The Hartbeespoort Dam and Magalies River Valley boasts some of the best ballooning weather in the world, offering almost all year round sunshine.

The summer months (August to March) bring afternoon thundershowers. The area experiences above average rainfall of 300mm to 700mm a year.  Summer temperatures vary between 22°C and 34°C. January is warmest with an average temperature of 29.5°C at midday.

The winter months (May to July) bring dry sunny days and cold nights. The average winter temperature is 16°C, but can vary between 2°C and 20°C all in one day. July is the coldest month of the year with an average temperature of 1.7°C at night.

August is on average the month with the most sunshine and statically, October is the windiest month of the year.

Hot Air Ballooning is extremely weather dependant and we will not fly unless the flying conditions are favourable and it is safe to do so. We require light surface winds, little or no cloud and no rain in order to launch the balloon.

We get a weather update the evening before a flight just after 8pm from the Aviation Met, and this gives us a good indication of what we can expect the next morning. We may need to cancel a flight the evening before if it is not looking very promising at all, and this is because we don’t want to inconvenience everybody by making them travel to the launch site if there is a greater chance that we will not be able to fly. The pilot however, will always make the final decision to fly on the launch site, and if we have to cancel a flight this is for the safety of all concerned. Safety is our first consideration.

It is also very important to arrive at the launch site on time. The winds are at their calmest during the first hour of sunrise, which is why we fly so early in the morning. Delaying the flight to wait for late arrivals could jeopardise your safety and the safety of the other passengers, pilots and crew. We regret that we will not wait for passengers who are running late.

We realise that cancelling a flight causes a fair amount of inconvenience and disappointment, and we will do our best to reschedule on another date that is best suited to everybody. If you are particularly concerned that we may be unable to get a flight in due to the weather and the flight is for a special occasion, we recommend a Discover Ballooning Gift Voucher as a good choice.