TexasCHLforum.com

Almost all flight centers have some sort of introductory lesson at a discount. They will go over the whole procedure and cost with you.I have had intro lessons in a Cessna and in an Ultralight. The ultralights are the cheapest way to get into flying, but they are also the most limited. The aircraft are limited to around 250 pounds empty and 500 gross weight, with power and fuel restrictions. The advantage is no pilots license is required but there is not much other than recreational flying you can do.

Next up is the light sport pilot, which may get expanded quite a bit in the next few years. It is currently limited to a two seat single engine plane with a 1320 pound gross weight. Limits on power and speed also. Other than no night or IFR flying, some of these planes can do everything you might want them to. People do fly them cross country, but in fairly short hops usually.

There is a recreational pilot's license which lets you fly most small airplanes. I am not sure of what the difference between it and the regular private pilot's license is besides requiring 5 less hours of lessons. Then there is the private pilot's license which will let you fly almost any airplane with the right training and certifications.

I looked at learning to fly a long time ago so some of this might be outdated. I couldn't afford it the first time I thought about it so I got into flying radio controlled planes instead. I really enjoy flying models and there are some real advantages to them. Funny thing is it did not take me long to spend more with models than I would have spent learning to fly anyway. Recent FAA rules may make this hobby die in the near future, as they try to rein in the people who are going nuts with r/c drones. I am certain it is a very small minority of the drone pilots but they are making big news and giving all pilots a bad reputation by flying near passenger carrying aircraft and taking photos of other people's land and the people themselves.