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[seemeski123]

My wife and I are travelling to Tanzania (Lake Manyara, Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro) in September. We're only at The Serengeti for two mornings. Is it worth looking into a balloon ride and foregoing a morning game drive on the ground? My biggest fear is missing something spectacular on the ground while floating aloft? How high do they normally fly and can you see anything "different", other than the obvious perspective? I'd like to get up in a balloon (if it's really that special), but I also want to be as close as possible to all of the wildlife, and the guides know where to go for the best viewing.

Any help from anybody with experience or any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

[purplebuggy]

I'm doing a tour that offers a balloon ride over the Serengeti around the same time. EVERYONE (no exception) has said it's amazing and well worth it because you get a completely different perspective you would never get from the ground. (This is especially true with the wilderbeest migration too aparently.)

However, even with these reviews, I've decided not to do the balloon ride because I've previously done one (in Alice Springs, Australia) and didn't really enjoy it. Just a personal preference I think. If it wasn't so expensive, I'd probably still do it but I didn't want to pay $500 for something that still might annoy me a little. I'd much prefer taking a microlite/ small plane/ helicopter instead... or a game drive, haha.

My opinion - if you've never been in a hot air balloon. I'd go. It's definately an experience and you may thoroughly enjoy it like the person I went with (who even wanted to get their ballooning licence for a while!).

Hope it helps and I might see you around there!

pb

[travelmonster]

If it was me, I wouldn't go in the balloon - I've been up in a hot air balloon before and didn't think it was anything special - although I wasn't flying over the serengeti admittedly - and also of course, everyones experience is different and there are many that love it.

I think its better to be on the ground as I think - on the whole - you will see more. I've been on a couple of safaris - including in the Serengeti and I think its better to be in a vehicle, you'll be closer to everything.

[seemeski123]

Thanks for your responses. I've been up in a balloon before and it was nice. I think we'll stay on the ground and check out the wildlife below the branches. I don't know if it would be worth it unless it was the heart of the migration.

Thanks again.