Rainbow Ryders Hot Air Balloon Co. — Local services in Glendale

Amazingly smooth ride and a great way to experience hot air balloons for the first time! 9.5/10. Let's get into it.

Location: The home base is tucked away in the industrial jungle that is this side of Glendale, and was a little tricky to navigate to in the dark (get there by 4:30am for the sunrise flight). You turn in on 103rd ave, the stoplight (Google Maps is a little confused as to the actual turn-in), and then find your way around to the back end where the entrance is. A lit-up sign would be very helpful for navigation here. The office itself was clean and stuffed with people! I didn't realize that there were roughly 7-8 balloons going all at once, and that we'd be launching from the same place (out near the White Tank mountains). The office and bathrooms were clean, however, with areas to sit and stand. You're given a little laminated "boarding pass" with a QR code to the liability waiver which is color-coded based on your pilot to keep everyone organized. You'll go together in vans with others flying with you. We stopped a few times to check weather conditions, but eventually made it out to our launch spot.

Flight Conditions: I couldn't tell what I should wear on this excursion-- it was going to be about 70 in the morning, and I thought it'd be colder as we went higher-- but then again, the craft is powered by flamethrower. It turned out to be very warm indeed from the flame and the sun, so dress accordingly (I went from feeling bad for the girls who wore shorts and were shivering while we waited for the balloons to inflate to being jealous because I was sweating in my fleece-lined leggings). I was also expecting it to be a little bumpy, just from wind, but it was an incredibly smooth and pleasant ride (I'm a person who gets seasick and took Dramamine just in case, but I didn't need it). Be wary if you're wearing a dress-- you need to kind of clamber into and out of the sectioned-off basket and if you're short, you may struggle to get in or out without flashing someone. Also, you're in fairly small sections with 2-3 other people, so if you like your personal space, be aware you may not have any for the hour.

Flight: The flight was amazing, lasted for about almost an hour (5:50am - 6:40am) we learned more about the process and expected heights (2-4,000 feet, up to 8,000 and more from our pilot, Jesse), we saw several landmarks from a beautiful vantage point. The only drawback is it's still Arizona, and if you think the desert looks brown and gray from the ground, it's overwhelmingly dismal in the air. The balloons are magnificent, however, and being able to see the other balloons all around (and far above, at some points), was incredible. It felt amazingly safe, we moved quite sedately. You'll be told how to brace yourself for landing, and it went just fine. We also had some champagne (and water and orange juice) afterward, while the amazingly fast crew packed everything up. Then we hopped back into the vans and drove back to Glen Harbor (arriving back around 7:45am). You should expect to be out for 3-4 hours-- it could have taken longer to find the right launch point, set up, and take down.

Overall, it was a lovely time, unforgettable. I will say the improvements I would make are: 1. start even earlier so you can see the sun rise from the sky (the pictures would've been amazing-- as it was, the sun was already up by the time we got going), and 2., to give a 5-minute warning before we're going to start leaving. I arrived at 4:24 and went to the bathroom, I considered going again when we suddenly started getting herded toward the doors at 4:40. I was by myself so if no one was there to say "my person's in the bathroom," I wondered if could have been...

DO IT! I absolutely recommend the hot air balloon ride and rainbow ryders and have nothing but good things to say so I'm going to break it down below so you can just read the parts you may have questions about. The price was definitely worth the experience. The views were breathtaking and it was a bucket list item for sure. I stuck with only adding 2 photos to the review but truly could have added over 50 pictures and videos.

Staff: I have so many things to say. But first let me start off with if you are nervous to do it, I felt completely safe and serene on the ride. I had Kyle as my pilot and Jane and Kyle's brother (I am so sorry I can't remember your name) as our supporting staff and they were all great. They made you feel safe and their energy was everything you needed at 5am. Kyle was funny and very knowledgeable about the local area (pointing out different sites) and about hot air ballooning.

Price/Experience: The price and experience, for about 260 in total including the tickets, tip and souvenirs I still felt the price was worth the experience. As soon as you get to the site and sign the waiver there's not much down time. There's about a 20-30 min ride to and from the launch site and it's great to get to know the others joining on the ride and the staff. I personally enjoyed watching other balloons ascend and descend and the set up/clean up of the balloon I went on. There's even a little champagne toast and celebration at the end of the ride. And some prepackaged snacks while you're waiting to check out. The tickets seemed to sell out fast and seemed to be about 20$ cheaper if you buy them a few days in advance at least around the time I went (177 versus 199).

The company: I would also like to say I very much respect rainbow ryders as a company. The hot air balloon ride has been a last minute decision for me. And I had called them Friday night asking if they had availability for Saturday sunrise. Unfortunately they did not but the staff was so kind and helped me get into contact with their "competitors" who could accommodate date me. Plans changed again and I ended up scheduling with rainbow Ryders and am very glad I did.

Overall I highly recommend the company/staff and experience and I would totally...

It’s with great pleasure that I throw Five-Stars at this excellent company. My initial fears about “what if they ‘fly anyway’ and weee craaa…” were quickly dispelled. All told, this is a first-class, professionally run company. They know what they’re doing and they’re efficient about it. Our pilot, Kyle Laxton (who had a bit of a cowboy persona) (maybe more than just a “bit”), was superb. Ditto his able assistant, Jane—the chase car driver, balloon inflator and balloon putter away-er, doing the latter while we enjoyed an adult beverage and photo op after our soft and very smooth landing. If a balloon ride like this is on your bucket list, these people won’t let you down.

I’m 73—and will say it was somewhat of a challenge getting in and out of the basket. Getting out was actually easier, but, kissing the ground afterward seemed appropriate. (Kidding.) Once you’re in the basket, the high sidewalls give you a feeling of safety—as does Kyle as he gives commentary about the flight.

What happens: Getting up for the sunrise ride created a sense of excitement as a drove down Phoenix highways at 5:30 in the morning and only had a smattering of cars around us. We followed another vehicle into the parking lot and I was surprised at the number of cars already parked. I was not expecting to be part of a five or six balloon watch with about a hundred other people, thinking this would be just us, in "our" personal balloon. When you get inside the building, you fill out their disclaimer, are given a pilot's name and he calls you over to his van for about a 15-minute ride to a launch location. They send up a trial balloon to see which way the wind’s blowing, and begin the inflation process which is entertaining to watch in and of itself and soon, you're looking down into people’s back yards and highways that had become much busier. The nice thing about Lyle is that he's smart about what he's doing and got us in the air quickly. At one point he stated “We’re a mile up now,” and you feel compelled to grip your cell phone a...