Fantastic staff, experienced instructors, welcoming, friendly and willing to accommodate to the best of their abilities. 10/10.

Awesome crew !!! Made for such a fun day !! Went with a bunch of friends and it was all of our first times - they made it super safe and fun! read more

Everything about my experience skydiving here was great! The staff and instructors were all pleasant and professional. They make you feel like they take your safety very seriously but also want to make sure you have fun and enjoy the experience. Highly recommended. read more

Connecticut Parachuting - Taking flight - Skydiving Near Me - Ellington, Connecticut

Looking for a, Craig Toth I jumped w/ in 1976. His NN was, Zero. timandrew53@yahoo.com read more

Most amazing experience of a lifetime. Great people work here! I felt very safe. I expected to be terrified when it was time, but I felt zero fear and had complete confidence in the instructor. Thank you so much! read more

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This place is very safe, affordable, and somewhat timely. They are very safe and the tandem instructors are great. I've had Mike each time and feel very comfortable jumping with him. The plane is newer feeling and gear seems nice. I've been to some sketchy skydiving places and this place is not like those.. It's up with the nicer ones I've been to. Enjoy! Just FYI, I've been 2 or 3 times to CT parachutists and average wait times were between 1 hr to 5 hrs after check in, with a reservation, although they tell you this to begin with.. Depends on weather, normally. Go do it! read more

So you think when you go to a place to jump and they give you an appointment, that when you come early, you'll be able to jump, right? WRONG. This happened this summer - after we arrived early and filled out waivers and paperwork, we were directed to wait at a picnic table. We were waiting for 5 hours!!!!!! Despite checking in with the front desk multiple times during the 5 hours to see if someone would come get us and that we would be allowed to jump, nobody let us know what was going on. Finally, someone came over to us (a group of 5 friends) and told us we wouldn't be able to jump all together even though the plane could hold 20 people. UM, WHAT IS THE POINT of booking us all together if we can't even go together?!?!?!?!?!? To dilly dally and lollygag a little more, the guy says that he's going to jump first and then come get us. But, that doesn't happen because an hour later, clouds rolled in and there would be no more jumps. My friends FLEW IN for the weekend just so that we could all jump and hang out together, and it turned out to be for NOTHING but a waste of time. The company offered a rain check, but who the heck would fly in again to wait around 5 hours to not jump? Long horror story short: you couldn't pay me any amount of $ to come back to this place. read more

Skydivers - most people say we're crazy. Some say they have a death wish. Psychologists say people with an inclination to take high risks are a necessary part of the continuation of our species. OR, you might just have something mentally wrong with you to jump out of a plane. Whatever your reason, do it once in your life and test your limits. With that said, my experience at CT Parachutist was very enjoyable. Shooting the breeze with the jump-masters and instructors was awesome. Mingling with other jumpers and sharing our stories -- it was a real treat to talk to amongst the crazies. HOWEVER, the front office (Manifest) really dropped the ball. Thinking back, the operation really was not efficient, stream-lined, or seamless. Yes, weather and wind are HUGE factors in the actual jump. But, between the front office losing my paperwork that I had completed online (2 waivers) to the ungodly long wait - this operation could have been made more organized and systematic. Our background: we purchased 2 jumping packages, 2 video packages. The weather was perfect, and was not overly gusty. We waited 5+ hours to jump. Our appointment was at 1030am. We arrived at 945am and did not actually board the plane until 3pm. Training honestly takes less than 5 minutes. The website does state to "plan to spend at least half a day at the drop zone". Honestly, if I could have done things differently, I wished we were informed on an "ideal" time to arrive, or at least what our actual wait times were. As I said before jumping was phenomenal. The intense focus and the pump of adrenaline leave you feeling mentally and physically cleansed. All of the people we got to interact with were awesome, BUT I would hesitate in coming back just because of how poorly organized the operations were handled. read more

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Very disappointing cancellation. I had an appointment at 4 pm and got a call 5 minutes before asking if I was showing up and clearly wishing that I wasn't. When I got there, I was told that they may need to cancel my jump. The personnel was polite but still this was discouraging. Furthermore, once they agreed to charge the jump, then we were told that a video couldn't be done because they didn't have a certified instructor. They looked overwhelmed and clearly disorganized. They didn't even know how many more jumpers they had scheduled. Finally, even after having offered a jump, they cancelled the appointment completely saying they wouldn't be able to make it. We drove an hour to get here and had waited for weeks for the jump. As said before, even thought staff was kind, this is very disappointing from a big company. I suggest people scheduling their skydive to anticipate this issue may happen. read more

I went skydiving here about nine years ago it was incredible definitely would do it again. I got a video and everything it was fantastic and I went in September and a half to be a beautiful beautiful day!!! read more

Can't say enough about how great this place is! The instructors were so friendly and accommodating. We had an appointment for 3pm and due to thunderstorms in the area we had to hold off a day. The crew let us know everything that was going on with the clouds, wind speed, etc. It made me feel very safe that they wouldn't let us jump if they weren't 110% confident it was safe. We came back the next day and were in the first plane up! The entire crew made us feel welcome, comfortable, happy and safe. If you are going to skydive in CT (or in New England) I HIGHLY recommend CT Parachuting in Ellington! read more

Overall an enjoyable but flawed experience. The jumpmasters seemed stressed and rushed, but they were very friendly. Their scheduling system leaves a bit to be desired, maybe it was because they were busy, or perhaps it's typical. When you arrive at your scheduled time, you still end up waiting for an hour or two before you actually jump. I certainly don't expect to immediately jump, but I would have brought something to do if I thought I'd be sitting around twiddling my thumbs for 90 minutes. I think my biggest issue was that I paid for the photography package. I noticed on previous jumps the cameraman would land first in order to get the landing. Because of the crazy scheduling, my cameraman was already on a plane heading back up as I was coming down. I have photos (and video) of the start of my jump (but not the ending). They also misspelled my name on the video which is somewhat frustrating. I think if I were to do it again, I'd skip the photos. I spent too much time posing for photos when I should have been enjoying the ride. In the end, this has been on my bucket list for a while. I'm glad I did it, I was actually afraid I might like it too much and I'd want to start working toward solo jumps. It was fun, but not the life-changing experience I had hoped. read more

Hands down one of the best experiences of my life ! Super knowledgeable instructors that made you feel comfortable jumping out of a perfectly good airplane. I would highly recommend CT Parachutists to anyone looking to live life to the fullest !! read more

Saturday I went tandem skydiving at the Ellington airport through ct parachutist....it was one of the most exciting and great experience I ever had...the staff was great and very reassuring and gained your trust immediately ....I had Walt as my instructor tandem partner and he was great..if I return I will ask for him...I had Alfonzo as my video/still photographer and he was great making me feel bad relaxed as Walt did....I would return without a doubt...you must try it as it is worth every dime... read more

Connecticut Parachuting - So much fun - Skydiving Near Me - Ellington, Connecticut

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Everyone here is extremely nice and I felt very comfortable during my entire time there. I arrived at 9:45 for my scheduled session at 10:00 and landed on the ground by 10:51. If you go by yourself you get out faster than if you go with a group. I had a great time and I really recommend skydiving here! read more

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Experience couldn't have been WORSE!!! I should have known how the day was going to go when we missed the turn to go down their "drive way" because their sign was no more than a piece of plywood with their name painted on it. It was a good thing my car was all wheel drive because this "drive way" is really about a 1/4 mile of extremely rocky dirt road that was pretty muddy. Do not drive a nice car here! We got there 20 minutes before our "appointment" as was recommended and we filled out our waivers. We were given no direction so when I asked where to go a very annoyed teenage girl told me to wait at the picnic table and someone would come get me. Well, an hour and a half later we still haven't been told ANYTHING so I go up to the counter again. The girl is at this point is in the middle of a personal phone call that she has no desire to end because I am standing in front of her. A couple minutes later she gets off the phone and informs me that it will still be a couple of hours before we jump! That would have been nice to know an hour and a half ago! Well, we go get lunch and come back and after just a little more waiting they come over and start briefing me and just one other of my friends. I asked if we were all jumping together since we all had the same appointment and they told me that we were being split into 3 different runs even though their plane has a 20 person capacity! We get over it because we've invested 6 hours into this so far and daylight is fading. My instructor tells me he's going to go do a fun jump and then he's going to take me up in the next one... WTF!!! Take me with you now! As luck would have it, clouds rolled in about 50 minutes before sunset and jumping was cancelled for the rest of the day. I was so upset with this ridiculous company I asked for my money back. They told me that they didn't have to because it was cancelled due to weather and they can't control that!!! Not to mention I am from out of town and one of my friends was from Illinois and could never possibly use the rain check. I argued with the company president for a solid 30 minutes fruitlessly and ended up leaving with nothing but rain checks and a feeling of being completely raped. To top it all off my friend who did live near there was going to go back the next morning and just use his rain check so they didn't just get our money for free. That morning it was really cloudy so he knew no flights were going up yet. He headed over there once they started to clear and was told that he was in line behind 80+ people who were already there even though he waited all yesterday!!! NEVER USE THIS COMPANY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! read more

This was my first skydiving experience and it could not have gone any better than it did! The staff was really amazing, easy going, and the had great instructors with lots of experience. Be prepared to wait on busy days, but it is well worth it!!!! read more

Skydive deal on Groupon? Yes please. My first skydiving trip. I went on a beautiful sunny spring day. Hardly any cloud in the sky. Once we got there, my buddy and I signed some paperwork. Within an hour we were in the sky. The plane was the size of my Honda accord and could only fit two tandems. My instructor was very helpful and enthusiastic. Joking around as we went up. I couldn't hear a thing once the door opened but the instructor gave very clear instructions on the ground. Our jump went flawlessly. Best 10 minutes of my life. Too bad I don't remember my instructors name but he was the manager. Good luck and have fun if you decide to go with this company. read more

the good - I did my first tandem jump with them and couldn't have felt safer - they take you way up in the air (we made 14k feet), walk you through everything, and off you go - amazing experience, everyone should try it - cost for the jump is about 220 and 120 more for video (unfortunately video was all booked up for our jump, but that's life) the bad - waited more than 5 hours from scheduled time to actually jump - they seem to overbook for each time instead of staggering it out, which would be relatively easy - service reps weren't super friendly on the phone either...but the jump masters were great read more

From Tandems to AFF Student: I first came to CPI to do a tandem jump back in May-- it was my first and one of the most incredible experiences of my life! The staff was friendly, inviting and by the time I was ready to suit up- I forgot I was even the slightest bit nervous at all. My tandem instructor was amazing!! He put my mind at ease and made the whole experience enjoyable. I had so much fun, I went back to do a second jump the following week. That second time, I hadn't made an appointment and CPI still accommodated me; on a busy day too. I spent the morning at the dropzone and enjoyed every minute of it. I had the opportunity to interact with "fun-jumpers," and what an interesting, vibrant group of people! What's more, I got to enjoy a beautiful day outside with a pretty cool view-- canopies soaring overhead, or as I like to call it, "the canopy dance!" It's also fun to witness other tandems land--their faces light up with awe-worthy excitement, realizing they have their two feet on the ground again, after jumping out of a 'perfectly good airplane!' It's an experience beyond just getting in your jump and going home. Take it all in! If there's a wait... talk to your fellow adventurers, enjoy the view of the other jumps; savor the experience! This is your skydiving day! As an AFF Student: I've grown quite attached to CPI as a club/dropzone these past few months--I've enjoyed everyone I've interacted with from the staff, the instructors, other AFF students and fun-jumpers. The instructors are incredibly thorough, very knowledgeable and experienced, encouraging and supportive, they love teaching--and they're good at it! I can't say enough glowing things about my experience thus far at CPI. I'm always impressed with how organized the staff is at managing the plane loads each day and in a timely fashion. This place is a gem! read more

This was my first skydiving experience after a lifetime of saying I had a no desire to skydive. It. Was. Amazing. In large part due to the wonderful staff and fellow jumpers at Connecticut Parachutist. In fact, probably completely due to them. My roommate and I decided we were going to be brave and booked a Groupon so we couldn't look back. Two days later we arrived, skeptical and nervous. Pro Tip: don't drive onto the cornfield. There's a lovely real parking lot off the main road behind some industrial buildings. From the moment we arrived we were greeted by the friendliest of staff (they offered to tow my stuck car off of said cornfield, which was covered with snow). Most of all, they offered the best kind of reassurance, the kind based on experience and facts. It was a Sunday and we didn't have a long wait, maybe 30 minutes max. Mike, our tandem instructor, was calm and kind and thoroughly explained every thing to expect along the way. We could not thank him enough, he made the experience something to enjoy and I can honestly say I was not nervous at all once I knew we would be riding with him. What can I say? I would highly recommend this business to anyone even slightly interested in flying through the air 13,000 feet. The best experience of my life. read more

This was an AMAZING experience! I bought the Groupon that they had because I like to save money - especially on something that I have never tried before! I was able to make a reservation online rather easily. We also were able to watch videos and sign all the waivers online as well. I wasn't nervous at all until I saw all of the waivers that I had to sign! BUT, if you want to jump, you have to sign them. We drove there and the ONLY negative that I have to say about the day is that we weren't greeted by the manifest guy right away. He was doing something on the computer and didn't even acknowledge us. My husband even asked him if we were in the right place, wo which he answered "yes". I expected SOME acknowledgement - even if he was to have said "I'll be right with you". But we waited, and after about 7 minutes, he finally asked how he could help us. We handed in our Groupon and he had us sign another waiver there, verifying our weight. Then we just had to wait. There was some cloud cover so we were told that we would go when the weather was right. I brought a book with me so I had something to do while waiting. Mark, one of the tandem guys, came over to us and introduced himself and told us that we would be going soon. Then the manifest guy came over to us and was pretty chatty and pleasant, which made up for him basically ignoring us when we first got there. Finally we were called that it was time to go. My tandem guy, Justin, came by and introduced himself to me and he took me over to get into a jumpsuit. He explained that they have us wear jumpsuits so we don't get our clothes dirty when we land, which I appreciated! We then went over to get ready. He had me put on the harness and explained everything that was going to happen and what he wanted me to do and when he wanted me to do it. He asked if I had any questions and encouraged me to ask any whenever. Then we met the Videographer, Keith, who introduced himself to us and took some still pics of us in our jumpsuits and did a short pre-jump interview. (you have an option to pay $125.00 to get a video and pictures-which i highly suggest bc it goes by really fast and it is nice to see what actually happened!) We then boarded the plane. On the plane, everyone sits down on the floor. That's when the tandem guys hooked up to our harnesses and pulled everything tight. Justin then explained that the other jumpers were going to go out first and then the door would shut and we would keep climbing. It was at this time that Keith did the on the plane interview with me. We went up to 13,000 feet and the door opened again, and we scootched over to the door, and flung ourselves out. Keith was right next to me getting photos and video as I jumped. The feeling of that free fall was just incredible!! Our top speed was 148mph! Justin checked in with me to see how I was doing, and Keith was right there, filming and snapping away. The only thing that I wasn't prepared for is when the chute actually opened. In fact, I totally forgot about that part bc the free fall was just so awesome! When that chute opens, it jerks you vertical pretty violently. I had huge pain on the inside of my upper thigh, where the harness was wrapped around my leg and I figured I was going to get a bruise there, for sure. None the less, I was VERY happy that the chute opened!! As we were gliding around, Justin pointed out Gamble Pavillion at UCONN and Bradley Airport. He let me steer the chute, which was cool. He again, checked in with me to see how I was doing. And then it was time to land. Justin told me to lift my legs up as much as possible and we had a smooth landing on our butts. Easy as can be! We were happy to tip both tandem guys and the video/picture guy because they took great care of us. I highly recommend this place and would go again in a second! read more

I had an awesome experience!!! So much adrenaline but the people there made me feel very comfortable! The video they made me was super cool! Ill have the memory forever! I would def go again too! read more

Best jump ever! Came here with my gf for our anniversary and we had an awesome time. Everyone was very friendly and professional. Shot out to mike "Mother Russia" and "The Mac" Machalich for the tandem jump! Pictures came out great too! Definitely gonna come back again soon!! read more

Although my jumping experience was good, the aftermath was horrendous. I purchased a video/photo package, which I was told would be available a few days later. When I checked in on the video status (a day after my friend had already received hers) I was told they were still processing it. Days later, still did not receive my video/photos, I called them inquiring the whereabouts leaving a voicemail. They emailed back saying that the video was not retrievable as the card had been "encrypted". As I understood that technical mishaps happen, I asked if the card could be sent to me so I could decrypt it myself. They said they could not because they had destroyed the chip. I asked for a full refund, jumped included, as the customer service was awful (lying about video, poor communication, technical difficulties) and they refused; however, sent a refund for the video and said "jump again". Awful read more

Probably the best experience of my life so far! The instructors (shoutout to my awesome instructor Mike) were so funny and knowledgeable; they made me feel very comfortable and safe during the skydiving experience. I couldn't recommend this place enough, what an amazing time! read more

I brought my family to jump today. It was my daughter' first jump. The staff is always very friendly and safety is always a focus. From the checking in process, to the equipment fitting, to the actual jump, everything was perfect! Guys were great and it was a beautiful day. read more

Best experience ever!! The environment of the entire place is incredible, all of the staff members are helpful and extremely nice! Clouds did put us on a bit of a hold, but it was completely understandable. We were told to expect to be here for the majority of the day, so we brought some food and things to entertain ourselves. Overall I had an amazing time and I would recommend this place to everyone! read more

I have nothing but praise for our experience at ct parachuting! Not only was the actual dive top-notch, but the entire staff as well. They were friendly, helpful (when I couldn't find my groupon) and professional. While we were waiting for our dive we were able to talk to many of the staff and learned how experienced and varied their diving backgrounds were. Couldn't have been more pleased with our choice for our husband's birthday gifts! We will definitely be returning. Thanks to the entire staff!! read more