Hot Air Balloon Rides at Flower Festivals

It is Sky Week, also known as Aviation Awareness Campaign Period, in Japan. It is on until September 30th, 2026. It has inspired me to write about all things sky related. I love that Japan's observances give me so much food for thought, so to speak. Yesterday, I wrote about helicopters, today - hot air balloons in Japan.  

I took the photo above at a Cosmos Festival a few years ago. At that time, before the pandemic, it was fairly common to come across an opportunity to go up in a hot air balloon at a flower festival. The opportunities seem to have diminished since the pandemic, but they do still exist. 

When there is a hot air balloon 'experience' available at a festival, it is usually just a moored ride. In other words, you don't travel far - literally just go up in the air for about ten minutes and come back down again. This way, they can accommodate more people in a short period of time. 

You still get to see and photograph the flowers from above, which is magical. And you get to say you have been on a Hot Air Balloon ride! Best thing is; these types of hot air balloon experiences usually only cost around 2000 yen for adult and often young children get to go free.