EXPERIENCE A HOT AIR BALLOON SAFARI IN TARANGIRE

The ultimate African safari experience in Tarangire is a hot air balloon flight. Gliding across the Tarangire on your AfricanMecca tour as the sunrise stains the plains pink, you are part of the natural world, drifted by the prevailing winds so that no two flights are alike. You may rise high enough to see golden grasslands dotted with giant baobab trees; silver ribbons of the Tarangire River and its tributaries where game congregate in their hundreds in the early morning; herds of elephants, their suede grey skins offsetting white scimitar tusks as they look up at you from the shelter of scrubby acacia woodlands, and in the distance, the blue outline of the African Rift Valley Escarpment.

You may drift over dotted min-knolls of giant termite mounds, their black shadows elongated in the morning light, float low over a baobab to distract a Verreaux’s Eagle Owl with four foot wing span, settling down after its nocturnal hunt, or see eye down onto a long-necked, knob-headed giraffe. On the dry plains, herds of dazzling zebra run ahead of the balloon shadow while gazelles flash their striped rumps as they bound away (read more on when is the best time to visit Tarangire).



Your Tarangire balloon tour begins at 0400 hours with warm beverages before driving to the launch site. Burners roar and awesome flames belch into the maw of a huge, multicolored Cameroon balloon (A415 series) which brawls to rise as it fills, dwarfing the basket still tethered on the ground. 16 intrepid passengers clamber into eight wicker cells, wearing light fleeces and longs to ward off a chilled early morning breeze. Children must be over seven years old, adults less than 120 kilos and physically fit.

At 0600 hours, the ground crew releases the basket which hangs below the billowing canopy. It is rapidly lifted high above the ground. For the next hour, your skilled and licensed pilot will make optimal use of prevailing winds. A chase vehicle follows discreetly, ready to assist AfricanMecca aeronauts safely back to earth and set up a celebration champagne bush breakfast. Eggs, potatoes, waffles or pancakes and bacon, cooked on the balloon’s burners, satisfy hearty appetites. Happy adventurers receive their flight certificates before a game drive back gives a new perspective on wonders they saw from overhead.



A balloon trip over Tarangire is not cheap. Maintenance and replacement costs are high. 20 staff are required for each flight, as well as a registered pilot with over 1,000 hours experience. It is a worthwhile Tanzanian aerial holiday treat, a once in a lifetime unique experience, if you can possibly afford it (read more on where to stay in Tarangire National Park).