Up and away from Cinnamon Lodge Habarana

Thursday, 13 October 2011 00:07 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Embark on a journey with 360 degree views of the surroundings, a point of view that will inspire and is rare.

Hot air ballooning gained popularity and momentum in Sri Lanka in the recent past and has been of interest to many guests. John Keells Hotels Group together with Adventure Asia Pvt. Ltd. will be setting up hot air ballooning in the skies of Habarana set to take off from the month of November.

Sector Head of Sri Lankan Resorts at John Keells Hotels Group Jayantissa Kehelpannala exchanged the agreement with Peter Stuart, CEO of Adventure Asia to bring this unique service back to life at Habarana.

The hot air balloon rides takes off in the early hours, when day breaks. Once the hot air balloon is prepared and is ready for takeoff, the guests are transported to the launch pad, a group of six or 12 can get on board the basket and the balloon gently takes off.

Guests can enjoy amazing vistas of the village waking up, lush green surroundings, the stillness of the ranges of paddy and if you’re lucky in the distance the silhouette of the eighth wonder of the world and roads and by lanes channel through the large landscape. The sun gently peaks from the horizon, and as the journey continues drifting with the wind offering plenty of opportunities to spot the wildlife endemic to the region.

The most exciting part of the journey is the landing, as there is no pre-designated point of landing. The pilot of the balloon will prepare you for landing instructing the position you need to take, while he scouts for the ideal location. Gradually the hot air balloon will approach the ground and once landed a vehicle will arrive to transport the members to Cinnamon Lodge Habarana or Chaaya Village Habarana.

Head of Wildlife Tourism and Special Projects Chitral Jayatilake said that the Nature Trails naturalists based at Cinnamon Lodge Habarana and Chaaya Village Habarana will market this product for all adventure seekers within reasonable travelling distance to the launch site.

This facility which is set to take off will add to other adventure related products on offer at Cinnamon and Chaaya Hotels and Resorts, offering travellers a variety of high thrills and a different perspective of appreciating the beauty of this country from the air.