Ever dreamed of going skydiving, but are absolutely terrified to jump out of a plane? iFLY Hollywood offers the closest experience to skydiving you can have without the fear of freefalling. Made popular by the CW’s hit television show, “America’s Next Top Model,” this out-of-body experience takes you into a vertical wind tunnel where your adrenaline will be pumping as you actually fly through the air.

Conveniently and ideally located in Hollywood’s famous Universal City CityWalk and open seven days a week, iFLY is an excellent activity for the day or night. Frequented by numerous tourists and L.A. residents, iFLY is perfect for any occasion, be it a birthday party, group outing, corporate team building events or everyday family fun.

When you arrive, you sign up through an electronic registration and then experienced flight instructors give you a short tutorial training session to prepare you, explaining safety hazards for your flight. There are four simple hand signals the instructors will teach you that are vital for an optimal flight experience. It’s important to control your body position while flying inside the tunnel, and these hand signals given by the conductor and the instructor during flight will ensure your safety and enjoyment during this exhilarating experience.

With an instructor in the tunnel with you providing hands-on assistance during flight, iFLY is a safe ride for all ages. There’s no experience necessary as the friendly and knowledgeable professional flyers are happy and willing to help both first-time flyers with beginning questions as well as veteran flyers with more advanced aerobatic flips and turns.

They offer colorful head-to-toe suits for every body type and helmets, goggles and earplugs for your protection. If you come in flip-flops or opened toed shoes, iFLY also can provide shoes for your flight.

Once you are geared up, the group will head outside to the wind tunnel where all the members of your training group will wait to fly individually. Not only do you get to laugh and enjoy your flight experience, but you can also watch others fly before and after you.

There’s often a large crowd of people standing at iFLY as well as watching the amazing art of skydiving indoors. After all the members of your group fly, the instructor will head into the tunnel and show off their very impressive skills they’ve learned over time.

The most important tip the staff will give you is to relax while you are in the tunnel and let the wind take you. You will enjoy your flight more if you don’t fight the wind and simply pretend to freefall as you move up and down through the walled wind tunnel.

After you fly once you’re considered an experienced flyer, and as long as you return within three months of your initial flight, you don’t need to bother with the basic training class again and you’re free to progress to harder, more skilled movements inside the tunnel. Many frequent flyer programs are offered with discounted prices for each flight after your first.

The great thing about the iFLY experience is that it can be done at all ages; you can fly from the age of three to 103! However, there are weight restrictions that must be met in order to fly: if you are over six-feet tall, you must weigh less than 250 pounds and if you are under six-feet tall, you must weigh less than 230 pounds.

After your flight, you receive a flight certificate confirming that you reached terminal velocity in the indoor skydiving vertical wind tunnel! It’s recommended that you arrive at least 40 minutes before your flight, and if you make your reservation online, you will have a shorter wait.

For more information, call (818) 985-4359 or visit iflyhollywood.com