Commercial hot air balloons typically fly between 5,000 and 6,000 feet — about 0.9 to 1.1 miles.

In Cappadocia, hot-air-balloons mostly fly shortly before and after sunrise. Take-off times vary between 5:00 - 7:00 AM depending on the season. We rarely organise afternoon flights in winter season depending on the suitability of weather conditions.

We have more than ten balloon launch sites located alongside the Rose Valley, Swords Valley, Kizilcukur Vadi in the centre of Cappadocia. Your air balloon flight path will be determined by the wind direction.

Hot air ballooning is an incredibly safe activity. Unlike other types of aircraft (helicopter, plane, gliders), hot air balloons have significantly less mechanical components, therefore, involve a minimum level of risk from its equipment. Furthermore, hot air ballooning is strictly regulated in Turkey by the Civil Aviation Authority.

Some Cappadocia-specific features make hot air ballooning even safer. Ever wonder why Cappadocia has become the hub of hot air balloons? The answer lies in the ideal geographical features of Cappadocia for ballooning. It offers the most suitable weather conditions (light winds, dry, blue skies) and topographic characteristics (large plains over valleys for safe landing) for ballooning in the world, permitting to fly approximately 220 days over a year.

The wind speed sometimes can vary significantly at low altitudes, which cause bumpy landings. Passengers may experience a bump when landing if the speed of the wind suddenly increases at the altitude of 1-2 metres. However, this does not concern a safety risk for passengers on condition that they abide by the safety rules and instructions.

In Turkey, hot air balloon firms are required by the Turkish Civil Aviation Laws to provide insurance for their passengers. Cappadocias Balloons and the whole fleet are insured by the largest insurance firm of Turkey, Eureko (Achmea). This insurance protection provides comprehensive coverage for the whole feet, valued at €30.000 for each passenger.

In the event of cancellation due to unsafe weather conditions, we will provide a full refund for your cancelled flight. Alternatively, depending on the seat availability of the next day, we might be able to reschedule your cancelled flight. In the off-season, we mostly can offer an alternative flight for our unlucky customers while in the peak season, we’re less likely to be able to reschedule cancelled flights.

You can change your pickup location prior to your scheduled flight by emailing to sky@cappadociasballoons.com. Please note that the new address should be located in the towns of Cappadocia (Urgup, Goreme, Uchisar, Ortahisar, Mustafapasa, Avanos, Cavusin, Ibrahimpasa, Derinkuyu, Kaymakli and Ozkonak, Nevsehir).

You might be charged reissue fee if the date you wish to reschedule your original flight is in peak season. Please note that booking changes are subject to seat availability.

Differing fees may apply depending on the reservation and cancellation period. In the event of voluntary cancellation within 2 days to the departure time, you will be charged at 100% of the cancelled reservation value. To be eligible for a full refund, you must have sent your cancellation request with the details of your booking to sky@cappadociasballoons.com at least 7 days before the departure time.

The table below shows the refund fees for different cancellation periods.