FAQ

The most convenient way to register is by calling us +370 652 00510 (from 8 AM to 9 PM) or by following the link “REGISTER FOR A FLIGHT” on our website www.ballooning.lt. When registering please indicate the following: number of passengers, their names and surnames, weight, codes of tickets/gift certificates and contact information.

You can also register for a flight by sending us an email at info@ballooning.lt

Hot air balloon gift certificates can be purchased by calling +370 652 00510 (from 8 AM to 9 PM), sending us an email at info@ballooning.lt or by visiting www.ballooning.lt. Gift certificate will reach you in an elegant and neat envelope.

The flight decision, place and time are known only on the flight day. Once the place and time of take-off is determined, the information is posted on our Facebook account – Aviation Center. Also on our website – in a running line at the top of the page.

The city of Vilnius is expanding rapidly, especially in the activities of the Airport, air traffic is intensifying. From 2019, flights in Vilnius are restricted by the Air Navigation Control. If the permit to take-off is not obtained in Vilnius, the flights are automatically transferred to Trakai (25 km from Vilnius) or to other areas of Vilnius. In this case, you will be taken from Vilnius to a new take-off point, and taken back after the flight. We will provide you with all the necessary information the day before the flight, in exceptional cases the day of the flight.

We contact the passengers with the precise information on their flight immediately after the evening weather forecast is known and the meeting site and time are confirmed, but no later than 2 PM (in case of an evening flight). If a flight takes place in the morning, passengers are contacted between 3-9 PM. Passengers are informed following the order of registration.

Based on the preliminary weather forecasts, we can usually inform the passengers about the chances of flying 3-4 days in advance.

If you have indicated the desired launching site but not the precise time, we will contact you immediately after the group of people wishing to fly over the same place is formed.

Yes, it is. If the coupon has already expired by 1 month, the coupon will be renewed free of charge. Also, if you are pregnant during the validity of the coupon, have a serious injury or health problem, be sure to contact us before the coupon expires and we will renew it for free. If the coupon has expired before 3 months, 20% must be paid. The value of the coupon is determined by the prices valid on the day of renewal. If longer than 6 months, it is 50 percent. The value of the coupon is determined by the prices valid on the day of renewal.

A hot air balloon is completely dependent on the meteorological conditions: cloudiness, visibility, precipitation, wind speed and etc. Usually weather forecasts are known in advance, however sometimes they are either not entirely precise or incomplete. For this reason, the pilot may cancel the flight after reaching the start location and evaluating present meteorological conditions.

Yes, hot air balloons are one of the safest means of transportation. Thanks to their relatively simple construction they rarely break down or malfunction. Despite this fact, hot air balloons undergo yearly technical inspection. In addition, before every single flight the pilot inspects and ensures that the balloon is safe to use.

The biggest risk is attributed to the human factors, however pilots’ competence and health is strictly regulated. Every hot air balloon pilot must have a valid medical certificate and a valid pilot’s licence.

All the hot air balloon passengers are always insured according to the requirements of the European Union, thus there is no need to purchase any additional insurance before the flight.

Hot air balloon tour gives you wings. It’s a unique opportunity for a human to understand what it feels like to slowly drift above the ground and observe the life below: busy towns, enchanting nature, miniature people, cars. Surprisingly, even the people with fear of heights have the best experience.

It’s not a secret that people value new life experiences and pleasant memories way more than material presents. By gifting a hot air balloon tour, you will show a real, exceptional attention to your dearest people.

Temperature changes during the flight are negligible.  When preparing for a standard flight, we encourage you to choose clothes and shoes in which you would be comfortable on the ground. Hot air balloon flies at wind speed, i.e. along with the wind, thus the wind is not felt when in the basket. Also, the warmth radiates from the burners. Warmer clothes should be worn for flights at higher altitudes (3 km and above) but during a standard flight these altitudes are not reached.

We always recommend wearing long pants, light clothing with long sleves – in case you have to walk over hight grass once you land, or to protect yourself from mosquitoes after the flight. A light jacket or sweater will come in handy if the evening is cooler than you have expected. It is better that the clothing are made of natural fabric (i.e., cotton or other non-syntethic fiber). We also recommend having a hat to protect your head from the heat of the burners.

A particularly important piece of clothing is comfortable shoes with low heels. The most suitable for the flight are sneakers with a boot that protects the foot from stretching in case you have to land hard. It is not recommended to wear sandals and summer slippers. High heels are not allowed. Waterproof footwear is recommended in the morning.

It is allowed to film and take photos during the flight. We advise to pack your equipment into protective cases before the landing. Passengers take all the responsibility for their equipment and any possible damage caused to it during the tour.

Fill in the registration form for all the people who would like to fly. When registering the person with the flight ticket/ gift certificate, indicate the number of the ticket/certificate. When registering other people fill in the required information and indicate that you will pay on the spot.

Oreivystės centras –  is arguably the largest ballooning company in Lithuania, thus it is very likely that we will be able to accommodate your wishes and fly on your desired day if the meteorological conditions allow.

In case of rescheduling due to unfavourable weather or other circumstances, we will always firstly consider your availability and wishes!

Launch site depends on the direction and strength of the wind. After a careful consideration of the meteorological data, launch site is selected by the pilot 4 to 12 hours prior the flight. You will be informed about the meeting site and time via a phone call and/or a text message. In order for the preparation for the flight to go smoothly, we ask all the passengers to show up at the meeting place on time (or even a few minutes earlier).

Hot air balloon flight usually lasts one hour, i.e. you will spend one hour in the air. However depending on the wind speed and the availability of the sites for landing, your flight time may range from 45 minutes to 1.5 hours. The preparation of the hot air balloon for the flight and the safety briefing usually takes about half an hour. About the same amount of time is required to pack the balloon after the flight and „baptise“ the first time passengers. Half an hour is also allocated to return from the landing to the meeting site. Thus, a hot air balloon tour lasts about 3 hours or (in exceptional cases) even longer.

Baptising ceremony is a tradition followed everywhere around the globe. Everyone who has flown for the first time is baptised.

Baptising involves three elements crucial for ballooning – fire (thanks to which hot air balloon can fly), champagne (aristocratic drink, because hot air ballooning was invented by aristocrats and for a long time was constricted to the high society) and ground (because we lift up from and always come back to it). Even thought the baptising ceremony is not compulsory, we highly recommend to participate! We can assure you that you will remember it just as long as the flight itself!

Depending on the size of a balloon, it usually carries from 6 to 12 passengers. If you would like to fly with fewer people (2-4) or without any strangers, please discuss the possible options with the responsible manager in advance. The manager will offer you either a VIP flight or a romantic hot air balloon tour.

In Vilnius, Kaunas, Šiauliai and Klaipėda, hot air balloon flights are subject to regulations, thus you will fly at an altitude between 150 m to 1.5 km. In other places around Lithuania which are farther from airports and thus the airspace is not regulated, pilots are allowed to decide on the altitude themselves: balloon may fly as low as the treetops or at a higher altitude, depending on the meteorological conditions. The pilots of Vilnius Ballooning Centre always try to make sure that your flight is interesting and dynamic, thus it is likely that a part of the flight will be spent flying at a minimum altitude and the other part at a higher altitude for a more panoramic view.

Hot air balloon is completely dependent on the speed and direction of the wind. The only way in which the pilot may influence the flight path is by searching for different wind speeds and directions at different altitudes. Sometimes the wind is very weak close to the ground, but it significantly intensifies after climbing several hundred meters up. Thus the flight distance may vary from 5-10 km to over 30 km. However, as a hot air balloon flies at the speed of the wind, no wind is felt while flying. Of course, before the flight pilots closely follow the weather forecasts and try to more or less predict the landing site. Depending on the wind forecast the pilot decides on the launch site which will result in the most beautiful and safest flight trajectory.

If you would like to take off from the territory of your summer house or a site close to your house (if it’s not in the city territory) it’s possible most of the time.

If your desired launch site is not in the restricted, prohibited or simply extremely unfavourable to hot air balloons flight zone (e.g. in the middle of vast forests), it will most likely be possible to take off from your desired location or at least fly above it. However, it might take the entire ballooning season (or even several) to plan the take off from Point A and landing at Point B. In addition, it is easier to plan a launch from a particular site than a landing at a particular site.

The landing site is chosen by the pilot based on the site availability and flying time. After considering wind speed and direction, a hot air balloon pilot starts searching for a patch of land suitable for landing which is easy to reach for the chase team. During the entire duration of the flight hot air balloon is followed by a chase team which keeps in contact with the pilot via radio communication. After the flight passengers are taken back to the meeting place in a company’s car.

Passengers are encouraged to help with both the preparation and packing of the hot air balloon. This is a great way not only to experience the joy of flying, but also to learn more about the construction of the hot air balloon and it’s functioning.

Children. Children who are at least 7 years old and 110 cm in height are allowed to fly together with an accompanying adult. If you would like to take  a younger child on the flight, we recommend to first bring the child to a launch place and observe how the child reacts to the sound of burners and the fire. 14-16 year old teenagers may fly without an accompanying adult. However, parents or guardians must take the child to the meeting place, sign the required documents and follow the chase team to the landing site.

Seniors. Everywhere around the globe it’s a usual practice for seniors to participate in hot air balloon tours. However, every passenger has to evaluate his medical state and decide whether he can fly. In case you have any doubts, please consult with your physician and inform the pilot about your medical condition.

Pregnant women. Safety comes first to use, thus we would recommend pregnant women to postpone the flight. Sometimes the landing might be a bit hard; we would not like that to hurt your baby.

If the weather conditions are favourable, hot air balloons can fly all year round. In Lithuania, the most intensive ballooning season starts at the end of April and continues until the end of October.

Hot air balloons can fly early in the morning, no later than 3 hours after the sunrise, before thermal columns (vertical air currents) start and in the evening, approximately 2 hours before the sunset, after the termals calm down.

In summer, depending on the length of the day, flights take place between 5-9 AM and 6-9 PM.

In spring and autumn, morning flights start around 8 AM, and evening flights at 4 PM.

It’s only possible to fly during the day during the cold season (late autumn, winter, early spring) when termals are not present. During the regular ballooning season balloons only fly in the morning and evening.

It is prohibited to consume alcohol before and during the flight (unless the pilot allowed to).

During the flight it is prohibited to do anything that would corrupt the safety of the flight: touch the ropes, burners, gas pipes, lean over the basket, etc.

It is prohibited to smoke closer than 25 m to the balloon; carry any arms, explosives or chemical substances; consume drugs.

Pilot has a right to refuse not sober or misbehaving passengers to board the balloon. In case the passenger has arrived to the flight drunk or under the influence of drugs, money for the tour ticket will not be refunded.

All the passengers must follow the instructions of the pilot during the entire duration of the flight.

Absolutely! We recommended to choose a different start location and route, different flight time, different season. Or surprise a loved one by taking them on a hot air balloon tour! Seeing a loved one happy will double your joy!

Do not hesitate to call us – we will make sure to find the best possible option for you!

If you are into romance – we recommend flying in the morning. These flights are refreshing, calm and natural beauty. There is a high chance to see the wildlife if you fly in Trakai, or the rising Vilnius, Kaunas or other city of your choice. Also, the morning flight is not as hot as the evening. The only thing is that you need to get up pretty early – about 5 p.m. Of course, if you find this insurmountable, we invite you to fly in the evening.

The balloon fleet of the Oreivystės centras consists of 2 – seater, 4 – seater (usually selected and flown by separate companies), 6-7 – seater, 8-9 – seater, depending on the weight of the people, 10 – and 16 – seater balloons. Smaller balloons are of older production, have no partition, but with a common space, only the pilot is separated. Larger 10 and 16 seater balloons have partitions, people are separated by 3 – 5, balloons are new, spacious, comfortable, made in 2019, so you really don’t have to be afraid of other people, because flying a bigger balloon is different from the feeling of flying with other people in a smaller one and sharing the same one space.

The size of the balloon you will fly depends on the weather, the number of people and the weight. If you really want to fly in a smaller or larger balloon, be sure to let us know when booking your flight.

Yes, all pilots at the Ballooning.lt speak either Russian, or English, or both Russian and English, so when booking a flight, tell us which language-speaking pilot you will need and we will assign you to his team

All pilots of Oreivytės Centras / Ballooning.lt are extremely responsible, wonderful people who have accumulated many flight hours. They have improved their experience not only in Lithuania, but also abroad, so you will definitely be able to feel safe and in caring hands. But if you have a favorite or someone recommended by your friend, be sure to mention his or her name when booking a flight, so that we can assign you to the team of the chosen pilot on the day of the flight.

The take-off point will depend on the wind direction and the airport permit. In Vilnius, the ascent is usually from Vingis Park, from the meadow at the bottom of Barbakan Hill or from the meadow at Žalgirio str. near Tokvila – Toyota center. In Kaunas – from the Nemunas Island or near Santaka Stadium. If the flight is in Trakai, the meeting takes place at the Trakai bus station, where the pilot picks you up and takes you to the chosen take-off location according to the wind direction and speed.

We ourselves are from Vilnius, therefore balloon flights in Vilnius or Takai take place every day in the mornings and evenings during the season, because groups gather more commonly and there are many people who want to fly. We travel to other cities only when we collect a group at least of 6 people. Before planning a trip to a certain city, we will contact you a few days before and inform you about the possibility of a flight in your city. If you can’t fly, it‘s absolutely fine, the next time we will call you again, and so on, until you finally get to fly.

Yes, of course! You can choose a separate 2 – seater balloon, and our pilot and the whole team will make sure that the surprise and that day are the most memorable and that the pronounced YES will unite your hearts for the eternal flight together!

Yes, It is possible to fly at the same time, but with multiple balloons. How many and what size balloons will be needed will depend on the number and weight of people.

The flight can be both: group and private. If you choose a group flight, we will connect you with other people. If you want to fly only with your company, you can choose a separate 2 – seater, 4 – seater, 6 – seater, 8 – seater, 10 – seater or 13 – 16 seater balloons. Please indicate at the time of booking that you will require a separate balloon.