Wonders of Flight

This place was rated highly on TripAdvisor for attractions to visit near Pigeon Forge. Go before noon to get discounted prices at $ 12 (after 12pm it’s $ 17). There’s only one hot air balloon that can hold about 20 people per session. When it was our session’s turn, there’s a photographer that will take a picture of you before you get on the balloon; you can preview the picture for purchase after the session ends. Only after getting on the balloon did I realize that it’s kept anchored to the ground with cables to keep the sessions at 10 – 15 mins. It goes up high (500ft), but not that high and there’s a safety net around the balloon. We still had decent views and plenty of opportunities to take pictures. The certified hot air balloon pilot gave a great talk during the session and very friendly too. Definitely recommended for anyone in the area. Plenty of free parking space in the lot.
Tickets can be purchased online ahead of time too, and if you do, it’s recommended to call the day of the trip as the operation of the balloon ride is subject to weather conditions.
Plenty of nearby restaurants to satisfy your hunger delight too.

We loved it. Go before noon for better prices. From outside the balloon, it doesn’t really seem that high and you wonder if it’s really 400 feet. From inside the balloon, you definitely feel like it’s 400! Any slight amount of wind on the ground can put the balloon out of service, so it can be hard to time.

This was a neat and fun, but cold way to see parts of Pigeon Forge. The cost was around $ 16.00 a person if I remember right and we were the only two riders of the craft (on our first go anyway.).
The operator was hilarious the first trip and made us laugh the whole time, it was a fun and entertaining experience, but the second flight he was much quieter and didn’t talk as much or humor us. We did get a second flight for free because on the decent down a single rider purchased a ticket and he told us that he wasn’t allowed to fly just a single person and wanted to know if we would ride again, so we agreed to.
The trip was very cold, surface temp was in the lower 30’s and it was windy, so you could imagine how cold the temp was at 400 feet (haha). Also, don’t let him know that you are afraid of heights of flying like the other person did on the second trip. He showed us how they test the cables that attach the platform to the balloon. (By jumping up and down) then let all of us do it. that poor guy was about to cry. Overall this was a very fun trip and very entertaining.
The balloon is filled with helium, it isn’t a true «hot air» balloon but then again I don’t think that they advertise it as such. But then again that would probably raise the cost because of the fuel. and I doubt they could house 29 adults max if it were hot air.
Overall I gave this attraction 5 stars because we got a second ride. if it weren’t for that I would have given it 4 stars. only because the ride length wasn’t that long at all. You spend more time ascending and descending than you do at the top. (It may have been because it was cold, but who knows.) I would definitely be interested in doing this flight again. thanks for the great time!