Diablo Review: Zeppelin Tour

Airship Ventures' Bay Area flights are one of a kind.

The difference between flying in a Zeppelin and a plane really hit home for me when the onboard flight attendant casually mentioned that we could open some of the windows on board—the Zeppelin’s cruising speed tops out at a leisurely 35–40 miles per hour and the open windows simply provided a nice breeze and beautiful unobstructed views.

And actually, the experience of flying aboard the airship (the largest such craft in the world) can best be measured by comparing it to the view you get taking off or landing in a commercial airplane. At a cruising altitude of about 1,200 feet, there’s the same awesome experience of seeing the beautiful Bay Area from an entirely unique perspective. However, with the Zeppelin, you have a chance to take a breath and really take in the view.

It’s an experience made available by Airship Ventures, which began offering one- and two-hour air tours around the Bay Area last November. The operation was started by the husband and wife team of Brian and Alexandra Hall (CLICK HERE to read their interesting story), who partner with and lease their airship from the same German-owned Zeppelin company of Hindenburg fame (don’t worry, they use non-flammable helium these days). Airship Ventures currently run tours out of Oakland, Moffett Field, and Monterey, with plans for Wine Country in the near future and New York City in the long-term.

My tour left out of Oakland International, on a crystal-clear, sunny day, last week. The gondola-like carriage of the Zeppelin—christened the Eureka—carries a max of 12, and there were 10 passengers aboard our flight, including a 90-year-old woman and her daughter, an older couple celebrating their wedding anniversary, and two brothers in their 20s who had received tickets as birthday presents from their father—a $495 ticket price tends to weed out the riff-raff.

The tour started with the ten passengers being herded out to a grassy field on the outskirts of the airport where we waited as the airship glided down, carrying the previous flight’s passengers back from their trip. The Eureka appeared as a surreal cross between the familiar old-school Zeppelin of black-and-white photos and a cutting-edge, modern flying machine, complete with dual, rotating engines affixed to the side that allow it to fly forwards, backwards, or hover.

Guided in by the ground crew, the Eureka touched down just long enough to eject its old crew and accept the new one, and as soon as our seatbelts were fastened, we were airborne again. Shortly after takeoff, passengers are allowed to stand up and roam around the cabin to gawk at the views, which is exactly what we did for the remainder of the journey. One unique aspect of a Zeppelin ride is the lack of noise—the engines are affixed above the cabin on the blimp part of the craft where they are much less noticeable.

And unlike an airplane, the cabin is light and airy, with large, oversized windows to look out of (there's even a window in the bathroom). The first thing I noticed as we gained altitude was a small pond below, dotted with white birds and glistening brilliantly against the reflected sun. The sight of the sparkling water against the afternoon sun was a common theme as we flew mostly over the Bay, following roughly the curve of San Francisco northwards (Here’s the map), and it really added to the spectacular views of area landmarks such as Alcatraz, Angel Island, and the enormous span of the Bay Bridge (and its never-ending retrofit).

Other cool vistas included the East Bay hills, the industrial maze of the Port of Oakland, and of course the city of San Francisco. The Eureka makes sure to squeeze the most out of the Golden Gate Bridge, as it curves slowly around the famous connector before turning back for home, where you get similar views but this time closer to scenic San Francisco.

It’s really a remarkable trip, and I think totally worth the money if you have it. If you do go, however, make sure to relax and soak up the experience because really, the one-hour tour is over in a flash. Before I knew it, we were being ushered quickly out the cabin, being replaced with 12 other passengers, and I was watching the tail end of the Eureka float away into the distance.

 

Standard tickets are $495, but Airship Ventures is currently running several deals, including a mid-week special and couples package with the second ticket half-off. For tickets and more information, go to airshipventures.com/tours.php.

 

Posted at 04:56 PM in Best Of Editor Picks | Permalink