Everybody books Bir in Bir. Then the wind is wrong, the flying is called off for the day, and they are in a small village with a morning's worth of things to do and a whole day to fill.
Fly from Billing by all means — it is one of the best sites in the world and the thermals are the reason people come from everywhere to fly here. But stay down in the valley and drive up. It is a better day and a far better fallback.
When is the best time for Bir Billing?
October and November. The monsoon has cleared, the air is clean, the thermals are strong and the views from the air go all the way to the range. This is when the serious pilots are here and when the competitions happen, and if you are flying once, fly then.
March to May is the second window and a good one — reliable, warmer, and less crowded than autumn.
The monsoon does not fly. From roughly July into September the site is closed, and no operator who tells you otherwise is one you want to fly with. If your trip falls then, the valley has plenty else — two days between the Fort and the tea gardens is the better plan.
Winter flies on its day. Clear and cold, with fewer flying hours. It happens, but it is the season most likely to be called off.
The thing nobody tells you about flying at Billing
It is weather-dependent, every single day. Take-off is at Billing, well above Bir, and the decision to fly is made up there on the morning, on the wind. A perfectly clear day at the bottom can be a no-fly day at the top.
That is entirely normal and it is not anybody being difficult — it is why the site is as safe as it is. But it does mean you should plan for the possibility of not flying, and that single fact is the whole argument for where you stay.
If you are staying in Bir and the day is scrubbed, you have a village. If you are staying down in the valley, you have a fort, a rock-cut temple complex, tea gardens, four temples on the Devi circuit, and a pool — and you try again tomorrow.
How the day works from down here
Bir is east along the valley, past Palampur. It is a comfortable drive and the road is ordinary — nothing about it needs a four-wheel drive.
The shape of the day:
- Leave early. Morning air is usually the better air, and the operators run the first flights then. Tell us the night before and breakfast will be ready before you go.
- Bir to Billing. Take-off is a good way further up a hill road from Bir itself. Almost every package includes the jeep up — check that yours does before you agree a price, because arranging it yourself at the bottom is the one part of the day that goes wrong.
- The flight. A tandem flight is a short one and a long one depending on what you book, and you land back near Bir at the landing ground.
- The afternoon. Bir's café street is genuinely good and worth an hour. Then back down the valley.
You can be back here by evening with the whole thing done.
We are not an operator and we do not book flights. We will not take a commission or send you to whoever pays us one. Ask us and we will tell you what people who stayed here actually used, which is a more useful answer.
What it costs, and why we are not quoting you a number
Tandem prices at Bir move with the season, the length of the flight, and whether video is included. Autumn costs more than spring. We are not going to print a figure here, because a price we have not charged you is a price we cannot stand behind — and nothing ages faster on a hotel blog than somebody else's rate card.
Ring an operator the week you come. What we can tell you without hedging is what a room here costs: ₹999 a night, ₹1,699 with air conditioning, and cheaper across a longer stay.
Practical things
- Book the flight for early in your trip, not the last day. It leaves you a second attempt if the wind is wrong.
- Wear proper shoes. You run a few steps off the edge at take-off. Sandals are a bad idea.
- Layers. It is meaningfully colder at altitude than at the landing ground, in every season.
- Motion sickness. Thermalling is circling. If you are prone to it, say so to your pilot before you launch — they can fly it straighter.
- Check the operator's insurance and the pilot's licence. Most here are good. Asking is normal and nobody is offended.
After
People come back from Billing wired and then very suddenly not. The pool is open until six, which tends to be exactly the right shape for the rest of that afternoon, and the roof is a good place to be when the valley goes dark.
Tell us your dates and which week you are thinking of flying, and we will tell you what the weather usually does then. The month-by-month guide covers the rest of the year.