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Our Picks: 5 Top Aerial Adventures on the East Coast

Five fresh aerial adventures, from hot-air ballooning in the Adirondacks to going weightless on a Florida plane ride.

Hot Air Ballooning [Glens Falls, NY]

These 40- to 60-minute aerial adventures with SunKiss Ballooning take flight in the farmlands east of Glens Falls and float over Washington, Warren, and Saratoga counties. Have fun up there? Plan your return visit to coincide with the fall foliage in September and the annual Adirondack Balloon Festival.

Where to Stay The Sagamore Resort

“Flight”-Seeing [Owls Head, ME]

Take flight with a plane ride aboard one of Penobscot Island Air’s Cessnas to see close to two dozen lighthouses on a loop above the coastal fingers of Penobscot Bay. Catch the cool air at higher elevation in the summer while you cruise over some of Maine’s most beautiful coastline, or aim for fall, when you’ll be rewarded with spectacular views of the brilliant fall foliage.

Where to Stay Samoset Resort

Glider Flights [Trenton, ME]

During the 25-minute-long Beehive Tour with Acadia Air Tours, a tow plane takes you and your pilot to an elevation of roughly 4,000 feet before releasing you to quietly soar in a powerless flight over Acadia National Park. Keep a keen eye out for the eagles you might see gliding alongside you – the area is home to many of these majestic birds.

Where to Stay Harborside Hotel, Spa & Marina | West Street Hotel

Weightlessness Simulation [Miami, FL]

Test your astronaut endurance skills – without the trouble of leaving the atmosphere – on a Zero-G Experience flight. This aerial adventure takes place on a modified Boeing 727, where parabolic arcs are performed to create a “space-like,” weightless environment. Book your flight in either Miami or Orlando, and be ready for launch.

Where to Stay Opal Grand Resort | Delray Sands Resort | Hutchinson Shores Resort & Spa | Jupiter Beach Resort & Spa

Skydiving [Sugarloaf Key, FL]

People associate skydiving exclusively with the adrenaline-pumping feel of freefall. And that’s no mistake. But they often overlook the slow, relaxing descent once the parachute has opened for several thousand feet, where you get to take in the beauty of what’s below while your heart rate gets back to normal. So launching a skydiving adventure from Sugarloaf Key, 15 miles north of Key West, equates to getting in your “woo-hoos!” and then your “wows” as you freefall then float down above this stunning swirling watercolor of seemingly every color blue water and islands.

Where to Stay Sunset Key Cottages

Historic Palm Cottage: 5 Artifacts That Tell the Story of Old Naples, Florida

A few doors from Olde Naples Hotel, Historic Palm Cottage preserves more than Naples’s oldest house. Its collection contains wonderfully tangible clues to the people who fished, drank, danced, painted, and vacationed here long before Naples became the polished Gulf…

Rocky shoreline at sunrise with waves washing over rocks, a lifeguard tower, house, and cloudy sky in the background.

Hutchinson Island’s Beaches: Florida’s Ancient Coastline Hiding in Plain Sight

Among Hutchinson Island’s familiar ribbons of sand, craggy shelves of shell-studded rock reveal a much older Florida. Meet the Anastasia Formation, an ancient layer of coquina that preserves clues to prehistoric beaches, shifting seas, and a coastline still being carved…

A hand holding a pen points to a colorful resort map, with a blue rubber duck wearing diving gear placed nearby on the counter.

The Little Local Who Knows Reefhouse Resort & Marina Best

He’s small, yellow, dressed for a dive, and knows Reefhouse Resort & Marina like the back of his flipper. Meet Scuba Steve, the resort’s unofficial resident rubber duck, who takes us through his ideal Key Largo day, from what to…

Aerial view of turquoise ocean waves gently washing onto a sandy beach, with soft white foam at the shoreline.

Why Is Jupiter’s Water So Blue? The Science Behind Florida’s Clearest Coast

Southern Living called Jupiter home to the clearest water in the South. Here’s the science behind its famous turquoise hue – and where to see it. There are certain photos of Jupiter, Florida, that look suspiciously like they were taken…

For Select Dates Through December 24