- 1h30 to 2h before sunrise
Hotel pickup
We pick you up 1h30 to 2 hours before sunrise, so there is time for a clear briefing, for all your questions and for tea or coffee before the flight, and time to move to another take-off place if our pilots decide the wind requires it.
Our driver collects you from your hotel or riad. If your riad is deep in the medina, we meet you at the nearest place a car can reach and tell you exactly where the evening before.
The drive takes you out of the city to our launch field in the countryside. Many guests doze a little on the way.
- At the field
Tea, coffee and local biscuits
It's still dark. You sit down for mint tea, coffee and local biscuits. This is a good moment to use the toilet before the flight.
- Before the balloons are prepared
Your pilot's briefing
Before the crew starts preparing the balloons, your pilot sits with you and gives a full briefing in person: how a balloon flies, how to get in and out of the basket, where to hold on, what will happen in the air and how to stand for the landing.
We do it first on purpose, so there is plenty of time for questions. If you feel nervous about flying, this is the moment: talk to your pilot, ask anything, and you will step into the basket calm and confident. There are no silly questions.
- Before take-off
The inflation
Big fans blow cold air into the balloon, then the pilot fires the burner and the envelope slowly stands up. It's loud, warm and glows like a lantern. Bring your camera.
- Sunrise
Lift-off
Most people don't even feel the moment the basket leaves the ground. The field just drops away, and the sun comes up over the High Atlas while the other balloons rise around you.
- 45 to 60 min
The flight
The balloon travels with the wind, so there's almost no breeze in the basket and no feeling of speed. You drift over Berber villages, olive groves, dry riverbeds and farms, and on clear mornings you can see the snow on the Atlas.
There is no fixed route: each morning the wind decides where we go, and the pilot chooses a safe landing field along the way. Your pilot keeps talking to you during the flight, explaining what you see below, what the balloon is doing and what comes next.
- Landing
Back on the ground
Before landing, the pilot asks everyone to take the landing position. Most landings are gentle. Sometimes the basket bumps, tips onto its side or slides a few metres, which is normal and part of the adventure. More about landing.
Stay in the basket until the pilot says you can get out. Our chase crew is already there to help.
- After landing
Breakfast and certificates
Each group sits at its own private table for a traditional Moroccan breakfast, not a buffet: msemen, baghrir, honey, homemade jams, dates, olives, fresh cheese, almonds, fresh fruit and fresh orange juice. Your pilot hands out your flight certificate.
- Late morning
Back to your hotel
We drive you back to Marrakech. You are at your hotel with most of the day still ahead of you.
Typical times by season
These are approximate. We always send you the exact pickup time the evening before.
- Summer (June to August): pickup around 4:30 to 5:00, back around 9:00 to 9:30
- Spring and autumn: pickup around 5:00 to 6:30, depending on the month. See every month
- Winter (December to February): pickup around 6:30 to 7:00, back around 11:00
Questions people ask
How long is a hot air balloon flight in Marrakech?
You are in the air for 45 to 60 minutes. The whole experience, from hotel pickup to drop-off, takes about 4 to 5 hours. Your morning, step by step.
Can you see the Atlas Mountains from a Marrakech hot air balloon?
On clear mornings, yes. The High Atlas is on the horizon to the south, often with snow on the peaks from winter into spring.
How long are you actually in the air?
Between 45 and 60 minutes, depending on the wind and where the pilot finds a safe landing field.
Why do balloons fly so early in the morning?
The air is calmest around sunrise. Later the sun warms the ground and the wind becomes less predictable, so balloons fly at dawn and land before mid-morning.