For my daughter, Jordyn’s, birthday this year we took her to iFLY, Paramus, NJ. Super cool place! I’m a huge fan of gifting my family new experiences whenever I can, and since she’s too young to go actual skydiving (she turned 12), iFLY was the perfect alternative. Oh, and you guys can see my real skydiving experience here and read about here😉.
Ok, so as I said, iFLY is a really cool place to visit. What I liked most is that it’s suitable for the entire family. They advertise as being appropriate for ages 3 to 103! So, feel free to take your toddler and your grandma! I sometimes have a tough time planning family activities, especially with my girls being so far apart in age, but this venue is perfect for all of us to enjoy together. You can also see how I plan family activities with my girls here.
The Process:
I bought Jordyn’s flight online because I was unsure of how long the process may have been if I’d waited. The online booking was a piece of cake; fill out your personal info, pick a date, pay and BOOM, you have your flight – see how easy that was? You’re also encouraged to complete your waiver online, which I did, and it made checking in so much easier when we arrived at the facility.
After checking in, we just kind of waited around, for about a half hour and watched as the group before us did their thing. The wait wasn’t too painful, because it allowed us to witness other people’s experiences, and Jordyn had the opportunity to see what she was in for.
When her group was called (a total 5 people), she was given a jumpsuit and a helmet (the helmet includes a face shield, so you’re not blinded by all the wind that hits your face). She was then directed to a room where they were required to watch a short video explaining the rules of their flight, including how to position their bodies and understand hand signals. Then, the group’s instructor (who was really animated and fun!), came in to give further examples of what the video explained. Parents are allowed to sit with their children through the video even if they aren’t participating.
Ok, so once the video is complete, the group sits inside the chamber-like area of the flight tube, and each participant will wait their turn to go. One at a time, the instructor takes you, first for a “test” flight, where you’ll practice holding your body, and getting a feel for the air pressure. Your second flight, you’ll do the same thing again, and If you purchase the “High Flight” you will fly much higher up the tube this second time around – Both times you’re with an instructor- You don’t fly alone.
Tip: For an extra $20, it’s totally worth purchasing the High Flight. Without it, you stay idle at about eye level, and what fun is that? I don’t think you’ll get the full experience without being able and twist and turn and float throughout the tube!
- Also, you’ll be offered the opportunity to purchase a digital photo ($3.95) and a video ($7.95) of your flight. I did this but, to me, it wasn’t worth it. I took much better pictures and videos with my own phone. Both the photo and video were pretty dark and just not clear enough.
- The flights are only 1 minute in duration. You’ll see that when you purchase a flight, it’ll say “2 flights”, but you use both flights in one sitting (so, you’ll fly for a total of 2 minutes, but not at the same time. Take one flight, then the rest of your group goes. When it’s your turn again, you’ll take your second flight). You can’t use one flight and come back on a separate day to use another. And even though one minute doesn’t sound like too much time, it was actually perfect!
The flights start out at around $50. And again, it’s worth spending the extra for the high flight. So, plan to spend around $70 for a better experience! Don’t waste your time on paying for the video or photo, you’ll come out better just capturing your own footage! Check out iFLY’s website for more Info! Check out Jordyn’s YouTube page for her full experience!
Have you visited IFLY yet? How’d you like it? Would you go? Talk to me!
XO,
Lexi
*unless otherwise noted, these reviews are not sponsored. I’m just sharing the things that I love! *
