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World's Highest First Skydive

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How does the World's Highest Tandem Skydive stack up?

Perhaps you’re considering making your first jump but never specifically thought about the jump exit altitude, or didn’t realize it varies significantly amongst skydiving centers. It is definitely something to consider when deciding where to make your first skydive.

More than half of the skydiving centers in the United States jump from an altitude of only 10,000 feet, and approximately 95% of skydiving centers in the country jump from 14,000 feet or less. Only a handful (less than 5%) offer first skydives from 18,000 feet, with only a select few offering the world’s highest jumps every day, on every flight.

Even the greatest of authors and pen pushers would be taxed to articulate human flight. There’s a reason almost every single person says they can’t explain what freefall felt like after they landed. We try admirably but suspect even Hemingway or Twain would struggle wordsmithing the experience properly. While it truly is something you must experience yourself to understand, let us attempt to put a relatable framework around the facts of the World’s Highest Tandem Skydive.

At an exit jump altitude of 18,000 feet, the world’s highest first skydive, you’ll freefall for approximately 80-90 seconds. That’s an unusually long amount of freefall! For perspective, it’s anywhere from 60%-260% more freefall than only a couple of other skydiving centers in the United States.

For perspective, a lot can happen in 90 seconds:

Higher Than
Mt Whitney

As California's tallest peak, Mt Whitney is a little more than 80% of the altitude of the jumps we do everyday.

14,495

Feet

Mt Whitney
Summit

World's Highest
Tandem Skydive

The World's Highest Tandem Skydive every day on every flight over the beautiful Monterey Bay.

18,000

Feet

World's Highest Tandem SKydive

Almost As High
as Mt Kilimanjaro

Our world's highest skydive is almost as high as the fourth tallest mountain in the world.

19,308

Feet

Mt. Kilimanjaro
Summit

Almost 2/3
as High as the World's Highest Peak

Getting up to an altitude of almost 30,000 feet is a very technical and dangerous endeavour, reserved only for stunt skydiving by a handful of the world's best.

29,302

Feet

Mt Everest
Summit

How Does the World's Highest Tandem Skydive Stack Up?

White yoga mat icon illustrating the height comparison of the world's highest tandem skydive at 18,000 feet with Skydive Monterey Bay
Yoga Mats

3000

Yoga Mats

3000 yoga mats standing stacked edge to edge would equal 18,000 feet.

Worlds Highest Skydive Compartives_School Bus Icon
450

School Buses

School Buses

Flipped on their side, you'd need to stack an astounding 450 school buses on top of each other to equate a distance of 18,000 feet.

Worlds Highest Skydive Compartives_Hollywood Sign Icon
400

Hollywood Signs

Hollywood Signs

Standing at 45 feet tall, 400 Hollywood signs would tally up to the same altitude as the World's Highest Tandem Skydive.

Worlds Highest Skydive Compartives_Blue Whale Icon
185

Blue Whales

Blue Whales

At an average length of 98 feet, about 185 Blue Whales would measure up to about 18,000 feet.

Worlds Highest Skydive Compartives_Statute of Liberty Icon
60

Statue of Liberty's

Statue of Libery's

The Statute of Liberty tops out at 305 feet. If you climbed it 60 times, it'd take about 3000 minutes or about 50 hours. We'll get you to 18,000 feet in about 10 minutes.

Worlds Highest Skydive Compartives_Football Field Icon
50

Football Fields

Football Fields

The length of 50 football fields roughly totals about 18,000 feet. You would need to do 15 skydives from 18,000 feet to equal the amount of Tom Brady's career passing yards.

Worlds Highest Skydive Compartives_Cruise Ship Icon
18

Cruise Ships

Cruise Ships

Walk the deck from bow to stern 18 times on a Carnival cruise ship and you'll get a good reference of the distance travelled during the World's Highest Tandem Skydive.

Worlds Highest Skydive Compartives_Golden Gate Icon
2

Golden Gate Bridges

Golden Gate Bridges

The Golden Gate Bridge is almost 9000 feet long so you'd need to double it up and flip it on its side to reach 18,000 feet.

World's Highest Tandem Skydive Experience

At 18,000 feet above the ground, you’ll be standing on the outside of a perfectly good airplane. Unless you’re an extreme mountaineer or balloonist, this will be the highest elevation you’ve ever experienced in the elements. Inside a commercial airplane really only provides the views; this way you’ll be in the environment.

 It’s fun to put the height in context because in the moment it’s really difficult to comprehend. It’s pretty wild to think you’ll be jumping from a distance equal to 60 Statues of Liberty. But the key takeway is that all of that extra freefall time allows you to relax in the sensations, enjoy the moment revel in the extreme feeling of human flight.

 

World's Highest Skydive Questions & Fun Facts

Is the highest skydive scarier than a normal altitude tandem skydive?

A higher skydive is not scarier.

It’s fun to put the height in context because in the moment it’s very difficult to comprehend. But do not let the biggest, most awesome and highest first skydive deter you. Fear not, adventurous friends. A higher skydiver is not a scarier one; it should be the contrary actually.

You won’t experience the same sensations as standing on the edge of a cliff or building. Standing or jumping from a fixed object means you’re surrounded by reference points like the cliff face, or water under the bridge, or the bridge itself, for example. Reference points are required for our brain to process the sense of falling, speed and the approaching ground.

Jumping from an airplane feels completely different than jumping from a bridge. Skydiving feels much more like floating on a column of air.

So, while it’s pretty wild to think you’ll be jumping from a distance equal to 60 Statues of Liberty, the extra time actually allows you to feel the zen and extreme positive feelings of human flight.

How does the jump altitude compare to some of the tallest buildings in the world?

San Francisco’s tallest building is Salesforce Tower at 1,070 feet and One World Trade Center in New York City is 1,776 feet. That’s about 1/10 of the exit altitude of the World’s Highest Skydive.

The world’s highest building is currently the Burj Khalifa towering over Dubai at 2,717 feet. But that’s not even high enough for us to exit the airplane, let alone freefall for any amount of time.

How does an 18,000 foot jump altitude compare to some of the tallest natural features of the world?

We won’t even get to freefall altitude by the time we arrive at the same altitude as the top of the world’s highest waterfall, Angel Falls (2,650 feet). We open the parachute at around 5000 feet above the ground.

The deepest part of the Grand Canyon is estimated at 6,001 feet, one-third of our jump altitude.

Ever stand on Pier 39, wondering how far away is Alcatraz? Even making the round trip wouldn’t be the same distance as exit altitude to the ground.

The Lambert Glacier, the world’s biggest, towers almost high enough to be half the distance of the most extreme first skydive experience. It’s estimated to be about 8200 feet tall.

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