Luxor Travel Guide: Conquering Your Fear of Heights in a Hot Air Balloon

Luxor Travel Guide: Conquering Your Fear of Heights in a Hot Air Balloon

But let us be brutally honest for a moment here. Having fear of heights, when you hear the expression “hot air balloon ride,” you definitely don't think, “That would be fun.” That does not sound like a great way to spend your vacation. On the contrary, that sounds like a great way to develop sweaty palms and a racing heart rate and silently beg to be firmly planted on the ground.

However, every year, thousands of people from all around the world come to Luxor, Egypt, to climb into a wicker basket and rise into the air at sunrise one thousand feet up.

Why do they do it? Because hot air balloon ride in Luxor is one of the most magical experiences of traveling in the world.

Now, if you absolutely must see Valley of the Kings, temples, and Nile river from above, but you simply cannot bring yourself to stand on high balconies because of your fear of heights, do not despair. You do not have to give up your dream of seeing these sights from up above due to your fear. Here are some helpful tips for you.

Part 1: Why Ballooning Doesn’t Feel Like Other Heights

The greatest terror one can have about heights generally arises from certain places such as tall buildings, the transparent viewing platforms, mountain cliffs, or high balconies. At such locations, you would feel completely vulnerable. You look straight down into a deep vertical plunge, and your mind is screaming that you’re going to fall to death any moment.

Hot air balloons operate in an altogether different way. Once you comprehend the principles behind their flight, it will do wonders in easing your fear:

There is no wind resistance: A hot air balloon will fly at the same speed and in the same direction as the wind that surrounds it. As a result, there is no rushing air. Once in the sky, there is no sense of motion at all. There is no swaying, no turbulence, and no vibration of the engine.

It feels like looking at a map that is alive: The hot air balloon flight does not offer the terrifying sensation of a sheer fall down from great heights. Instead, you can see the whole world spread out before you in the form of a long horizontal panorama.

The basket is solid and safe: You are not standing on an open deck but in a large basket, which is made of heavy woven wicker and reaches up to chest height. You have walls all around you, so the brain tricks you into feeling secure and closed-in.

Part 2: Step-by-Step Mental Tricks for Flight Morning

Even with the physics behind you, the feeling of anxiety is indeed a physical response. When your alarm sounds at 4:30 AM and you suddenly find yourself standing on a dark launch pad in the desert with huge fires blazing above your head, you may get some nerve.

Use these easy psychological techniques in such a situation to stay calm:

1. Keep Your Mind Busy on the Launch Pad
When you get there for the first time, make sure your eyes are busy. Watch how the ground team works together to inflate huge nylon envelopes with fans. Listen to the sound of burners roaring. It helps you focus on the physical mechanisms of how the whole system operates and prevents your thoughts from wandering in anxious "what-ifs."

2. Focus on Each Minute at a Time in the Lift-Off
For the majority of those who have fear of heights, the actual take-off time is the most terrifying. Tell yourself that all you have to do is to focus on the first two minutes. After you have taken off without any problems and discovered that you won't be dropped, your adrenaline will automatically switch from being scared to amazed.

3. Look Towards the Horizon and Not Directly to the Ground Below You
Your sight is entirely in your control. If looking down at the ground below you makes you feel queasy, then do not do it! Look straight ahead towards the wonderful golden horizon, the magnificent limestone mountains, and the beautiful ribbon of the Nile River.

Part 3: Practical Tips for Anxious Flyers

When you finally take the leap, there are some little things you can do to change everything when it comes to your comfort:

Position yourself in the middle compartment: Hot air balloon baskets are usually segregated into compartments, with the pilot and the burner situated in the middle. On boarding, check if you can position yourself in one of those compartments as opposed to standing at the edge of the basket. It makes you feel secure and gives you an added shield of sorts from the open edge.

Discuss with your pilot: Pilots are faced with nervous passengers every morning of the year. Tell them how you are feeling! They are professionals who will ensure that your ride is smooth, will make you laugh through their jokes, and will inquire about your well-being throughout the journey.

Wear sunglasses: It sounds like a simple piece of advice, but wearing your sunglasses shields you from bright glare, and makes you feel protected from the sky.

Part 4: What It Actually Feels Like Once You’re Up There

Let us have a look at the real experience to be well prepared for it.

At the moment of lifting off when the burner starts its work and you start rising into the sky, one thing will definitely impress you – silence. There won't be the noise of an airplane or a helicopter engine, just some blasts of warm air from time to time.

When the sun starts appearing on the horizon and paints the sky with its delicate shades of pink, orange and gold, your nervous system undergoes an extraordinary transformation. The natural beauty of the scenery overtakes you. You look down and see the awakening East Bank with its old temples and the resting in the shadows Valley of the Kings on the West Bank.

You understand that you are not struggling with gravity, but just floating. Your anxieties of 4:30 AM vanish without a trace.

Final Thoughts: Will You Regret It?

Fear is a genius in itself. It thrives on making us miss out on our life's most beautiful moments by keeping us in our comfort zones, supposedly to protect us.

If fear succeeds, you'll be safely lying in your hotel bed—and come evening, you'll be looking at pictures taken by other travelers of those golden sunrises, ruins dating back to several thousand years ago, and rivers of green, envying them for their bravery.

Every year, thousands of travelers who are mildly or moderately scared of heights take off in Luxor. Every one of them gets out of the basket after the hot air balloon ride with the same words: "I can't believe I was ever so afraid!"

Put trust in the equipment, put trust in the skillful pilot, and float up high. You'll be pleasantly surprised when you discover how wonderful the views from high up are!