Hang Gliding Tahoe

The entire experience is just awesome. This was my first ever experience and Paul is an awesome pilot. Recommend must do !

Cool experience, but definitely has some areas for improvement. The aircraft is more sturdy than it appears, and the flight instructor (mine was Paul) will not let you make any incorrect steering motions. Just note that you should wear some warm clothing since the temperature at 10,000 feet is cold!
There were some key factors that prevent me from rating the company higher than 3 stars:
1. I purchased the package that included «50 to 60 minutes of flight time» according to the website. I did not receive what was advertised.
On the aircraft, there was a visible stopwatch that showed how much time has elapsed. The moment I sat down, Paul started the stopwatch. The vehicle didn’t start moving until around the 3 minute mark and didn’t lift off the ground until around the 9 minute mark. I was extremely caught off guard when Paul took control of the aircraft and decided to land it at around the 42 minute mark. We touched ground at the 45 minute mark, and the aircraft stopped moving a little after the 46 minute mark.
So, if you consider «flight time» to be time above the ground, in total I received only about 36 minutes of «flight time», even though I should have received a minimum of 50– less than 75% of what was promised.
This may seem a little bit petty, but if you’re as broke as I am and only treat yourself to something this expensive very infrequently, the few minutes of flight time that were not provided really make a huge impact on the satisfaction with the company.
2. After we landed, Paul processed the photographs (which cost an additional $ 80– more on that later) and my credit card was charged. There was a huge tip jar in the office that I thought was a sneaky, yet genius move on his part.
Any customer who visits the room cannot help but notice the large container filled only with $ 20 bills. I don’t think anyone will have the cojones to not tip, so the psychological pressure of the money in the tip jar means that you have to put at least a $ 20 bill in it. Otherwise, you’ll look like a jerk. (And I’ll bet that any bills smaller than $ 20 are taken out of the jar before a new customer enters the office)
The reason this tip jar really irritated me was that on online polls, the plurality of people state that tipping a hang gliding instructor is not necessary. I would have tipped Paul regardless, but the presence of the jar really turned me off.
3. When being charged $ 80 for pictures, I expected them to at least show clearly the person who is in the aircraft. The camera did not have enough megapixels and is not zoomed in enough to clearly depict who is flying. Also, I think if there was a way to capture some video, the $ 80 would have been worth it. Besides that, I completely regret purchasing the pictures.
Nonetheless, this experience was one of a kind and I’m glad I did it. If money isn’t too big of a factor to you, I’d recommend booking a flight.

Paul and Bob were amazing pilots. I surprised my Husband with this ride. He has a small fear of heights but he ended up having a blast. I haven’t heard «babe you are the best» so many times in a 24 hour period. This is a once in lifetime experience that you will never forget. DO IT!!!