Girona from the air: a hot air balloon flight over the volcanoes of the Garrotxa and the Empordà
There is a way of travelling that is completely different from the usual one: it means going unhurriedly, aboard a sustainable means of transport that lets you look at the world from a bird’s-eye view, enjoying the peace you feel while floating suspended from a hot air balloon.
Everyone agrees that a hot air balloon flight in Girona is one of the most pleasurable experiences there is.
In fact, Jules Verne himself sensed as much back in 1863 — ten years before he travelled in a hot air balloon for the first and only time — when he published his novel Five Weeks in a Balloon. In it he tells the story of Doctor Samuel Ferguson, an English explorer who decides to cross the African continent aboard a hot air balloon.
From then until now, aeronautical technology has advanced enormously. Means of transport have even been developed that can cover great distances in very little time. Whereas in Jules Verne’s day Phileas Fogg needed 80 days to go around the world, today he could circle the globe on commercial flights in under 50 hours.
But if what you are looking for is a more genuine and authentic active tourism experience — following the philosophy of slow travel — you will not find a better means of transport than the hot air balloon. If you want a unique travel experience that connects you with the present moment, climbing into the basket and taking a balloon flight is as good as it gets.
Your curiosity must be piqued by now, so read on: in this article we explain how to get to know the province of Girona from a bird’s-eye view.
Give us a moment to light the burner and begin the ascent.
Ballooning in Girona to enjoy the volcanic silence of the Garrotxa
You may be staying in one of the best hotels in Girona on a golf trip, having booked several days to play at Camiral Golf & Wellness. But since you have a few free days left, you have decided you want to do something unique and unrepeatable. Would you fancy watching the sunrise from the air, wrapped in an almost mystical silence? Imagine feeling the golden warmth of the first rays of sun while you hang suspended from a hot air balloon. Can there be anything better? We do not think so.
Flying over the Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Natural Park goes far beyond a simple aerial excursion; it is an experience without equal, one that invites you to look at the planet from a privileged spot.
When the silence of dawn is broken by the crackle of the burner blasting hot air into the envelope, any sense of hurry fades away completely. As the balloon begins to rise, memories of traffic jams or the endless ringing of the telephone on an office day slip into the background and suddenly become a thing of the past.
The visual spectacle of a sleeping volcano in the Garrotxa
Height always offers better perspectives for watching phenomena such as sunrise or sunset. That is why more and more people go for a drink on Girona’s rooftops as the sun goes down.
The same is true of balloon trips. At more than 1,000 metres up, looking at the volcanic relief of the Garrotxa reveals a natural architecture impossible to perceive from the ground, when you are on, say, a hiking route. As the golden light begins to uncover the outlines that can barely be made out on firm ground, you can see, from a unique perspective, volcanic cones as emblematic as the Croscat, or the crater of Santa Margarida (inside which a solitary Romanesque chapel stands).
But the best part of this balloon ride over the Garrotxa is letting yourself be carried by the wind, gliding gently above a tapestry of impossible contrasts: the beech wood that sprang up on a lava flow at the Fageda d’en Jordà merges into the various landscapes of cultivated land at the nearby farmhouses. And if you look towards the horizon, you will be able to make out the range of the Pyrenees in the background, rising imposingly to the north.
Ideal weather conditions for a hot air balloon flight
As we explained in this article on golf in Girona, the province has a perfect microclimate for any active tourism activity. But the particular relief of the area means that gentle winds, together with the cold morning air masses, offer favourable conditions for safe and pleasant ballooning.
In fact, the first hours of the day are the right ones for balloon flights in Girona since that is precisely the moment with the best visibility and the most stable atmospheric conditions. And if on top of that you are lucky enough to get some haze — a very typical phenomenon of the Empordà dawn — just wait until you see the photographs you will be able to take.
A cava toast and a gourmet breakfast at a farmhouse after landing
Tradition dictates that on landing — after a balloon ride — a ritual takes place involving speeches, the awarding of certificates, a toast and a picnic. This ceremony has its origin in the glass of champagne drunk by the first crew to complete a balloon flight, in Paris in 1783. To commemorate the feat, everyone who climbs into the basket for the first time receives a baptism of the air that ends with a toast presided over by the captain of the craft.
At Girona Tours we have given this ceremony an even greater touch of exclusivity: once you are back on the ground, what we do is lay on a gourmet breakfast accompanied by Catalan cava, which can be held next to the balloon or at a farmhouse set up for the occasion.
What we want is to round off the experience in the air with a gastronomic tribute in idyllic surroundings. That is why we will take you to an eighteenth-century farmhouse we work with, so that you can eat a genuine country breakfast, but one conceived with zero-kilometre gourmet produce.
At this breakfast you will taste — with a glass of selected Catalan cava in your hand — produce such as artisan cured meats from the Garrotxa, matured cheeses made by local shepherds, freshly baked farmhouse loaves or extra virgin olive oil from the DO Empordà.
While you savour the finest local food, you will go on savouring the emotions stirred up during the balloon flight. Because great experiences deserve to be lived fully and consciously, and then recalled again and again with good produce on the table.
And if you want to give the Garrotxa more than a single morning, you can combine it with our private two-day break around Girona and the volcanic Garrotxa.
Shall we start saving you a place on the next balloon flight?