How much does a skydive cost?

A tandem skydive from 4,000 metres costs 1,150 zł with us. With a camera in the instructor's hand it is 1,350 zł, with a camera flyer alongside 1,500 zł, and with both 1,700 zł. Each of these prices includes VAT, the kit, the instructor and the flight to full altitude, and nothing is added at the dropzone. The AFF course, after which you jump on your own, costs 6,900 zł.

Tandem prices

In all four the jump is the same: the same exit, the same minute of freefall, the same instructor. The only difference is who films it, and from how far away.

What you are paying for

The largest part of the price is the lift to 4,000 metres. Every climb costs fuel, the pilot's time and engine hours that bring the aircraft's next inspection closer. A flight costs nearly the same whether the cabin is full or half empty, so a seat is in practice a share in the cost of the whole flight.

The second part is the equipment. A tandem system has a main and a reserve canopy built for two people, a passenger harness, a small drogue that slows the pair in freefall to the speed of a solo skydiver, and an automatic activation device for the reserve. Each of these has inspections set by its manufacturer, and some of them also have a limited service life.

The third part is people. A tandem instructor holds a separate rating and works with you from the briefing on the ground to the landing. With a camera flyer there is a second skydiver with their own parachute and camera, who takes a seat in the aircraft and makes a whole jump just to fly alongside you.

Hand-cam or camera flyer

The hand-cam is held by your instructor at arm's length, pointed at you. Nobody extra flies and nobody takes another seat, which is why it costs 200 zł more than the jump alone. The footage shows your face at the exit, the whole minute of freefall up close and the canopy opening.

A camera flyer is a separate skydiver who leaves the aircraft with you and flies alongside for the whole freefall. They show the jump from outside: the exit from the door, the two of you in the air, the canopy opening at a distance. That costs 350 zł more than the jump alone, because it means a second person, a second parachute and a second seat on board. For 1,700 zł you get both, and the footage is handed over after landing.

You cannot bring your own camera. A tandem passenger holds nothing in their hands, neither a phone nor an action camera, so the only footage of the jump is taken by the instructor or the camera flyer.

What a cheaper jump gives up

The first thing to check is the exit altitude. On a tandem the parachute opens at roughly the same height, around 1,500 metres, so every metre less at exit comes straight off the freefall. At up to 200 km/h you fall about 55 metres a second: an exit 1,000 metres lower means roughly 18 seconds less freefall.

For comparison, the manual for the UPT Sigma 2 system we jump allows an exit from as low as 2,300 metres. From that height freefall lasts a dozen or so seconds rather than about a minute. A price without an altitude next to it says very little.

When you compare offers, it helps to ask each of them the same questions:

• What is the exit altitude, and how many seconds of freefall does it leave?
• Does the price include the flight to that altitude, the kit and the instructor, or is there a dropzone or equipment fee on the day?
• Is filming included, and if not, who does it: the instructor with a hand-cam or a separate camera flyer?
• Does the price apply on every day, or only on some?
• How long is the voucher valid, and does moving the date for weather cost anything?
• Does the price include VAT, and can a company get an invoice?

What the voucher covers

A voucher costs exactly what the jump costs, because it is the same jump bought without a date. The PDF with the code is e-mailed once the payment is confirmed. The voucher is valid for 12 months from purchase and made out to the bearer, so someone else can use it. The date is chosen after purchase, on the booking page.

If the weather rules out jumping on the day, we set a new date at no extra cost. Within 14 days of purchase a consumer can return the voucher without giving a reason, as long as no date has been booked. The details are in the terms and conditions.

What the price does not cover

• Getting to the dropzone. It is near Gdańsk, and we give the exact address when the date is confirmed.
• Accommodation, if you are travelling far and would rather not drive back the same day.
• Food and drink. A day at the dropzone usually runs to several hours, so bring something with you.
• Extra copies of the footage beyond what your variant includes.

People who come along to watch, on the other hand, pay nothing. Nobody needs to book them in or buy them a ticket.

Cheaper when you buy together

The discount applies itself, to the whole order, and counts items in the basket rather than people. Variants add up: two jumps without filming and one with a hand-cam make three. There is nothing to ask for and no code to enter; just buy the vouchers in one order.

• Two people — 9% off.
• 3 or more — 10% off.
• 5 or more — 11% off.

More on group and company orders is on the companies and groups page.

Payment and invoices

You pay online in the shop: by BLIK, by card or by a fast online bank transfer. Payments run through the Paynow gateway, and online payments are handled by mElements S.A. Paynow hosts the payment page, so we never see or store card details. The voucher goes out as soon as the payment is confirmed.

You tick the invoice box at checkout. The Polish tax number (NIP) is enough, and we pull the rest from the register. A company outside Poland picks its country, gives its VAT number and types in the address. The prices on the list are gross, with VAT included. If the order went through without an invoice, write to us with its number.

The AFF course is a different sum

The AFF course costs 6,900 zł and covers ground school and jumps with instructors flying alongside you. After it you jump solo, and a single jump then mostly pays for the lift to altitude, so it costs a fraction of a tandem. The two paths are compared in the guide tandem or AFF, and what comes after the course is described in a separate guide.

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