Australia
Sunrise flights cross central Melbourne from AUD 480 and the Yarra Valley vineyards from AUD 395, all year. Summer meeting times start as early as 4:00 am.
| Operator | What you get | From | Length | Group | Min age | Weight limit | Cancellation | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Yarra Valley FlightIncludes Return transfers between the meeting point and the launch and landing sites, Free in-flight photos on most flights, Free parking at the meeting point |
A$395 per adult |
1 hour in the air, 3 to 5 hours in total including breakfast |
6+ | Pilot cancellations get an emailed rebooking link; valid 12 months. Standard fares non-refundable, premium refundable. No changes within 7 days. | Check dates | |||
Melbourne FlightIncludes Return transfers between the meeting point and the launch and landing sites, Free in-flight photos on most flights, Flight certificate on request |
A$480 per adult |
1 hour in the air, 3 to 5 hours in total including breakfast |
6+ | Pilot cancellations get an emailed rebooking link; valid 12 months. Standard fares non-refundable, premium refundable. | Check dates | |||
Yarra Valley Flight Only |
A$495 per adult |
Approximately one hour in the air |
Free changes over 7 days out; AUD 50 per person from 7 days to 48 hours; none within 48 hours. Refunds cost AUD 25. | Check dates | ||||
Melbourne Flight OnlyIncludes Complimentary in-flight photos |
A$605 per person |
Free changes over 7 days out; AUD 50 per person from 7 days to 48 hours; none within 48 hours. Refunds cost AUD 25. | Check dates | |||||
Exclusive private flightIncludes Private balloon, Free in-flight photos, Transfers from the meeting point to the launch and landing sites |
A$1,995 per group |
2 to 24 in the Yarra Valley and Geelong, 2 to 12 in Melbourne |
Non-refundable; no changes within 14 days of the flight. Full payment by bank transfer confirms the booking. | Check dates | ||||
Yarra Valley Private FlightIncludes Private pilot and ground crew, In-flight GoPro photos, Chance to help with set-up and pack-down, Flight and ground insurance, Digital flight certificate, Balloon magnet |
A$2,950 per group |
Approximately 1 hour in the air |
2 to 150 passengers across multiple balloons |
Free changes over 7 days out; AUD 50 per person from 7 days to 48 hours; none within 48 hours. Refunds cost AUD 25. | Check dates |
From each operator's own website, checked October 21, 2026. How we compare.
Global Ballooning says no other major city in the world can be flown over by hot air balloon. Its city flights meet at the Pullman East Melbourne, where self-drivers park for AUD 10, or pick passengers up from selected CBD hotels. Go Wild Ballooning meets at the Sofitel Melbourne on Collins, 25 Collins Street, and suggests parking on Lansdowne Street between the Treasury Gardens and Fitzroy Gardens. Go Wild drives passengers from the meeting point to the launch and back from the landing; neither operator names its city launch parks.
Over the city, Go Wild names the MCG, the Eureka Skydeck, Port Phillip Bay and the Yarra River, which its flights drift above; Global also names the MCG and the Yarra. Global notes that all its launch and landing sites lie on Wurundjeri and Taungurung ancestral lands. Go Wild flies a third area too, over Geelong, where it lists the Bellarine Peninsula, Port Phillip Bay at sunrise and the Southern Ocean.
Yarra Valley flights start 40 to 50 minutes' drive from the CBD, by the operators' own estimates. Go Wild meets at Chateau Yering Hotel, 42 Melba Highway, Yering, its partner for more than 25 years. It says the Fraser brothers founded it in 1989 and made the first Yarra Valley balloon flight from their family vineyard, Tarraford, near Yarra Glen. Both companies describe vineyards, hills and the Yarra River below. Go Wild adds that the Melbourne skyline and Port Phillip Bay can show on clear mornings, and Global that kangaroos may be spotted at sunrise.
Go Wild asks passengers to arrive an hour before first light. It estimates meeting times of 4:00 to 5:15 am in summer, 4:15 to 5:30 am in spring, 5:15 to 6:00 am in autumn and 5:45 to 6:30 am in winter. The pilot sends the exact time the night before, and passengers must reply by SMS or call between 6:00 and 6:45 pm or forfeit the flight. Pilots turn their phones off after 7:30 pm.
Inflation takes about 30 minutes at Go Wild, and passengers can help or stand back and take photos. The flight lasts about an hour with both operators. The pilot picks a safe landing site, and Go Wild says landings range from upright to a gentle lay-over on the basket's side. Helping to pack up is optional. Both companies offer free in-flight photos, which Go Wild takes on most days at the pilot's discretion and emails afterwards.
Breakfast is an add-on with both. Go Wild's city breakfast is a champagne buffet at No35 Restaurant in the Sofitel for AUD 45, with cooked dishes and a glass of sparkling wine, and it must be added at booking. Its Yarra Valley champagne breakfast at Chateau Yering costs AUD 40. Global charges AUD 650 for a city flight with a buffet at the Pullman East Melbourne, against AUD 605 without, and AUD 540 for the Yarra Valley with breakfast at Balgownie Estate. Go Wild says to allow 3 to 4 hours, or 4 to 5 with breakfast.
Go Wild publishes meeting times for all four seasons and says its flights run 7 days a week, depending on the area. Both companies fly at sunrise, and Go Wild credits the Yarra Valley's cool, stable dawn air for good ballooning. A CASA-certified pilot watches the weather and decides, and Go Wild warns that cloud can spoil the view even on a morning that is safe to fly. A postponed flight gets an emailed link to rebook within 12 months of the original date.
From April to August 2027, Go Wild also sells winter afternoon private flights of 30 to 45 minutes; any validity left after 31 August converts to a Yarra Valley sunrise flight. It accepts no private-flight rebookings from 19 December 2026 to 8 January 2027, or on public holidays, Cup Eve and Valentine's Day, and bookings close on Christmas Day. When Global's city flights are full, it points passengers to a Yarra Valley package with breakfast and CBD transfers.
Go Wild Ballooning is the cheaper of the two. Its Yarra Valley flight costs AUD 395 on weekdays and AUD 415 at weekends and on public holidays, and its Melbourne flight AUD 480, with children 6 to 12 from AUD 355 and AUD 430. Those standard fares are non-refundable but can be rebooked and transferred, and a refundable premium fare costs AUD 40 more. Weekday bookings must be rebooked on a weekday, and the Yarra Valley fare allows no changes within 7 days.
Global Ballooning charges AUD 495 for the Yarra Valley flight alone, AUD 525 with CBD hotel transfers, AUD 540 with breakfast and AUD 570 with both. Go Wild's CBD transfer to the Yarra Valley costs AUD 65 and runs from the Sofitel. Global's city flight is AUD 605, with or without a CBD hotel pick-up. Global allows free changes more than 7 days out and charges AUD 50 per person from 7 days to 48 hours, with no changes inside 48 hours; refunds carry a AUD 25 fee.
Private flights start at AUD 1,995 with Go Wild, for 2 to 24 people in the Yarra Valley and Geelong or 2 to 12 over Melbourne. They are quoted by enquiry, paid in full by bank transfer and strictly non-refundable, with no changes inside 14 days. Global's private Yarra Valley flights start at AUD 2,950 and its Melbourne ones at AUD 5,800, with a private pilot and crew, GoPro photos and a digital certificate. Go Wild takes children from 6, and Global requires under-12s to fly with an adult.
from A$395 per adult
Yarra Valley Flight and 2 more options
Says the Fraser brothers founded it in 1989 and made the first Yarra Valley balloon flight from their family vineyard near Yarra Glen
from A$495 per adult
Yarra Valley Flight Only and 2 more options
Says it has flown since 1992
Prices and policies come from each operator's own pages, read on October 21, 2026. Seasons, rules and local details come from the pages below.