Up, up and away… for a big, beautiful balloon festival
The bus to Chateau-d’Oex was, as one can rightly expect in Switzerland, on time. Our cheery driver navigated the twists of the mountain road until I was treated to a surge of joy upon spotting a bright red hot air balloon high in the sky.
Rounding the next bend another balloon appeared, followed by so many that the sky became a constellation of primary-coloured bubbles.
The Festival International de Ballons in Chateau-d’Oex takes place over nine days at the end of January, and is now approaching its 44th year.
Just outside Gstaad, the town plays host to enthusiasts from around the world who gather to watch, participate and compete in the sport of ‘la montgolfiere’, named after the pioneering Montgolfier brothers who launched the first piloted balloon ascent by humans in 1783.
Thanks to its microclimate and location, Chateaud’Oex is internationally acclaimed as a perfect launch pad for balloons, with warm air in the valley rising and cold air on the mountain slopes descending, creating the thermals needed to take off, glide and (all being well) return.
Mission control is on a large meadow, overlooked by a pretty church, which is a perfect vantage point for spectators.
Wind-conditions permitting, each morning and afternoon there’s an orchestrated performance on the snow stage. Balloons are carried out, their fabric unfurled and wicker baskets attached.
Then it’s time for the magic. The fire is ignited, gradually inflating the balloon which billows and flutters, and at a given moment the pilot and passengers climb on board and the whole contraption is delicately manoeuvred into the air.
I met tourists from Canada for whom visiting here was a longawaited dream. And young children can also have a turn with tethered flights.
At noon there’s a break, giving the opportunity for a fondue (bookings are essential at most restaurants) and a visit to the Espace Ballon museum with its collection of ballooning paraphernalia as well as a detailed history of the sport.
Local heroes are the multiple generations of the Piccard family. Auguste Piccard broke records travelling into the stratosphere in a hydrogen balloon in 1931, and grandson Bertrand joined Britain’s Brian Jones for the first non-stop round-the-world flight in Breitling Orbiter 3, which launched from Chateau-d’Oex in 1999. This was their third attempt to circle the globe, and their space suits are on display at the museum. Bertrand is still a regular pilot and one of the main attractions at the festival.
That afternoon, as a third balloon ascended, it was followed by an announcement that the wind had become too strong and there would be no more flights.
Balloons were refolded and packed, wicker baskets carried away, and the pilots retreated to the bar until the next morning when the weather would be fine and calm again.
Back on the bus at dusk I was transfixed by a full moon that looked like a huge balloon, and wondered if it had inspired the Montgolfier brothers nearly 250 years earlier to take to the skies.
The 44th Festival International de Ballons takes place from January 20-28 (festivaldeballons.ch/ en or myswitzerland.com).
For a tailor-made holiday to Chateau-d’Oex, visit switzerlandtravelcentre.com