Queenstown Kawarau River Whitewater Rafting

Recommended by 99% of travelers

Queenstown, New Zealand

Popular pick

Booked 5+ times last week!

4 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Overview

Go beyond admiring the Kawarau River from afar and get on the water with a whitewater rafting experience through its rapids. Enjoy a hassle-free day with coach transfers, a wetsuit, and all equipment included. Then set off on your rafting trip, with an optional cliff jump for those after an extra thrill.

Explore a filming location from “Lord of the Rings”—the Kawaru River
Get there and back with ease: A shuttle service is included
Enjoy the thrill of conquering grade 2–4 rapids
No need to source wetsuits and specialist clothing—it’s all provided

What's Included

Use of hot showers
Wetsuit, rafting clothing and all other equipment provided
Extensive safety instructions and paddling techniques
Coach transport to and from Raft Base

Snacks

Food and drinks

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

RealNZ Queenstown Visitor Centre
RealNZ Visitor Centre 88 Beach Street, CBD, Queenstown 9300, New Zealand
Check-in is required at least 20 minute prior to your departure time.

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Kawarau River

Lake Wakatipu

Queenstown

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
Not wheelchair accessible
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
You must bring a swimsuit and towel

Maximum weight 120kg
Minimum weight 40kg
Minimum age is 13 years. Children aged between 13 and 15 years must be accompanied by a guardian
Rafting with any heart condition is prohibited
Rafting while pregnant is prohibited
Must be able to swim
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers

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Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

India_J

White water rafting was an incredible experience. Our guides (so sorry cannot remember their names) were awesome and made the rapids even that much more fun. Even got an opportunity to swim a bit and do some cliff jumping. This is a very family friendly event since the rapids were only level 2/3 (not bad at all), so for first timers, this is the one for you.

Reviews

4.9

based on 73 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Awesome rafting experience.

India_J, Mar 2026

So much fun, five stars

David_G, Mar 2026

The team was amazing. From the driver to the tour guides on the water, we had so much fun. The scenery was amazing the Rapids were good for a beginner.

A well organised day from...

Kym_F, Mar 2026

A well organised day from start to finish the crew were capable and enthusiastic in there jobs encouraging us new to rafting to get the most from our day, next trip I will try a more challenging white water rafting experience

Super fun, beautiful...

Benjamin_C, Jan 2026

Super fun, beautiful views, and Nico was an excellent guide! Felt very safe while still getting the thrill of rafting. Highly recommend.

Finished the trip and...

Andrea_H, Jan 2026

Finished the trip and wanted to go again! Our guide Matt was fantastic guide and we had plenty of time for a swim and to go through the rapids. I would highly recommend!

Good starters rapid trip....

Larry_R, Dec 2025

Good starters rapid trip. Lots of time to chill in the river with a few fun rapids. Guides were great. Beautiful views driving and great on float trip.

Whitewater Rafting for 1st Timers

Tan_G, Dec 2025

Awesome experience for 1st time rafters ! Would like to thank Instructor Mark and RealNZ team for their excellent support/service ! Appreciate it !

Perfect for first time rafters

Phoebe_K, Nov 2025

Such a fantastic experience!!! A perfect river for first time rafting - all the guides were so friendly and helpful, really couldn’t recommend enough

Great tour!!

Bec_S, Apr 2025

The guides were fun and we had the extra privilege of having 3 Polytech students on the trip too! Great work looking after the guests AND THE students! The students were fantastic too! Thanks to all!! Well done.

Nice tour with Morgan

Adriana_A, Jan 2025

Staffs are friendly. There is a small ice breaker session during the bus ride and also while enjoying the views in the raft. They try to get everyone bonded which was nice. It was also a great tour with Morgan. She was very informative and always ready to answer our questions. She even shared her experience with us. Highly recommended tour, safety aspect was really good too!!