the email info@hotairballoonmarrakech.com and a contact form. The team section names one person, a sales executive called Mutlu.

Gaps, and who it suits

The biggest gap is price. Neither flight shows a figure, so comparing this site with anyone else means sending the form and waiting for a quote. The site does not name the company that flies the balloons, even though the FAQ talks about "our" pilots and balloons. The cancellation policy mentioned in the FAQ is not spelled out on the flight or booking pages, so the rules for a traveler who simply changes their mind are not stated there. The site does not say what the Berber breakfast includes, which languages the pilots and crew speak, or how far ahead a deposit is refundable.

Where it is strong is the practical detail around the flight. The FAQ explains the whole morning, the weather thresholds, the rescheduling and refund rule for weather cancellations, the payment currencies, the licensing body and the dress advice, which is more than many balloon sellers put on a page. Hotel and riad pickup by 4X4 and breakfast are part of both packages.

It suits a visitor to Marrakech who wants a sunrise flight with transfers and breakfast arranged, and who is happy to ask for a price and pay a deposit online. Travelers who want to see a fixed price before they enquire, or who want to know exactly which balloon operator they will fly with, will need to ask those questions directly before paying.