Wine Country Balloons
from $250 per person
Prepaid Flight and 2 more options
Calls itself Sonoma's oldest ballooning company
Quick picks
- Lowest price Wine Country Balloons $250 per person for Prepaid Flight
- Private flight Wine Country Balloons $1,500 per group for Private Flight
Every option side by side
| Operator | What you get | From | Length | Group | Min age | Weight limit | Cancellation | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Prepaid FlightIncludes Transportation fees and taxes |
$250 per person |
Non-refundable; must be booked 72 hours before meeting time and is charged at booking. | Check dates | |||||
Sunrise Join-In FlightIncludes Pre-flight coffee, tea and light snacks, Champagne toast after landing (sparkling cider available) |
$265 per person |
45 minutes to 1 hour in the air; plan for 3 to 4 hours total |
8 years old and at least 57 inches tall | No single per-person limit; approximate weight is requested at booking | Cancel 72 hours ahead; no-shows charged in full; weather cancellations are rescheduled or fully refunded. | Check dates | ||
Reserved FlightIncludes Transportation fees and taxes |
$275 per person |
Book at least 12 hours before meeting time; card is pre-authorized and charged only after the flight or on a no-show. | Check dates | |||||
Sunrise Join-In FlightIncludes Pre-flight refreshments, Champagne toast on landing |
$275 per person |
45 to 60 minutes aloft, about 3 to 4 hours total |
8 years old and at least 57 inches tall | Cancel or reschedule 72+ hours ahead; no-shows forfeit payment; weather cancellations rebooked or refunded in full. | Check dates | |||
Join-in tour |
$299 per person |
All flights are weather dependent; no other terms published. | Check dates | |||||
Private Flight |
$1,500 per group |
2 to 20 passengers |
Suitable for all ages | Check dates | ||||
VIP Flight for 2-4 |
$1,500 per group |
Private, 2 to 4 guests plus the pilot |
8 years old and at least 57 inches tall | Private flights have a 30-day cancellation policy. | Check dates | |||
VIP Flight for 2-6 |
$1,500 per group |
Private baskets for 2, 3 to 4, or 5 to 6 |
8 years old and at least 57 inches tall | Private and VIP flights have a 30-day cancellation and rescheduling policy. | Check dates |
From each operator's own website, checked October 21, 2026. How we compare.
Sonoma Skypark, Glen Ellen and the Russian River
Sonoma Ballooning inflates at Sonoma Skypark, its home base five minutes from the Sonoma Plaza, on about nine mornings in ten. It also holds approval for Glen Ellen and Kenwood, short drives up the valley, plus Santa Rosa Airport and the Russian River, which are farther. Pilots read surface and upper winds before dawn, then choose the field that gives good views and somewhere safe to come down.
Skypark flights look over vineyards, oak-covered ridges and the Mayacamas, and on very clear days San Francisco Bay. Glen Ellen lies between the Sonoma Mountains and the Mayacamas, while Kenwood's vineyards sit below Sugarloaf Ridge and Hood Mountain. Launches from Santa Rosa Airport cross the Laguna and valley-floor farms. When the only smooth air is to the east, Sonoma Ballooning offers an optional flight from Yolo County, about 45 minutes away, over open Sacramento Valley farmland; passengers can decline and rebook.
Santa Rosa Ballooning flies over Santa Rosa and the Russian River Valley. Up & Away says it is based minutes from Healdsburg, with views of the Russian River and local wineries. Wine Country Balloons, which describes its area as Santa Rosa and Sonoma Valley, says its chase crew follows by road and that the landing spot is not known until the balloon reaches it.
Month-by-month start times and a champagne landing
Sonoma Ballooning publishes a start time for each month: 5:30 am from May to August, 6:00 am in April and September and 7:00 am in December and January. In late October it is 6:45 am, moving to 6:15 am once daylight saving time ends. Arrive 10 to 15 minutes early, since no-shows are not rebooked. Santa Rosa Ballooning lists the same times, puts the exact one in your confirmation and confirms by phone the evening before.
Sonoma Ballooning serves coffee, tea and light snacks before launch, then keeps passengers aloft for 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the wind. Pilots land in large open spaces close to a road. A champagne toast follows, with sparkling cider for anyone who wants it, and the company says to plan on 3 to 4 hours in all, with no set finish time. No food or drink is allowed in the basket. Wine Country Balloons does not publish a timeline, saying only that the cool early morning gives the steadiest air.
Morning fog, Yolo County and the July classic
Summer is the steadiest season, according to Sonoma Ballooning, while September and October add harvest color and winter offers calm air and occasional sightings of the Golden Gate. Fog, rain and strong wind ground flights, and the company looks for surface winds of about 3 to 6 mph. It keeps several launch sites because mornings here can be foggy, and says its cancellation rate stays low without giving a figure.
Sonoma Ballooning and Santa Rosa Ballooning both try to rebook a weather cancellation during your stay and refund in full if they cannot. Wine Country Balloons notes that strong wind can stop the crew from even setting up the balloon. The 2026 Sonoma County Hot Air Balloon Classic ran July 18 and 19 at the Sonoma County Event Center at the Fairgrounds in Santa Rosa, opening with a pre-dawn glow show. Tethered rides there cost $15 and are sold only at the event.
Pay-after-flight, weekday rates and the 57-inch rule
Wine Country Balloons bills its $275 reserved fare after the flight: the card is pre-authorized and charged once the flight is complete, or on a no-show. Its $250 prepaid fare is charged at booking, must be booked 72 hours ahead, cannot be refunded and holds the price for a year. Both include taxes and transport fees but not gratuity. The company calls itself the oldest balloon company in Sonoma and sells private flights for 2 to 20 people from $1,500.
Sonoma Ballooning charges $265 Monday to Thursday and $285 Friday to Sunday, with no taxes or service fees added and tips optional. Santa Rosa Ballooning, which its site footer lists under a Sonoma Ballooning LLC, charges $275. Both set a minimum of age 8 and 57 inches, need 72 hours' notice to cancel and apply a 30-day policy to private flights, which start at $1,500 for two. Sonoma Ballooning has no single weight limit; it asks each passenger's approximate weight at booking for the FAA-required weight and balance.
Sonoma Ballooning also sells whole balloons to groups at flat prices: $4,389 for 14 passengers and $5,016 for 16, with local transport and gratuity included. It can put as many as 70 guests in the air on one morning. Up & Away lists $299 daily but does not say if that is per person, and sells private flights for couples and group charters when available.
Before you book
- Sonoma Ballooning asks you to arrive 10 to 15 minutes early; no-shows are charged in full and not rebooked.
- Wear pants, layers and tennis or hiking shoes; open-toed shoes, heels, skirts and dresses are not suitable.
- Bring a phone or camera on a neck strap. Selfie sticks, backpacks, purses and camera bags are not allowed on join-in flights.
- Summer and harvest weekends fill weeks ahead, and Sonoma Ballooning suggests booking private flights 4 to 8 weeks out.
- Getting there. Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport (STS) is 7 miles northwest of downtown Santa Rosa, with nonstop flights from cities including Seattle, San Diego, Las Vegas, Denver and Phoenix.
The operators
Sonoma Ballooning
from $265 per person
Sunrise Join-In Flight and 1 more option
- Length
- 45 minutes to 1 hour in the air; plan for 3 to 4 hours total
- Age
- 8 years old and at least 57 inches tall
- Weight
- No single per-person limit; approximate weight is requested at booking
Sonoma Skypark is home base, used for about 90% of flights
Santa Rosa Ballooning
from $275 per person
Sunrise Join-In Flight and 1 more option
- Length
- 45 to 60 minutes aloft, about 3 to 4 hours total
- Age
- 8 years old and at least 57 inches tall
Launches from the Santa Rosa valley floor toward the Russian River wine country
Up & Away Ballooning
from $299 per person
Join-in tour
Daily sunrise flights
Sonoma County questions
How much is a hot air balloon ride in Sonoma County?
Shared sunrise flights cost $250 to $299 per person. Wine Country Balloons charges $250 prepaid or $275 paid after the flight, Sonoma Ballooning $265 on weekdays and $285 Friday to Sunday, Santa Rosa Ballooning $275, and Up & Away $299. Private baskets start at $1,500.
What time do Sonoma County balloon flights leave?
Flights go once a day around sunrise. Santa Rosa Ballooning lists departures of about 5:30 AM from May through August and 7:00 AM in December and January, and suggests planning on 3 to 4 hours in total.
Head to head
More hot air balloon rides in California
- Napa Valley, California from $280
- Temecula, California from $179
- Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley, California from $250
Sources
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.
- sonomaballooning.com/where-we-fly
- santarosaballooning.com/faq
- up-away.com
- winecountryballoons.com/frequently-asked-questions
- sonomaballooning.com/faqs
- winecountryballoons.com/booking
- santarosaballooning.com/policies
- sonomacounty.com/events/...
- schabc.org/tickets
- winecountryballoons.com
- sonomaballooning.com
- santarosaballooning.com
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
- visitsantarosa.com/events/...