Turkiye Balloons Cappadocia — Local services in Avanos

My friend and I had a balloon ride with Turkiye balloons, chosen because we wanted a great service. We were left very disappointed. I also messaged them afterwards and they did not address my points and said they would follow up. They actually just stopped replying to me altogether. Given the number of balloon companies, I would go elsewhere.

The communication beforehand was lacking. We didn't get any information emailed to us about the flight though we we supposed to and did get an email booking confirmation (they said a problem with the system). My friend had given the wrong phone number so we didn't get a text which is our fault. We did message them the day before and call them to find out. When we were picked up the driver didn't even say hello At the first site there was again no welcome or information on what was happening. There was lots of shouting at first which had us worried there was a problem, it seemed resolved when more staff turned up The breakfast bag food was inedible and no one ate it The flight lasted less than 40 minutes according to my photos when it's advertised as approximately 1 hour. Lots of other balloons were still in the sky when we landed, that had taken off similar time to us We were very low over the ground for a lot of the time and above a graveyard for a long time There was difficulty getting the balloon basket onto the trailer after the flight with everyone still in it The cake served afterwards was not good, I threw it away after trying it The celebratory drink was almost all juice with less than half a shot of something fizzy added (certainly not even prosecco), this was not as advertised as it stated champagne reception The staff shouted at guests to come over for the drink in a rude manner The only time staff paid attention was to try to sell an...

Hot air ballooning in Cappadocia should be on everyone’s bucket list! It seems like every travel influencer, micro influencer, or wannabe influencer has a photo of themselves in a pretty dress, maybe posing with breakfast, and a sky full of hot air balloons in the background. Thanks to Instagram, this little area has a constant influx of tourists, so reservations for the balloon ride itself is a must. Book at least a few months in advance to be safe.

I made the reservation through my hotel. It was efficient via email, and they didn’t markup the price compared to booking directly. There’s a wide range of balloon companies - mine was on the pricier side at 180 euros, but it came highly recommended by the hotel for their safety and professionalism. I figured when I’m flying high above the ground, I shouldn’t skimp on quality anyway!

The balloon company picked me up from my hotel at 4:45 am via shuttle. I was the last person on due to my proximity to the Turkiye Balloon office. The shuttles drop off at the office for breakfast while they wait to be cleared for flying. Flights are cancelled often due to weather. I was lucky and my day was the first in a few days to fly.

About an hour later, we were driven to the fields to our balloon. You are in the air by 6 am and the flight time is just under an hour. On my morning it was really cold - literally 1 degree Celsius on the ground, so probably below freezing in the air. Wear layers!

I got a cold after the flight, but it was so worth it! The pilot was skilled, navigating the balloon right into the valleys without hitting the sides of the rocks. The view with sunrise was amazing.

After the flight, they had a champagne toast and some small snacks, as well as a certificate of completion. Then they drive you back to your hotel.

Such an...

Clear communication Punctual pick-up in a clean vehicle/van Smooth ride Excellent timing on ascent and decscent, allowing passengers time to fully enjoy the view and the sunrise. (A couple of other ballons descended before sunrise). before takeoff, they give you a small gift bag with bottled water, a juice box, and a few snacks; plus a cool 'Flight Certificate' at the end as memorabilia. the cake and non-alcoholic champagne/ juice was a sweet and enjoyable closing to the adventure.

Opportunities for Improvement:

Improve the landing instructions. They/The pilot needs to give better and clearer instructions about landing protocols. Instead of one guy turning his head back and forth to speak to 20+ people spread out over 4 sides of the balloon over the sound of wind, fire, and mechanics, he can make two seperate clear announcements to each side so all passengers can hear the instructions. Their current strategy made it impossible for some of us to understand what he was saying or when the instructions were relevant. Our entire bucket was confused, but this is an important landing safety announcement that shouldn't be rushed or minimized. When we returned from the balloon ride, the van smelled like cigar or some kind of smoking as if the driver was taking a cigarette break in the van. Would be nice if drivers were more considerate to those of us who care abour our lungs and don't want to smell like smoke, and not smoke in vehicles.

Hopefully, management implements the recommendations.

Overall, we had a fantastic time and...