Portland Rose Hot Air Balloons

WOW! What an experience this was. My fiancé and I were the two volunteers to help fill the balloon up with air. I wasn’t expecting such a hands on experience. It was a lot of fun. There were about a dozen of us in the balloon basket. We worked as a team throughout the experience. We all helped to set the balloon up, and we all helped to break it down. Great teamwork, everyone!
As far as the staff goes, those guys were awesome. They really know what they’re doing. They would laugh and crack jokes with all of us, as if we were old friends. Great hospitality!

This was my first hot air balloon ride ever and I was absolutely captivated by the entire experience from the take off to landing. Derek and his crew were efficient in preparing for the flight while engaging us in the process. The route was great and the flight exceeded my best expectations — a very peaceful time up in the air floating through the scenic views! Derek’s passion and extensive experience for flying were truly inspiring and I came away with a great deal of insight about the history of hot air balloon flight. And a little recap with tasty food and great company after we landed was the icing on the cake! Kudos to the hosts and I am hoping to fly with Derek again when we are back in Portland.

Derek and his crew are awesome! This was the greatest adventure; so beautiful and peaceful. I would highly recommend booking a flight on a hot air balloon. Wow… I can’t say enough great things about it! I was initially nervous and a little scared, but once we lifted off, all of that anxiety drifted away. I wanna do it again!!!

Derek and the whole crew were amazing. Very friendly and knowledgeable. As others have said they do a great job of making the whole experience feel very personalized. I was also very impressed by how well orchestrated and organized the logistics of their operation was.
I treated my girlfriend to a hot air balloon ride for her birthday and we had a blast. I would definitely recommend Portland Rose to anyone who is shopping around for this type of experience.
Also just a tip for those who book: This is really common sense, but just as a reminder, plan to get to the meeting site 5 – 10 minutes before you are scheduled to meet. Especially true if you are unfamiliar with the drive. It ended up taking us a few minutes longer than the google maps trip estimate and as a result we arrived a bit late. I do not recommend doing this because there are other people who will be there on time and obviously it is unfair to make them wait for you.

My husband and I booked a hot air balloon ride with his brother and mother for her birthday. We enjoyed a beautiful sunrise while the balloon inflated, gorgeous views during the flight, and a tasty picnic afterwards. Derek and his team did a fantastic job! We’d highly recommend this company!

What a great time!!! Safe, comfortable, beautiful views… Amazing morning no matter how you look at it!!! If you’ve ever thought about going up in a Hot Air Ballon… you’ve found the right place!
Best birthday ever!!!

I’m still smiling from the flight! The weather was perfect, the balloon was HUGE, the other guest were all so friendly, the ground crew was lots of fun to interact with, the champagne breakfast a nice touch, and our pilot Derek was very impressive! Totally blew my mind with his spot-​on landing. I mean, how do you do that in a hot air balloon? Many thanks to Derek, his crew and our host for a most amazing beginning to this year’s 4^th of July! Definitely must do this again.

Had a great time. The view was great, even though it was cloudy. The crew were exceptional. I would do this again (hopefully a sunny day). Enjoyed helping set up and take down (a very good workout). Thanks Again Derek, wife and crew!

What a great ride! Our family had such a fun time on the balloon ride, we would love to do it again! Our kids are 8 and 9 years old, and at 50-​inches tall, the 8-​year-​old could just see over the top of the basket. It was perfect. The pilot, Derek, is so personable and the crew is just as friendly and engaging. We all felt at ease as the flight went like clockwork. Derek expertly navigated in between and over the treetops to give us an up-​close and personal encounter with the scenery. The experience was amazing, and the champagne brunch upon return was delicious. A wonderful morning!

Amazing! Derek and the crew were personable and still very professional. Everyone of us helped with getting the balloon ready to fill as well as packing it up. The ride was just wonderful. So peaceful and quiet yet at times you could hear the kids on the ground chasing the balloon. Once back to the airport the crew put out a nice spread of finger food and Derek was a master at the Mimosa bar. This was worth every penny and just beautiful. We’ll do it again for certain.

I have to echo all of the positive comments mentioned here. This turned out to be one of the best experiences we’ve had. The pilot and team know what they’re doing, and the ride isn’t a bit unnerving. They host a nice breakfast after the ride and take time to answer any questions you have. It feels very personalized.
And it’s a blast…

What an amazing experience! Derek and the crew were absolutely wonderful, professional and fun! We immediately got involved in the set-​up of the balloon, had a gorgeous and scenic ride across the valley (with a hover over the Willamette River) and a smooth landing! The mimosa and finger foods brunch afterwards was a fun opportunity to partake in ballooning traditions and getting to know those who shared our ride with us. There were 11 in total for a basket that seated 12 with three to a compartment (snug but not bad at all). The souvenir photos were awesome as well and well worth purchasing! A good time was had by all, I would absolutely recommend this company and experience!

We enjoyed a remarkable flight with Derek! Conditions looked questionable at 5:45a.m. (overcast, light drizzle) but the weather improved. I enjoyed the fact that the preflight preparation and post-​flight field pack was an «audience participation» team effort. The crew was great. The flight was smooth. Other than the occasional roar of the propane, it was remarkably quiet! Clearly, the balloon is a great photo platform. The landing was soft and uneventful, thanks to Derek’s experience. The brunch after the flight was delicious and a fine way to celebrate the day. I recommend this operation and this flight experience with hesitation.

Derek is the best pilot ever and his crew is awesome! This is by far the best hot air balloon experience we have had and we will call Portland Rose Hot Air Balloons again and again for special adventures. Very intimate… Derek even picked up my cake because we were celebrating my birthday!

Loved this ride! My husband surprised me with it for our 3^rd Anniversary and it was perfect! I would recommend some rain boots and capris or roll your pants up-​as my feet were freezing and wet, but that definitely was minimized by our amazing experience with this group! They have it nailed and it was like we were on our own little ride! We had an amazing Champagne toast at the end with a wonderful little brunch! Everything was amazing! LOVED IT!

Pilot was absolutely amazing. A one hour flight in a basket with just 4 people. Very personalized.

On a misty morning in July we arrived before dawn (about 5 a.m.) and were welcomed by Maureen and Derek. We were able to help set up the balloon, meet the other six passengers and the two chase truck assistants. We took off by 5:45 and ascended to about 1700 feet but low-​lying clouds kept us mostly at lower altitudes. The morning was very calm, and the lower-​level winds were light, so we had beautiful views of farms, forests, and fields, some small-​plane activity at Aurora Airport, and a trio of hot air balloons above distant Newberg. Derek was so informative and knowledgeable, and we enjoyed talking with the other passengers and learning of their travels and experiences. The temperature was probably close to 60 degrees, and it was comfortably warm in the basket. We did not find the propane heater’s noise to be disturbing, but there were sound-​blocking headphones available for anyone who did. It was of course spectacular to float soundlessly above the fields during those periods when the heater was not on. Derek, assisted by the ground crew, made a flawless, incredibly gentle landing in a football field at North Marion High School, and we all were able to enjoy the process of walking the balloon basket up into the trailer, flattening and folding up the balloon, and stuffing it into its sack, then the brief ride back to the airport. Their champagne brunch was informal and fun (although perhaps it should be termed a champagne breakfast, as we were all done before 8 a.m.!), and we had the opportunity to purchase photos that Derek took from a camera rigged alongside the balloon up in the air, as well as commemorative T-​shirts. Everyone was friendly and lovely, and even though we did not have weather that allowed us to travel further or over the Willamette River, it was still an amazing and memorable experience, and a great 72^nd birthday present for my husband.