Couple Trip to Pamukkale and a Flight in a Hot Air Balloon

Hey there! This is Andriana from Brazil, and here with me is Marco – my beloved partner Marco who has no idea that I am writing this post. Two months passed after we turned back from our vacation to the other continent, and finally, I dedicated some time to share our experience. This post is mainly about Pamukkale which is located in Turkey. It was not the only one stop in our long-distance journey. So, stay tuned, more stories are coming soon.

Turkey was our 4th destination after Spain, Italy, and Greece. I will miss the part of our crazy long flights, numerous transfers, and nights in the airports, and I suggest that we are getting closer to our trip to Pamukkale. Why do I want to start from there? Simply because it was my almost well-planned surprise for our anniversary – 5 years together. And I wanted to do something special and memorable on this day. What surprise? I will tell you a little bit later. Therefore, after a few days in amazing Istanbul, where we were engorging kebab, doner, and delicious baklava, we set off to Denizli.

We picked up a ride on a bus basically because it took us directly to Denizli in less than 8 hours and cost much cheaper than a flight, only 20 euros for two persons. In Denizli, we rented a car for 3 days only for 60 euro and headed to our hotel in Pamukkale. We booked 3 nights in Venus Suite Hotel with a very cool outside pool that we had no need of, yet we had a lot to see around.

Over a couple of years, I have heard and seen a lot of posts on Instagram about Cappadocia and it inspired me so much. I became obsessed with the idea of getting a flight balloon ride there. But my boyfriend belongs to those people who don’t like to follow the flow of tourists and he just literally told me "over my dead body". So, I was like "Okay, okay, honey". Of course, he didn’t assume that I was planning a surprise for our anniversary and I really wanted us to fly in a huge air balloon. I didn’t fall into despair and started looking for other options where we could possibly have such a wonderful experience.

WOW! Insane! WOW! These were my first words when I check the photos of Pamukkale. Even now I feel sorry that so many people don’t even have an idea of Pamukkale and are bombarded with Insta posts of Cappadocia. It is a little bit unfair. But lucky are those who discovered this place because as we were told Pamukkale has plenty of visitors and in summer it is packed. I decided that in this place I was gonna carry out my secret plan called "Flight operation". I came across the website Pamukkale Flights balloon flights and quickly did the online booking for two people. It was strange to me that they didn’t ask for any deposit but the girl I was texting with assured me that our flight would take place on the 17th December.

The day we checked in, a member of the Pamukkale flight team came to our hotel so I could pay for our flight that was gonna happen on the following day. I just asked Marco to wake up with me early so we could watch balloons. It was extremely difficult to exhort him because you know "Andriana, it is our vacation… why not sleep longer… you will see it another day", but I managed to persuade him. At night I couldn’t fall asleep because of excitement and anxiety while he was snoring peacefully. My alarm woke us up at 5:30 a.m. and was immediately snoozed for 10 minutes more. With the second alarm, there was only one thought in my head "coffee, coffee, coffee" but great that we could get a cup in the lobby. Then Marco was mumbling something under his nose that made me more enthusiastic to get at a launch site.

He was surprised seeing a van waiting for us near the hotel and that was a moment when his eyes got bigger and that amazing smile appeared on his face. When we arrived, many balloons were getting inflated. And we were gonna take off with hundreds of other hot air balloons just in a couple of minutes. It was the last chance to take a few selfies and we jumped into a basket and took off. Now we were awake.

It was absolutely incredible and seemed like a balloon festival that takes place annually in some other places in the world but here every day and we, in fact, are the participants not only viewers. It was a little bit terrifying just when we were taking off but it was wonderful. Everyone armed themselves with professional cameras and phones and started recording videos and taking photos. We were not an exception. It was important not to forget listening to our pilot, Murat, who was sharing with us some instructions.

Now… we all were anticipating. The sun showed up over the horizon...The first rays made the view more spectacular and outstanding. It was really worth waking up so early. Peace and serenity that what I was enjoying the most. First, 20 minutes people were kind of hyperexcited and loud but after they got used to this state, we could enjoy the views in silence. We were flying over the Pamukkale national park and its thermal waters, white travertines, and Hierapolis. We could see people start gathering on the ground to watch balloons and they were waving to us. Just amazing! Even now I lack words to describe the beauty of the landscapes and views. The most important that Marco was happy and we could share this experience together.

The noise of fire was in help to create this atmosphere. I could still hear it in my head even after landing. From time to time, the captain put more fire to get us higher. He was so great at maneuvering the balloon. A few times the same question popped up in my head "How are they keeping the balloons from bumping into each other? How?" It is an extremely difficult job and for sure you will not trust your life and health to somebody without years of experience. Our pilot, Murat, has been flying for more than 10 years, speaks great English, and has a wonderful sense of humor. He felt the mood of all us, when we were into keeping silence and when we wanted to listen to some stories. So you shouldn’t even read Wikipedia because the pilot will tell you everything and answers all your questions. I think they all got used to curious tourists.

There were 18 people in our basket plus the pilot. In our mini-compartment, there were 4 of us, two couples. It is fantastic that people from all over the world come to Pamukkale. Our basket consisted of Brazilians, German, French, Americans, and a girl from Morocco. A real multicultural team. I cannot say that I would prefer us flying alone because I believe that shared experience is doubled experience. Marco and I were really happy to meet more travelers.

Frankly speaking, the landing was the scariest part and even not as scary as sad. One hour flied really quickly. At the last minute, our pilot asked us to hold the handrails and we smoothly landed on the trailer. All in all, it was reported that we flied 13 kilometers per hour, reached up to 900 meters from the sea level, and spent 1 hour and 6 minutes in the air. Pamukkale Hot Air Balloon team prepared a small celebration to congratulate all of us on our flight. A great party like in good French traditions. Another chance to take photos with all the guys. We also received a certificate as a small gift for memory but I and Marco got much more – unforgettable experience and a great beginning of our anniversary day.

I think that indeed, more than 1000 tourists make this event so magical… just because there is such a high demand for hot air balloon flights, we managed to see such a marvelous view with hundreds of balloons floating all together. An incredible experience that in fact is quite affordable. We spent 180 euro for two and I assume it was not a high season. So you can always save money even on expensive activities if you plan them beforehand. I booked our flight three weeks before the trip. If you are still in doubts whether a balloon flight is worth its price, then our answer is YES YES YES! It is once in a lifetime experience and you will never find a more beautiful place to do it than Pamukkale. Don’t hesitate because when you turn 80, you will have a lot to remember and share it with your grandchildren.