At Global Ballooning, we do more than take you flying – we create unforgettable experiences that awaken wonder, excitement and child-like joy.
We rise before the sun almost every day of the year because we believe there’s something magical about experiencing the world from the sky. Nothing excites us more than bringing out a child-like joy in adults and a sense of wonderment in children. It’s all part of a journey that’s finished by 9am but leaves a lifelong impression.
Join one of our hot air balloon adventures over Melbourne, the Yarra Valley, Mansfield or Mildura for a fun, interactive, accessible, inclusive and safe experience from the market leaders in hot air balloon travel.
Ready to experience the wonder ?
Our Story
Long before Global Ballooning Australia ever left the ground, flying was already in the family.
Kiff Saunders’ grandfather, Edward Macarthur-Onslow, was one of Australia’s early aviators. In the 1930s he founded the Macquarie Grove Flying School on a stretch of land we now call Camden Airport. Kiff grew up right beside it, which probably explains how he ended up with a gliding licence at 15.
Then in 1983, Balloon Aloft turned up at Camden with a truckload of nylon and hot air, and that was that. Kiff started crewing on adventures all over Australia, trained under World Ballooning Champion Peter Vizzard, and earned his private and commercial balloon pilot licences.
One balloon and one very big idea
After four years with Balloon Aloft, Kiff decided to have a crack on his own. In 1992 he bought a Tasmania-based ballooning company, the business that would grow to become Global Ballooning Australia. The ambition was simple: get as many people as possible off the ground and into a sunrise.
That first year, 589 passengers came along for the ride.
150,000+ sunrises later
More than 30 years on, we’ve shared a sunrise with over 150,000 people and grown into Victoria’s largest hot air balloon operator, with a fleet of 32 balloons.
Kiff’s own adventures have taken him and the whole team across Australia and around the world: Japan, Nepal, Canada, Europe, China, the USA, Qatar and New Zealand. In 1994 he also became an Australian Ballooning Federation flight examiner – a rare qualification only offered to very few pilots in Australia, meant that many of Australian’s commercial balloon pilots have had Kiff standing in the basket, watching closely.
Why we’re still setting alarms for 4am
We’re fiercely proud of our safety record. It’s the thing we take most seriously, and it’s what lets everything else be fun.
But ask anyone on our team what they love about the job and they won’t start there. They’ll talk about the people they meet, and the frankly ridiculous natural playground we get to call an office.
Melbourne’s skyline catching the first light. The Yarra Valley’s vineyards under a blanket of mist. Mansfield’s mountains. Mildura’s big open country. We’ve been doing this a long time and none of it has worn off.
Experience it for yourself
The freedom of floating. A view you simply cannot get any other way. Magical sunrises, and a kind of peacefulness that’s hard to describe until you’ve stood in it.
And then there’s the part nobody expects: the people you end up sharing it with, and a memory that outlasts the sunrise by a very long way.
Our Values
Safety First
We have an uncompromising focus on safety. Do what is right, not what is easy.
Deliver Wow
Always strive to achieve more! If something is not excellent, it's not finished. Committed to quality outcomes, have a thirst to learn and to improve.
Be Adventurous & Fun
Enable joy – BE the energy you want to attract!
Green For Our Future
Be conscious of your surroundings, be green.
Do It Because You Love It
We love life, ballooning, our passengers & partners and our team! Our deep passion fuels our work and guides what we do.
Better Together
The best collaborations create something bigger than the sum of what each person can create on their own.
Our Future
There’s no bigger thrill than a hot air balloon flight, and after all these years we’re still chasing it.
We’re 100% Australian-owned and still very much a family business. We’re Victoria’s largest ballooning operator and one of the most experienced in the country, with what we reckon is the happiest crew going around. In 34 years we’ve never made an insurance claim, and that’s the number we’re proudest of. None of it is a reason to slow down.
Kiff’s kids are the next chapter. Paterson ‘Pat’, Edward ‘Eddie’ and Scarlett all fly commercially, and Eddie is the current Australian Ballooning Champion. Between them they’re already shaping what comes next.
The big one is training. Alongside our CASA-registered flying school, they’re working on taking pilot training online: a proper government-approved resource where the next generation of Australian balloon pilots can learn, wherever they happen to live. Nothing like it exists in our industry yet.
So we’ll keep flying, keep training pilots, and keep getting people off the ground and into a sunrise they’ll never forget.
Come up and see for yourself!
Awards & Support
At Global Ballooning Australia, we’re committed to being the most knowledgeable, trustworthy, passionate, and welcoming company in our industry.
We’re proud to have received grant funding from the Australian Government through Austrade’s Export Market Development (EMDG) program. This export marketing/training activity was supported by grant funding from the Australian Government through Austrade’s Export Market Development Grant (EMDG) program.
Thanks to the generous feedback from our passengers and the tourism industry, we’ve been honoured with the following accolades:
TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is a travel website providing real customer reviews of their experience with our company.
Victorian Tourism Awards (VTA)
VTA act as a development opportunity in skills training and professionalism. In November 2016 we won gold in our category, and couldn't be prouder to have won 3 consecutive years in a row and as a result, withhold a Hall of Fame award.
Victorian Disability Sector Awards (VDSA)
Scope Victoria nominated Global Ballooning Australia for the VDSA in 2014 for providing people living with a disability to fly in the Easy Access Basket. Global was awarded the 'Business and Community Supporting Disability Award' at the prestigious awards.
