Luxor Hot Air Balloon at Sunrise

About this trip

Lift off at sunrise over the West Bank and watch the light reach the Nile, the fields and the temples below. Pickup is before dawn, and a boat takes you across the river to the launch field. The flight lasts 30 to 60 minutes, and you are usually back at your hotel by breakfast, with a flight certificate. A private VIP basket is available on request.

The day

1. Before dawn

   Pickup in Luxor

   Pickup from your Luxor hotel or your cruise ship while it is still dark. Dress in layers: mornings here are cold before the sun is up, especially between December and February, and warm quickly once it is. Flat closed shoes, because you climb in and out of a basket.

2. Still dark

   Across the Nile by boat

   A short motorboat crossing from the east bank to the west, then a few minutes by road to the launch field. Crossing the river in the dark, with the first grey light behind you over Luxor, is a better start to the morning than a bus would be.

3. Pre-flight

   The launch field

   You arrive while the envelopes are still flat on the ground, and watch the crews run the burners until the balloons stand up around you. Your pilot gives the safety briefing and shows you the landing position before you board. We fly only with licensed operators and pilots certified by the Egyptian Civil Aviation Authority.

4. Sunrise

   The flight

   Thirty to sixty minutes in the air as the sun comes up behind the eastern cliffs. Below you: the Valley of the Kings, the terraces of Hatshepsut Temple, the Colossi of Memnon, the green strip of farmland along the river, and the Nile itself with Luxor on the far bank.

5. After landing

   Landing and your certificate

   The chase crew meets the basket wherever it comes down, usually in a field between the villages. You get a flight certificate, and the photographs people keep are often the ones taken on the ground next to the balloon as it deflates.

6. Usually by breakfast

   Back to your hotel

   Back across the Nile and to your hotel or your ship, normally in time for breakfast and with the whole day still ahead of you.

Questions about this trip