What began as a mini crisis of confidence over a $320 USD excursion charge on a backpacker budget, quickly became one of the most memorable travel experiences of my life. Not only did a trip with Balloons Over Bagan include spectacular views and champagne as promised in the brochure, it also introduced me to an incredible group of 18 pilots and an entire world I didn’t know existed.
The Idea
When you first begin researching activities in Myanmar’s former capital of Bagan, you’ll quickly come across hot air ballooning. The notion of floating over some of the 2,000+ thousand-year-old temples and stupas that dot the arid landscape is enough to delight amateur and professional photographers alike. Top it off with a champagne breakfast and a healthy amount of GoPro pictures taken by the pilot and many travellers are ready to sign on the dotted line. However, balloon rides aren’t cheap. It was hard enough for me to swallow the $320 USD bill for one person; never mind imagining the damage to the wallet for a family of four opting for the ‘premium package. Nevertheless, relative to the flight over to this side of the world and the total bill for several months of travel, what’s a few hundred more dollars? So I too signed on the dotted line.
Both the ‘regular’ and ‘premium’ packages entail a 45 minute early morning flight, with substantial pageantry before and after the flights. If you’re celebrating a birthday, anniversary, or perhaps considering a proposal, which I’ve been told happens quite often, then a hot air balloon ride should most certainly be in your travel plan.
The Experience
So there I was, waiting for a pick up at 5am outside my B&B in the cold darkness of the early morning. Exactly on schedule, a refurbished antique mini bus pulls up and out pops a guide with a clipboard. I’m the last to get on the bus, there are 16 of us in total, some still in various states of sleep. After a quick 20 minute drive to the launch site – a golf course just outside of town – one of the pilots welcomes and ushers us to a waiting area in a field. Chairs and lanterns are set up in a semi-circle for guests, while tea, coffee and cookies are on hand. With 12 balloons flying that day, the pilot explains they have over 200 guests and outlines some basic safety rules. For the next 30 or so minutes we wait and eagerly watch as the crew wrap up the final steps of prepping the balloons. Each blast of flame to inflate the balloon provides yet another photo op. With ten crew per balloon, the Balloons Over Bagan operation is slick and bigger than I had expected.
Before I know it shouts of “come aboard, come aboard” are urgently being made our way, and I’m climbing into the basket along with 15 other passengers. Within seconds we’re off, for what proves to be an incredibly smooth and unexpectedly extended ride. Once permitted out of the seated takeoff and landing position, guests are free to snap away as much as they like – though note, selfie sticks are not allowed. Between capturing shots on my DSLR, making GoPro videos and just a few cellphone selfies (excessive, I know), I still had ample time to simply relax and soak in the breathtaking view.
Between radioing the other balloons to communicate position and trajectory, pilot Mike Petteford points out various noteworthy temples as we pass by. To be clear, due to a combination of mother nature and new government regulations as of 2014 restricting flights directly over the main temple ‘zone’ to 300 ft or higher, you pass by the temples relatively quickly and at a distance. Your views are just as much, if not more, about farmers’ fields, little villages and the stunning sun rising over the mountain range as it is about flying over ancient ruins. This is disclosed only in the fine print by most of the balloon companies. And since you’re in a balloon being guided by the wind, there are no guarantees of what you will see or where you will land.
Mike divulges that thanks to the stronger than usual prevailing wind, our balloon had travelled further than any other trip he has made in his four seasons of flying with Balloons Over Bagan. Eventually we land in the countryside adjacent to a small village with residents who had never seen a balloon up close before. Within seconds of landing a swarm of children approach the balloon basket, followed by their parents and grandparents with smartphones in tow. Yes, they may not have stable electricity sources or paved roads, but pretty much everyone in Myanmar now has a smart phone and Facebook account. Another photo op presents itself.
We wait a few minutes to disembark the basket as they deflate the balloon, otherwise given the lack of weight to hold the balloon down, it would be off on an unplanned “bonus” trip. As we wait, crew members quickly set up champagne and seating at the edge of the field. The pilot leads a customary toast and everyone appears quite pleased they have ‘survived’, receiving an official certificate to mark the occasion. Photo ops abound.
Guests return to their accommodation via the same antique mini buses by 9am, their wallet a little lighter, their camera’s memory card a lot fuller. However, as I shared that I’m writing an article for a travel website during the flight, Mike made sure my adventure with Balloons Over Bagan wasn’t over quite yet. Saying yes to the ‘behind the scenes’ experience, I rode back to town with the crew and balloon in the back of a large flatbed truck, peppering them with questions between ducking to avoid tree branches. Later that afternoon I had the opportunity to meet up with over a dozen of the pilots and crew members for a beer, or two, as they celebrated one pilot’s birthday and return to the company after being gone for several years. I was amazed at the community I had managed to ‘infiltrate’.
The Pilots
With literally little else to do in Bagan except visit temples, the community of balloon pilots here lead an interesting existence. Nobby Simmons, Chief Pilot for Balloons Over Bagan agrees “part monastery, part fraternity” is an accurate summation. These well paid expats hailing from New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Spain, Canada and US amongst others all reside in one of the higher end resorts in Bagan. Often spotted around town enjoying their meals or a pint together, the pilots never seem to be alone. They are quick to admit that they wouldn’t necessarily be friends outside of work, but much like summer camp, it’s easier to make friends versus go it alone.
Over 90% of the pilots in the company are males, a reflection of the industry overall. Ages range from mid-twenties to mid-fifties. I can attest there are quite a few comedians and pranksters amongst the bunch. With some of the fiercest nicknames in the group, the two women on the Balloons Over Bagan team do an admirable job of keeping the egos of their male counterparts in check. While they all certainly know how to party – and thanks to me, they now know how to play flip cup – at the end of the day, they mean business. Happy hour by the pool or the weekly poker night all wrap up quite early, as work begins just after 3am.
Behind The Scenes
I’d like to think it was my charming personality or legendary flip cup skills that secured an invite for a second flight with the pilots a few days later. Realistically it was thanks to Departful. This time around there was availability in one of the smaller premium baskets, which holds only 8 guests versus the normal 16. I’m yet again impressed beyond belief. Watching a balloon inflating from the outside is exciting until you’re allowed inside to see and feel huge flames blasting towards you. While I did feel completely safe, it’s not for the faint of heart.
Thanks again to mother nature, the wind on the second trip was nothing short of perfect, allowing for more time close to the temple zone itself. I started to feel sorry for the guests who rode a few days earlier rather than today. Luck of the draw I suppose. Sunrise this morning was particularly exceptional as well.
While I was proud of my own pictures, seeing some of the shots taken by various pilots over the years was humbling to say the least. Views fit for a king, or rather a queen, as was the case in the recent flight hosting Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck, Queen Mother of Bhutan.
The photos of the Balloons Over Inle operation successfully instilled serious fomo for my decision to not include this region in my itinerary. For Inle Lake, temples are replaced with lakes, floating villages and mountain ranges. The kicker, you literally land on a floating platform that meets the balloon on the lake. Can you say ultimate photo op? If you’d like to follow in the footsteps of rock royalty, choose Inle Lake over Bagan, as Bono did.
With a nearly full memory card, the conversation on board with Mike turns back to the ins and outs of the operation. The strict adherence to safety protocols such as no selfie sticks become clearer. One bad flight has the potential to ruin it all for Bagan’s three balloon companies. A guest drops a selfie stick and damages a temple below – you’re grounded. A pilot flies a little too close to the top of a stupa with the balloon basket – you’re grounded. A multi-million-dollar operation could be gone in the blink of the eye if one displeases the local government. With 12 balloons, Balloons Over Bagan is the largest operator in the region, and actually has one of the largest fleets in the world. It’s clear, maintaining a positive reputation is paramount.
The Balloons Over Bagan pilots have somewhat of a tradition, taking their local crew out for breakfast once a week. A meal with 20+ members of the crew provides the chance to try several local Burmese dishes. Between bites, pilots take jabs at one another. They call out who had issues launching, who had the best and worst landings, who strayed the most from the target landing site and so on. The more time you spend with the pilots, the more you realize how much of an art flying a balloon is. Apparently commercial pilots dismiss them as not ‘real’, while hot air balloon pilots see those in planes as lazy thanks to autopilot.
Time with the pilots also sheds valuable light on the life of the local crew and support staff. Giving back and supporting others is at the foundation of life for the predominantly Buddhist Burmese people. It’s common practice to have families divide their income into three equal parts: 1/3 living expenses, 1/3 saving and 1/3 donation to those less fortunate. If only we could all abide by such a simple philosophy. The $20 USD fee collected for GoPro photos from the flight goes directly to the crew. It’s common for the crew to take the sum at the end of the flying season and donate it to the local hospital rather than use it for an end of year party. These guys will forever have a piece of my heart.
The Verdict
Within 72 hours in Bagan, I had flown in a hot air balloon twice, asserted my dominance in flip cup, and shared several meals with an incredibly hospitable group of pilots. While this experience was certainly a unique one, it’s not impossible to replicate, at least in part, if you’re willing to simply introduce yourself to the Balloons Over Bagan crew. If schedules permit, grab a post flight pint with them, the stories you’ll hear – several of which are not appropriate to read here – are sure to be a highlight during your travels to Myanmar. Don’t forget to tell the guys ‘the Canadian who used to market beer’ sends her best.
While I flew as a guest of Balloons Over Bagan for a portion of my travel, the opinions expressed in this article are unbiased and completely my own.
Learn more about Balloons Over Bagan here.
Photos for Balloons Over Bagan by Madeline Burch and Balloons Over Bagan.
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