Balloon transport system (2024)

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Balloon transport system


Release date								6 November 2006 (Update)
Location								See destinations
Members								Yes
Requirements								Enlightened Journey

The balloon transport system or Hot Air Balloon is one of many transportation methods in RuneScape. During the Enlightened Journey quest it can be used for travel between two locations. After the quest is complete, four more locations are available to be unlocked by completing respective journeys to those locations. The music track Floating Free plays during the journey.

Having unlocked all travel routes completes the Around the World in Six Ways achievement, which is a master quest cape requirement.

1 Requirements
2 Charge system
3 Ballooning
4 Destinations
5 Future destinations
6 Walkthrough
- 6.1 Tips
7 Uses and costs of the balloon transport system
8 Dialogue
9 Achievements
10 Update history

Requirements[edit | edit source]

There are currently 6 locations that can be flown to, each needing a specific type of log and Firemaking level to attempt the flight.

After completing the Enlightened Journey quest, a player can travel between Entrana and Taverley. In order to travel using the balloon system, a player must give logs (noted or unnoted) to the balloon assistants by each balloon to earn charges.

To unlock the 4 new routes, a player must first start from Entrana with the required charges, and navigate successfully through 3 screens to a new destination. Crashing the balloon will result in the loss of the remaining charges, and the need to start again in Entrana and paying the full cost of the initial trip's charges. Once a destination is unlocked, players may travel there from any other unlocked location, using fewer charges, and without navigating the 3 screens. Players can use the "Store logs" option on Auguste to gain charges.

Destination	Initial Trip	Firemaking Level	Subsequent Trips	NPC
Entrana	Build balloon (during Quest)	20	1 charge	Auguste
Taverley	10 normal logs (during Quest)	20	1 charge	Assistant Stan
Crafting Guild	20 charges	30	2 charges	Assistant Brock
Varrock - near Jolly Boar Inn	30 charges	40	3 charges	Assistant Serf
Castle Wars	40 charges	50	4 charges	Assistant Marrow
Grand Tree	50 charges	60	5 charges	Assistant Le Smith

Charge system[edit | edit source]

The hot air balloons use a charge system to travel. Higher tier logs count for more charges and up to 4000 charges can be stored by giving logs (noted or unnoted) to the balloon assistants located next to each balloon, by right-clicking on the assistant and selecting 'Store logs'. Note: At time of release, logs cannot be withdrawn.

The following logs can be used to gain additional charges. Acadia, maple logs and protean logs may not be used.

Log	Charges	Price per charge
Logs	1	1,600
Oak logs	2	466.5
Willow logs	3	285.67
Teak logs	3	99.67
Mahogany logs	4	100.25
Arctic pine logs	4	287.25
Eucalyptus logs	4	149.25
Yew logs	4	149.75
Magic logs	5	178.4
Elder logs	6	1,784.67

Ballooning[edit | edit source]

See the quest Flying to Taverley section for a review of flying a balloon.

Each control always moves one "space" forward (horizontally to the right), and either up, down, or without change in altitude.
- Drop sandbag: moves up two spaces (UP 2).
- Burn log: moves up one space (UP 1).
- Relax: moves forward (right), with no change in altitude (RIGHT).
- Pull normal rope: moves down one space (DOWN 1).
- Pull red rope: moves down two spaces (DOWN 2).
- Bail: bails out the player from the balloon flight. ("Crashes" east of Falador and west of Draynor Manor.)

Destinations[edit | edit source]

There are 6 locations the balloons can fly to: Entrana, Taverley, Crafting Guild, Varrock, Castle Wars, and the Grand Tree. Entrana and Taverley are available after completing the Enlightened Journey quest.

Location of the Crafting Guild balloon
Location of the Taverley balloon
Location of the Entrana balloon
Location of the Varrock balloon
Location of the Castle Wars balloon
Location of the Grand Tree balloon

Entrana is also the main entry point to unlock routes to new locations. A player must start at the Entrana site and spend the required number of charges for the first trip.

For the first trip, a player needs to navigate through 3 screens avoiding birds, clouds, buildings, trees, and other hazards. Once the player completes the journey, subsequent trips do not require navigation and requires a significantly lower number of charges (between 1 and 5, depending on the destination).

Future destinations[edit | edit source]

No future destinations have been confirmed, but there are several rocks that look exactly like the balloon landing sites before completing Enlightened Journey. In the Rellekka Hunter area there is a snow- or ice-covered stone landing pad rock in the northeast.

Walkthrough[edit | edit source]

The following sections show one of several possible methods to get to the final destination.

Tips[edit | edit source]

It's generally considered a good idea to have earned more charges than you need before beginning, so you don't need to turn in more logs for charges before attempting the flight again.
Consider setting your game mode to Legacy; as even when the interface is locked with the New Interface System, you're still able to move the controls box around. Using Legacy keeps it in place.

Entrana[edit | edit source]

Entrana is the starting point for the Enlightened Journey quest, where a player begins the construction of the Balloon Transport System.
The Entrana balloon is located north-west of the dock, and just north of the herblore shop.
As a starting point, there are no screen routes available for Entrana.
Unlocked upon the completion of Enlightened Journey quest; subsequent trips to Entrana require 1 charge.
Requires Firemaking level 20.
Entrana contains the law altar (for making law runes via Runecrafting), spawn points for seaweed, and a sandpit (for collecting buckets of sand), making it a popular location for glass crafting.
Weapons and armour are not allowed on Entrana, including hatchets.

Taverley[edit | edit source]

Taverley was made available during the quest, and the screen routes are available at the Flying to Taverley section.
The Taverley balloon is located south of the Summoning shop, north-west from Falador, and is on the island with the Lady of the Lake.
Initial requirement during the quest is 10 normal logs; subsequent trips to Taverley require 1 charge.
Requires Firemaking level 20.

Crafting Guild[edit | edit source]

Initial requirement is 20 charges; subsequent trips to Crafting Guild require 2 charges.
The Crafting Guild balloon is located just north of the Crafting Guild, west of the Clan camp, and south-west of Falador.
Requires Firemaking level 30.

Scene 1

Scene 2

Scene 3

	3 Relax
	2 Logs
	2 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	4 Relax
	1 Logs
	1 Emergency tug
	2 Relax
	1 Tug
	1 Relax
	1 Logs
	1 Relax

	1 Relax
	1 Tug
	1 Relax
	1 Logs
	4 Relax
	1 Tug
	3 Relax
	1 Logs
	6 Relax

	2 Relax
	1 Sandbags
	6 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	3 Relax
	1 Tug
	3 Relax
	1 Tug

Varrock[edit | edit source]

Initial requirement is 30 charges; subsequent trips to Varrock require 3 charges.
Requires Firemaking level 40.
The Varrock balloon is located east of Varrock, south of the Fort Forinthry, south-east of thhe Jolly Boar Inn and slightly north-west of the earth altar.

Scene 1

Scene 2

Scene 3

	4 Logs
	2 Tug
	2 Relax
	1 Tug
	2 Relax
	1 Tug
	1 Logs
	2 Relax
	1 Tug
	2 Logs
	2 Relax

	6 Relax
	2 Logs
	4 Tug
	2 Relax
	1 Sandbags
	4 Relax

	3 Relax
	1 Sandbags
	1 Relax
	2 Tug
	1 Sandbags
	1 Relax
	2 Tug
	1 Sandbags
	1 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	1 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	1 Relax
	1 Tug

Castle Wars[edit | edit source]

Initial requirement is 40 charges; subsequent trips to Castle Wars require 4 charges.
Requires Firemaking level 50.
The Castle Wars balloon is located just north-east of the Castle wars lobby, and west of Yanille.

Scene 1

Scene 2

Scene 3

	2 Sandbags
	1 Logs
	5 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	1 Logs
	2 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	2 Relax
	2 Logs
	3 Relax

	1 Logs
	2 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	1 Tug
	7 Relax
	1 Sandbags
	1 Relax
	1 Tug
	2 Relax
	1 Tug
	1 Relax

	1 Logs
	2 Relax
	1 Tug
	3 Relax
	1 Logs
	1 Emergency tug
	4 Relax
	1 Sandbags
	1 Emergency tug
	2 Relax
	1 Tug

Grand Tree[edit | edit source]

The Grand Tree is located in the north-east section of the Tree Gnome Stronghold.
The balloon landing site is just south-east of the main entrance. This site is close to all the shops and food services of the Grand Tree, 2 banks, both a tree and fruit tree Farming patch, and the Gnome Stronghold agility course
It has close access to a Spirit tree and Gnome glider.
Initial requirement is 50 charges; subsequent trips to the Grand Tree require 5 charges.
Requires Firemaking level 60.
It is recommended to bring extra sets of logs with you, or have extra charges banked, to save time.

Scene 1

Scene 2

Scene 3

	7 Relax
	1 Tug
	12 Relax

	1 Logs
	1 Tug
	1 Logs
	1 Tug
	1 Logs
	2 Relax
	1 Logs
	1 Tug
	1 Relax
	1 Sandbags
	2 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	1 Relax
	1 Tug
	3 Relax

	3 Logs
	2 Relax
	1 Tug
	1 Logs
	5 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	1 Relax
	1 Emergency tug
	1 Tug
	2 Relax
	1 Tug

Uses and costs of the balloon transport system[edit | edit source]

The main uses of the balloon transport system are in combination with the use of a ring of duelling teleport to the Castle Wars for banking. Typical trips start at the Castle Wars bank, which has an entry to the balloon transport system close by. A trip can also start at Grand Tree if a player teleports themself there by using a spirit tree (the balloon is just north-east). For simply accessing the network without round-trip travel, the Crafting Guild option of the skills necklace is fastest, but the bank is further away.

Examples of round trips to balloon transport system destinations, and possible activities are presented in the table below:

Destination	Cost	Activity
Entrana	1 charge	Law runecrafting at Law altar, buy vials, sand collection (no weapons or armour allowed, including hatchets, although hatchets can be on the tool belt)
Taverley	1 charge	Access to Summoning obelisk, buy vials, access to tree patch and to the crystal key chest and also POH portal, and Choking ivy.
Crafting Guild	2 charges	Berry patch at Rimmington, POH portal, and Clan Camp (without clan vexillium). Mining ores at Crafting Guild & Rimmington Mine. Network entry for travelling.
Varrock	3 charges	Earth runecrafting at earth altar, access alternate entrance for Chaos runecrafting at Chaos altar, Woodcutting, clue scroll (easy).
Castle Wars	4 charges	Closest to a bank, often used as entry point into the balloon network in conjunction with a ring of duelling.
Grand Tree	5 charges	Tree patch, fruit tree patch, Spirit tree transport system, Gnome Gliders, Gnome Stronghold agility course, Big Chinchompa, delivering Chimp ices.

Dialogue[edit | edit source]

This article on an NPC has an associated dialogue page.
Click here for a transcript of possible conversations and other messaging related to this NPC.

Achievements[edit | edit source]

Around the World in Six Ways ( 15) – Unlock all hot-air balloon travel routes.
Varrock achievements
- Medium - Engage ( 10) – Use the hot-air balloon to travel from Varrock to somewhere else.
Ardougne achievements
- Medium - Arriving in Style ( 10) – Travel to Castle Wars by hot-air balloon.

Update history[edit | edit source]

This information has been compiled as part of the update history project. Some updates may not be included – see here for how to help out!

ninja 1 April 2019(Update):
- Players can now again store logs with Auguste for hot air balloon charges.

patch 25 March 2019(Update):
- Hot air balloons now use a charge system to travel. Higher tier logs count for more charges and up to 4000 charges can be stored by giving logs to the balloon assistants.
- Balloon travel no longer has a inventory weight limit.

ninja 23 October 2017(Update):
- The Balloon Travel Map interface has been updated to bring it in line with other interfaces.

ninja 23 June 2014(Update):
- The animations used when travelling on a hot air balloon journey have been updated.

patch 8 December 2014(Update):
- Added a transportation icon on the world and minimap for balloon transportation near Varrock's lumber yard.

patch 18 August 2014(Update):
- Players will now receive a clear message if they for any reason cannot use balloon travel.

patch 1 July 2014(Update):
- An issue with Tiny Lucien when using the balloon transportation system has been fixed.

patch 13 May 2010(Update):
- The text in the hot-air balloon journey interface should now be easier to read.

patch 9 November 2009(Update):
- Removed the follower restrictions on magic carpet, canoe and balloon journeys.

patch 12 May 2009(Update):
- Corrected the grammar in the balloon travelling interface.

patch 6 May 2009(Update):
- Improved the tooltip box for the hot air balloon controls.

patch 21 April 2009(Update):
- Ensured you don't have a skull icon above your head during parts of Chosen Commander and that you do if you've been skulled prior to taking a balloon ride.

patch 8 April 2009(Update):
- Balloon journeys now have a ‘quick-fly’ option, providing you meet any requirements necessary.

patch 10 February 2009(Update):
- Players listening to music manually will no longer be interrupted on balloon trips.

v•d•e Balloon transport system
NPCs	Auguste Stan Brock Serf Marrow Le Smith
Locations	Entrana Taverley Crafting Guild Fort Forinthry Castle Wars Grand Tree
Miscellaneous	Enlightened Journey

v•d•e

Enlightened Journey

NPCs

Auguste Assistant Stan
Flash Mob	Larry Moe Curly Bob

Items

Auguste's sapling Sandbag Balloon structure
Origami balloons	Origami balloon Yellow Blue Red Orange Green Purple Pink Black

Rewards

Music

Floating Free

Miscellaneous

v•d•e Entrana
Location within the Unquiet Ocean
NPCs	High Priest Auguste Leo V Mazion Frincos Fritz the Glassblower Francis Cave monk
Enemies	Black bear Chicken Dramen tree spirit Entranan firebird Monk Unicorn
Shops	Frincos's Fabulous Herb Store
Features	Balloon transport system Entrana Dungeon Law altar
Scenery	Altar Barrel (with handle) Blacksmith's tools Dramen tree Sandpit
Music	Background Underground
Related	Enlightened Journey