Hot Air Balloon in Kenya

Morning of Sky Trip

Hot Air Balloon in Kenya experiences start like this…

Our alarm went off at 4:00 AM, but we didn’t mind waking up so early. Today was special, we were going to float above the Maasai Mara in a hot air balloon! As we quickly got dressed in our safari lodge while it was still dark outside, we felt both excited and a little nervous.

“You’re going to see the most beautiful sunrise of your life,” our guide Joseph had told us the night before with a warm smile. We kept thinking about his words as our jeep drove through the darkness to the launch site.

The drive itself was amazing, our headlights cut through the misty darkness, and sometimes we saw animal eyes shining from the bushes as we passed by. The stars above were incredible, spread across the African sky like diamonds on black velvet.

Pre-launch Process of Hot Air Balloon Trip

When we arrived at the launch field, we saw an organized but busy scene. Under portable lights, crews were spreading huge colorful balloon fabrics across the ground. Large wicker baskets were lying on their sides, waiting to be used. Every now and then, we heard the roar of flames as the first balloons began to fill with hot air.

Our pilot Richard, a friendly Brit greeted us with hot cups of Kenyan coffee.

“I’ve been flying these skies for twenty-three years,” he told us during our safety briefing. “And every single flight is different. That’s what makes ballooning in the Mara so special.”

The setup process was interesting to watch:

• Big fans blew cold air into the balloon to start inflating it
• Burners then shot flames upward, heating the air until the balloon slowly stood upright
• Crew members did final safety checks while we waited excitedly
• Getting into the basket was harder than we thought it would be!

As we watched the balloon grow from a flat pile of fabric to a huge, colorful globe straining against its ropes, the first light of dawn began to appear on the horizon.

Taking Off to Magic Journey!

“All aboard who’s going aboard!” Richard called out cheerfully, and the crew helped us climb into the wicker basket. There were sixteen of us total, split into four sections, with Richard in the middle controlling the burners.

Taking off wasn’t what we expected. There was no sudden jerk or feeling of rising the ground just gently fell away. One moment we were on the ground, and the next, we were floating.

“You don’t actually feel yourself going up,” Richard explained between burner blasts. “The earth moves away from you, not the other way around.”

He was right. We didn’t feel any movement or wind in our faces. We were simply part of the air, drifting along with it.

As we rose higher in hot air balloon in Kenya, the landscape spread out below us like a living map. The Maasai Mara stretched as far as we could see in every direction. A mix of gold and green, with morning mist still clinging to the land like ghostly rivers.

Sights of Wildlife

Just as the sun rose over the horizon, a bright orange ball lighting up the sky with color Richard reduced the burner heat, bringing us down to what he called the “wildlife viewing height” of about 200 feet.

From this height, we could see the animals clearly. Our first sighting came quickly a group of giraffes, their long necks stretched up as they ate from acacia trees. They hardly noticed us floating above them and just kept eating their breakfast. When we took safari through jeep in Kenya they were closer but from sky we can see an uninterrupted life of Wilds.

“Look at there” a woman whispered excitedly, and we all turned to see a group of lions coming back from their night hunt, their golden bodies moving through the tall grass.

After that, we saw many animals in quick succession:

• Huge herds of wildebeest and zebra, thousands of them, creating living rivers across the plains
• A lone black rhino, which even our experienced pilot was excited to spot
• A cheetah sitting on top of a termite mound, looking over its territory
• Elephants gathered around a water hole, with the babies protected inside a circle of large adults

What amazed us most was how the animals barely noticed us. Richard explained that unlike vehicles, balloons don’t scare wildlife we could silently watch natural behaviors that are rarely seen from safari vehicles.

How We Felt in Hot Air Balloon in Kenya?

The feeling of floating was truly special. There was a deep sense of peace in balloon flight that surprised us. Between the occasional roar of the burners, the silence was complete and calming. The basket hardly moved or swayed, making us feel stable despite being thousands of feet above the ground.

The temperature changed in interesting ways cool morning air when we were drifting, followed by waves of heat when the burners fired. Even from high up, we could smell the savanna the earthy scent rising from ground still wet with dew, the woody smell of acacia trees, and sometimes, the wild scent of animals.

“Close your eyes for just ten seconds,” Richard suggested during a quiet moment. “Listen to Africa waking up.“

We did what he said, and the experience became even more powerful, birds calling in the distance, the faint sound of animals moving, the whisper of wind through grass. When we opened our eyes again, everything looked even more vibrant, as if closing our eyes had made our other senses stronger.

The Unplanned Twist

Not everything went as planned, which Richard later told us is normal for balloon rides. About an hour into our flight, the wind changed direction unexpectedly, pushing us toward an area of the reserve that’s tough for landing.

“We’re going on a bit of an adventure now, folks,” Richard announced calmly, which made the situation feel exciting rather than worrying. “We’ll be looking for another place to land.”

For the next twenty minutes, our flight became even more thrilling as Richard skillfully changed our height to catch different air currents, searching for a good landing spot. This detour took us over a remote part of the reserve where vehicles rarely go and we were lucky enough to see a serval cat hunting in the tall grass and a rare pangolin.

The Landing

Richard told us that landing is basically a “controlled crash” and that turned out to be true. After finding a good clearing, he gave us clear instructions: backs facing the direction we were moving, knees slightly bent, holding the handles firmly, bodies pressed against the padded walls of our compartments.

“Brace for landing!” he called as we descended toward the chosen field. The basket hit the ground with a solid bump, slid a bit, tipped slightly, and then settled. The whole thing took maybe fifteen seconds but felt both longer and shorter at the same time a strange feeling caused by our excitement.

We all broke into applause and laughter, the shared experience in hot air balloon in Kenya having turned our group of strangers into something like friends.

The Champagne Breakfast

As if the flight wasn’t magical enough, what happened next was just as memorable. While we were still talking excitedly about our adventure, Land Rovers appeared as if from nowhere, having followed our flight path across the reserve.

A short distance from where we landed, under a big acacia tree, a full breakfast had been prepared. White tablecloths fluttered in the morning breeze, covered with pastries, fresh fruit, hot breakfast foods kept warm in serving dishes, and best of all champagne.

“This tradition goes back to the very first hot air balloonists in France,” Richard explained as he skillfully opened the bottle. “When the first balloons landed in French farmland in the 1780s, the farmers were scared of these strange things coming down from the sky. The balloonists started carrying champagne to show they were human and friendly not demons or aliens.”

We raised our glasses to our adventure as the African sun climbed higher, casting golden light across the savanna. The breakfast was amazing perfectly cooked eggs, local sausages, fresh tropical fruits, and Kenyan coffee that was better than any coffee we’d had before.

Back to Hotel

During the drive back to our lodge, a comfortable quiet settled over our vehicle. We were all thinking about the morning’s experiences of hot air balloon in Kenya in our own way. The balloon safari had touched us more deeply than we expected. It wasn’t just seeing the animals, impressive as they were but something more meaningful.

There was something special about seeing the landscape from above, about the silence of flight, about the change in perspective that comes with height. The Maasai Mara seen from a balloon looks both bigger and more connected than it does from the ground. Rivers that seem separate reveal themselves as parts of one system, different herds of animals show themselves as parts of greater migrations, the idea of borders disappears.

Our guide Joseph, noticing how thoughtful we had become, smiled knowingly.

“In my language, we have a saying,” he told us. “‘To understand the elephant, you must see both the stars and the grass.’ It means real understanding needs both the close-up details and the big picture.”

We couldn’t have said it better. The hot air balloon in Kenya had given us both views the close-up details of wildlife behavior seen from above, and the big picture of the whole ecosystem.

Details For You

For those who want to try this experience, here are some useful tips:

• Best time to go: During the Great Migration (July to October) offers the most amazing wildlife viewing, but any time of year is good
• Cost: About $450-600 per person, including the champagne breakfast
• Duration: The flight itself lasts about an hour, but the whole experience from pickup to return takes about 4-5 hours
• What to wear: Dress in layers—mornings can be cool, but it warms up quickly after sunrise
• Photography: Bring a camera with a good zoom lens, but also take time to simply watch without taking pictures
• Physical requirements: You need to be able to climb into the basket (with help) and stand for the whole flight

The Lasting Impression

It’s been weeks since we returned from Kenya, but the hot air balloon in Kenya remains our most vivid memory of the trip. Sometimes at dawn, when the light is just right, we’re taken back to that perfect moment floating above the Maasai Mara, watching the world wake up from a view that few people get to experience.

If you’ve been thinking about adding this experience to your Kenyan safari trip, take this as your sign to do it. It’s not just a tourist activity it’s a new way of seeing things, a lesson in nature, and possibly one of the most beautiful experiences our planet offers.

As Richard said while we floated above a herd of elephants: “You don’t really see Africa until you’ve seen it from the sky.”

Don’t Miss This Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience

Let’s be clear! A hot air balloon in Kenya over the Maasai Mara isn’t just another item to check off your bucket list. It’s an experience that will change how you see the world forever. In our lives filled with routines and screens, how often do we get to float silently above one of the planet’s most magnificent ecosystems as the sun paints the sky in colors you didn’t know existed? This isn’t just travel, it’s transformation.

We’ve seen many guests return from their hot air balloon in Kenya with tears in their eyes, struggling to find words for what they’ve just experienced. That’s because some moments in life simply can’t be captured in photos or videos they must be lived. When you’re suspended between heaven and earth, watching lions hunt at dawn or witnessing the great migration from above, you’re not just seeing Africa, you’re connecting with something ancient and profound within yourself.

Don’t wait for “someday” to experience this. Life moves quickly, and opportunities like this are precious. Book your hot air balloon safari today, and join the fortunate few who can say they’ve truly seen the magic of Kenya from the most spectacular vantage point possible. This isn’t an expense, it’s an investment in memories that will stay with you for the rest of your life.