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Exploring iFly Queens

We visited the newly opened iFly location on a whim for our son's 13th birthday, booking our "flights" during our drive from our Long Island home. We filled out waivers and watched an informational video before even walking in, but these must-do tasks can be completed on-site as well.

Walking into the upstairs tunnel area certainly spikes your heart rate. We wondered how it was even possible that we would take flight. The physics didn't seem to make sense. All I could picture was the fizzy lifting scene that sent Charlie and his grandpa afloat as they belched in a chamber in Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory.

Any jitters melted away as confident, funny, and friendly staffers fitted us with fly suits and helmets. Then we learned the necessary hand signals to communicate during our flying experience.

The Indoor Skydiving Experience at iFly

With only four flyers in our party, we joined other flyers to form a group of 10 ranging in age from 5 years old to north of 60 for our scheduled indoor skydiving flight time. We all piled into the seated waiting area as a professional flyer closed the chamber doors and turned on the wind.

An engineer outside of the tunnel operates wind speeds and assists with those communication hand signals. They also reminded us to breathe—which we all needed!

Our expert flyer, Andy, entered the tunnel first and guided each participant through the experience. Flight suits have handles for instructors to grab to control your ascent. From basic turns to just free flying, this experience was truly transcendent. You don't feel like you're falling—rather suspended in the air like a bird.

Each flight only lasts a minute, and a basic package gets you two flights per person. Given the focus required on your core body movements during this experience, a minute was decent.

Visitors can purchase a high-flight add-on that lets you soar 20-something feet high. Our teen boys poofed up briefly into the tunnel and came down begging us to add on the high flight to their second turn.

There are no flips or upside-down antics during the first few visits to iFly, although those can be learned with additional visits and training.

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Before you can enjoy this indoor skydiving experience at iFly, you must get dressed in a special flight suit.

Know Before You Go Indoor Skydiving at iFly

There are some housekeeping notes I want to mention:

• If anyone in your party is pregnant or has serious health or body issues, they will likely have to sit this experience out. Find a full list of who can fly on the iFly site.
• Kids as young as 3 can fly. If, upon arrival, the experience seems too overwhelming, the hosts will add that flight time onto others in your party or refund you the cost.
• There are free lockers to store your items and a bathroom is on-site.
• The biggest thing I wish I knew before visiting is that you can't bring your phone into the seated, waiting area for your flying party. So, if we wanted any record any of our experiences, we had to purchase individual photos and videos at an additional cost. Non-flyers can stand outside the tube and snap away. 
• Depending on the number of people in your time slot, the entire visit lasts about two hours.
• iFly also hosts birthday parties, private events, STEM clubs, field trips, and more.
• There's a slew of other information in the iFly FAQ section regarding clothing, glasses, hair ties, and more.

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Spread your wings and fly during a visit to iFly's indoor skydiving experience.

How Much Does iFly Cost?

This unique indoor skydiving adventure does come at a higher price point. We paid $100+ per person for our flight time. iFly offers significant discounts on future indoor skydiving visits if you purchase them on the day of your scheduled flight.

Getting to iFly Indoor Skydiving

Located in Hunters Point South, parking is sparse. Allow extra time if you're driving. iFly indoor skydiving is easily accessible via the NYC subway to the Vernon Boulevard/Jackson Avenue stop, the LIRR railroad stop in Long Island City, or the NYC Ferry to Hunters Point South.

Photos by the author