• We require a minimum of four (4) passengers in any one balloon to fly. All flights are group flights, so you will likely be with other guests to ensure we have at least 4 people per balloon.
• A minimum of two (2) passengers are required for any Private flight.
• Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
• Children must be at least 8 years old and 50″ tall.
• Weight limit of 250 lbs. / person or 430 lbs. / couple applies
• Pregnant women may not fly
• Anyone having recent surgery or broken bones may not fly.
• Anyone having joint replacement within the past two years may not fly.
• (We still recommend you clear any issues with your doctor prior to flying.)
• All flights are weather dependent.
• All passengers are required to read and sign our Passenger Release (PDF)

FLIGHT CERTIFICATE DELIVERY

All flight certificates are emailed within 24 hours of order receipt. If you are unable to receive and/or print the flight certificates via email, please call us and we will mail the certificates via US Postal service. When US Postal Service delivery is requested, we will ship them within 48 hours of order receipt.

PASSENGER CHECK-IN ON FLIGHT DAY

Once your reservation is completed, and you have received a confirmation from us, you are confirmed for that days flight. Your check-in time is included in the email confirmation you received. If anything changes on your end, please call us. If something changes on our end, such as weather, we will call you at the contact number you have provided. It is your responsibility to ensure we have a valid contact phone number and you are available. Please arrive at the given meeting location on time. We will leave for the launch site approximately 10 minutes after the meeting time. If you are not present, it will be considered a no-show. Please see the policy below on no-shows. If the weather changes after you check-in, and it becomes unsafe to fly, we will contact you to let you know as soon as a decision is made. We will then work with you to reschedule.

SCHEDULING FLIGHT CERTIFICATES

Once you purchase flight certificates, we will mail the certificates and other documents via United States Postal Service. Present the flight certificates and other paperwork to whomever you intend to give the ride to and have them contact us to schedule. Since we have no clue who you give them to, we will not contact you to schedule. It is your responsibility to make sure the recipient contacts us to schedule their ride. Please have your calendar handy so we can pick a mutually agreeable time when you contact us. If we are unable to fly the first opportunity for any reason, you can contact us to reschedule at your convenience.

REFUND POLICY

All of our flight certificates are fully refundable at any time prior to check-in for your first scheduled flight. All refunds will be issued to the original purchaser in the original purchase method (Credit card purchases will be refunded via the same credit card) if possible. If not, a refund will be issued via company check. No refunds will be issued to no-shows, those that show up intoxicated or anyone who has forfeited their flight certificate for any reason covered in these policies. Additionally, no refund will be granted after one (1) year of no contact either from the time of initial sale, or for one (1) year after a cancellation of a flight. This does not mean the flight is forfeited, even if you call us after not hearing from you for more than 1 year, we will still schedule the flight and honor the certificate. It is just no longer eligible for a refund. Please note though that we dispose of all records after ten (10) years. Flight certificates are considered abandoned and are discarded after ten (10) years of no contact and are then considered forfeited.

In short, just stay in touch with us so we can get your ride accomplished. We want to fly someone for every certificate sold and will work with you however possible to make it happen, but honestly, after 10 years of not hearing from you, we are going to give up.

NO-SHOW POLICY

No-shows is anyone who failed to show up for a flight after reserving and checking in. No-shows have a substantial impact on our business. As a result of no-shows we either flew an aircraft only partially full, or we didn’t fly at all. Either way we incurred the same expense to fly whether we were able to fly you or not, therefore a no-show will result in a forfeiture of your flight fee or deposit and we will consider our obligation for that flight to be fulfilled. No refund will be possible since we incurred the cost of the flight in your absence. Please make sure to allow sufficient time for arrival at the meeting location, and call us if you are running late.

WEATHER CANCELLATION POLICY

Weather is always a concern and does force cancellations and rescheduling of flights. If it clearly isn’t going to be flyable for your date and time, we will tell you when you call to check-in. If all appears well, or we aren’t sure, we will schedule the flight. If the weather changes after check-in and becomes unsafe to fly, we will call you to cancel and reschedule the flight at the next available opportunity. Please make sure we have a recent phone number to contact you. If we cancel your flight due to weather, simply call us to reschedule your flight.

CANCELLATION POLICY

If you cancel at least 48 hours prior to your scheduled flight there is no charge. If you cancel with less than the required notice, fail to call to check-in, or fail to show up the morning of your flight, we will charge the full amount to the card on file as a cancellation fee, or your flight certificate will be considered forfeited. Should we cancel for weather or safety concerns, we will call you to let you know. Even if you have already called to check-in, we will still call if anything changes. Of course, should we cancel, you will have the option of rescheduling or incurring no charges at all.

PAYMENT OPTIONS

We are pleased to accept MasterCard, Visa, Discover, American Express, and cash.

Are we insured?
We are insured by an American-owned, A+ rated insurance company.
What time are the balloon flights?
We meet about 30 min. before sunrise. The exact meeting time will be included with your balloon ride confirmation.
Where do we meet?
The address to our meeting location is: 2700 Ridge Point Drive, High Ridge Missouri 63049. ( Map)
Where will the balloon land?
A balloon flight is dependent on wind speed and direction. Every flight is different and our landing sites vary.
What should I wear?
Ballooning is an outdoor sport activity, so you should wear whatever you feel comfortable in and the type of clothing that you would expect to wear for a walk in the countryside on the day you fly. For women, climbing into the gondola will be very awkward in a dress or skirt. It is strongly recommended that all shoes worn should have flat soles. Please do not wear flip-flops or open-toed shoes.
Can I take a camera?
Absolutely, there is always plenty to photograph both prior to the flight, during and afterwards. You may bring a video camera also. We recommend that you have a suitable soft case, including carry strap, with you to stow and protect the camera during the landing. Bring extra memory cards and batteries. Panoramic cameras are nice for scenery.

You will hear all kinds of crazy things when you start shopping for a balloon ride. Some of the things we hear that are shared with potential guests are just completely wrong, some are bold faced lies, and some of the stuff is just downright comical. Our view has always been that part of our responsibility is to educate anyone who is looking for a balloon ride, and help them make an educated and informed decision on who to fly with, even if they don’t in the end choose us.

HERE ARE THE FACTS:

Fact: All balloon ride companies are required to have F.A.A. certified commercial pilots in order to fly passengers for hire, It’s the law.

Fact: All balloons are inspected annually or every 100 hours, whichever comes first to the exact same safety and maintenance standards as a brand new aircraft, regardless of the age of the aircraft, It’s the law.

SOME THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR:

1. Make sure the company you are speaking with actually owns and operates their own balloons and isn’t just a certificate reseller. There are MANY scams out there on the internet that will sell you a flight certificate they never intend to honor just to get your money. We have always owned and operated our own fleet of balloons and do not honor any 3rd party flight certificates.
2. Assuming they own their own aircraft as mentioned in item 1, and if you are buying a flight certificate, always ask if it is refundable, transferable, and if it has an expiration date! Our flight certificates do not expire, and are refundable up to your first scheduled flight date or one year from purchase.
3. If the company you are researching charges non-refundable booking fees, or requires you to pay a portion of the flight up front as the only option for booking with them, we urge extreme caution. While it is customary to get a credit card number to hold/confirm a reservation in case of someone not showing up, it is not customary to require a non-refundable booking fee or to pre-charge for the entire flight as the only option for booking a reservation. While we do sell flight certificates to be used at a later date, we do NOT charge any booking fees or charge up front for reservations. You should not be required to prepay to make a reservation.
4. What are their policies for rescheduling and cancellations due to weather? Mother nature never listens, we all know that. We DO NOT charge in advance for reservations. If we are canceled due to weather, you can either reschedule or incur no charges at all. Our check-in and no-show policies do apply though, so read through those.