Adventure
Hot Air Balloon Marrakech: What a Sunrise Flight Is Really Like
A practical guide to a hot air balloon ride in Marrakech: timings, the best season, what you see, safety, what to wear and how much it costs.
Float over the countryside outside Marrakech at sunrise, with views to the Atlas Mountains, then enjoy a traditional Berber breakfast. Hotel pickup included.
Seeing the plains around Marrakech wake up from a hot air balloon is one of the most memorable ways to start a day in Morocco. This early-morning experience includes a round-trip transfer from your hotel or riad, a flight of about one hour with a licensed pilot, and a Berber breakfast in a tent at the landing area.
Pickup is before sunrise, usually between 05:00 and 06:30 depending on the season. The drive to the launch site in the countryside outside Marrakech takes around 30-45 minutes. While you sip tea, the crew inflates the balloon, and the pilot gives a short safety briefing on how to stand in the basket and how to adopt the landing position.
Once airborne, the balloon drifts with the wind over farmland, palm groves, dry riverbeds and small earth-built villages. On a clear morning the snow-capped High Atlas stands out on the horizon, as the sun lights up the peaks. The pilot varies the altitude during the flight, from just above the fields to several hundred metres, so you get both close-up and panoramic views. Exact routes depend on the wind, which is part of the charm.
After landing you are driven back to a tent for a traditional breakfast: msemen and baghrir pancakes, amlou (almond and argan spread), honey, olive oil, bread, eggs, fresh juice and mint tea. You'll receive a flight certificate before being driven back to Marrakech by late morning.
For another adrenaline fix, try our Palmeraie quad bike and camel ride, or read more in our Marrakech destination guide.
Your driver collects you from your hotel or the nearest accessible point to your riad; exact time depends on sunrise.
Warm up with tea and a light snack while the crew inflates the balloon and the pilot delivers the safety briefing.
Around one hour in the air as the sun rises over the plains and lights up the Atlas Mountains.
Transfer from the landing site to the tent for a traditional breakfast and presentation of your flight certificate.
Drive back to your accommodation, arriving mid-morning.
Pickup from your hotel or riad in Marrakech and the Palmeraie. For riads deep inside the medina, the driver meets you at the nearest point accessible by car, confirmed the day before.
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A practical guide to a hot air balloon ride in Marrakech: timings, the best season, what you see, safety, what to wear and how much it costs.
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