Family Adventures Rafting and Sightseeing Trip in Queenstown
Recommended by 100% of travelers
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Queenstown, New Zealand
- 5 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Enjoy a wet-and-wild adventure in Skippers Canyon on this family-friendly rafting adventure from Queenstown. Take a scenic drive into Skippers Canyon and learn about the region’s rich gold-mining heritage. On arrival at the base, strap into your safety kit and paddle onto the Shotover River’s class I and II rapids. Paddle and splash as you enjoy the views over the mountain landscape, led safely by a guide.
- Gain insight into Central Otago's gold-mining history
- Navigate the Shotover River’s easy rapids with a guide
- Suitable for kids aged three and above so everyone can join in
- Snacks are included and souvenir photos can be purchased
What's Included
- GST (Goods and Services Tax)
- Specialized river rafting equipment
- Qualified rafting guide
- Transport to rafting base
- All activities
- Snacks
- Souvenir photos (available to purchase)
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Marmolada Cafe43 Camp Street, Queenstown 9300, New Zealand
The Station building bus stop, corner of Shotover Street and Camp street. We meet 10mins before the start time.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.What To Expect
1
Family Adventures
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Bring a swimsuit and towel
- Member of the NZ Rafting Association
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Qualmark accredited
- TripAdvisor Excellence rating for 12 straight seasons
- Near public transportation
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 30 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
DEAN_M
So fun! Perfect for families with young children. Ours is only 3 yrs old and he had a great time. Nothing was too scary or dangerous for him. Our guide Mark was friendly, knowledgeable, and fun. The gear you are provided keeps you warm and you don’t need to bring anything except maybe a towel for after if you plan on taking a dip in the river during the experience as it’s allowed in a couple of spots. Lots of great photo opps so bring waterprooof camera or cases. Will definitely do this again on next trip here
Reviews
4.9
based on 342 reviews
DEAN_M, Mar 2026
So fun! Perfect for families with young children. Ours is only 3 yrs old and he had a great time. Nothing was too scary or dangerous for him. Our guide Mark was friendly, knowledgeable, and fun. The gear you are provided keeps you warm and you don’t need to bring anything except maybe a towel for after if you plan on taking a dip in the river during the experience as it’s allowed in a couple of spots. Lots of great photo opps so bring waterprooof camera or cases. Will definitely do this again on next trip here
Ben_K, Feb 2026
This is a family friendly experience with emphasis put on time spent swimming/floating in the beautiful Shotover River. The guides are very supportive and considerate of your skill and comfort levels. It was a great experience with my 13yr old kids.
Pamie_C, Jan 2026
Had an awesome day with Georgia and Josh. Josh kept things lively with a steady stream of dad-joke energy, very festive, very committed. The drive through Skippers Canyon was epic. The rapids were approachable and a lot of fun, and Georgia made the whole experience feel safe and relaxed while still keeping it exciting. Plenty of laughs and splashing around. Would absolutely recommend. Thanks legends!
Zoe_W, Jan 2026
Mark is equal parts professional and hilarious. Mark and Georgie were calm and confident, allowing our family to fully enjoy our experience knowing everything was taken care of efficiently and with a smile. The ability to entertain and inform a range of ages from 5 to 45 is a true skill, not to mention the ease with which they handle the river and the road. If you are wondering whether you should do this tour, the answer is yes!
Ruth_C, Jan 2026
This was our most fun Queenstown activity. Georgia made the bus trip interesting with her hilarious commentary. The team were all fun & excellent communicators for both kids and adults. The rapids were just the right amount of thrill for kids. The drive there and back along Skippers Rd is hair-raising though (Simon did an excellent job)! A minor point …more info on what to bring/wear and more snacks please.
kathrin_t, Dec 2025
our boys 3 and 4 loved the experience. We had such a great time. I was worried about the coldness but it was great with the wetsuits. Definatly highly recommend doing this with small kids.
marian_f, Mar 2025
Luke and Mark were brilliant on the water. Mark brilliant driver on the narrow road. Would have loved a hot drink when we finished. But a great time.
David_H, Mar 2025
First time we have done this, and we both thoroughly enjoyed it. Simon and the crew made for an enjoyable experience. Spay yourself with insect repellent as there are quite a few sandflies around
Rebecca_a, Jan 2025
Family adventures rafting was great, shuttle drivers holly and Luke did a good job trying to make the trip as best as could be, the road through skippers canyon was brutal, holly was amazing, arrrived at base camp to get kitted up with thermals and wetsuit, then off up river for a great trip back, Mark was our guide and photographer, he was great, good knowledge and sense of humour and most importantly knew the river well. They stopped along the way for a cool dip and then a rock jump into the fresh water, 🥶🥶🥶 then back to base for a cookie time before the return up skippers canyon. Would we recommend to people with kids, In the words of our 11 year old “it was fully sick bruh” so yes we would.
Jacob_T, Dec 2024
Fun trip for younger children as the rapid is mild and most enjoyable. The tour leaders were v patient and helpful.
Cliff_M, Sep 2024
We had such a wonderful time! Our tour guide was a local and he was very friendly and helpful. It turned out we were the only family in this tour. And they didn’t cancel on us. So basically they gave us a private rafting tour. We were very grateful and thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience. Everything was provided including wet suits. Even though the water was cold, we still jumped into the water and got some terrific photos. Highly recommend.
Response from Host, Sep 2024
The river to yourselves, how lucky! :)
Thanks for the kind review, happy to hear you had a great time.
Sharon_B, Jan 2024
This was a great family adventure and a nice way to see the landscape. We were well looked after by Simon and Holly.
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thanks for the kind review :)
Zoe_G, Jan 2024
An exciting bus trip down an old mining road to a fantastic rafting experience. The rapids were quite tame on our tour but it was a great introduction. We especially enjoyed watching the jet boat go past!
In hindsight, we would have booked the package that includes the jetboating as this certainly looks to be the most exhilarating of the jet boat experiences available in Queenstown.
The guides were friendly, fun and knowledge
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thanks for the review Zoe!
Aslinda_A, Jan 2024
It was amazing for the kids. Very suitable for families with young kids. Cliff jumps were awesome. Guides were superb and knowledgeable.
Response from Host, Feb 2024
We are stoked to hear you had a great time! Thanks heaps for the review!
PeiChui_K, Jan 2024
Amazing activity to do with family members. Great experience. Experienced and friendly guides. Thoroughly enjoyed the activity.
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thanks for taking the time to leave a review, much appreciated!
Rakesh_V, Dec 2023
Rafting deserves 5 star rating.Holly and Mark were excellent.Drive to this place is scenic and as good as the rafting.Definitely beat my expectations.
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thank you so much :)
Sara_P, Nov 2023
Our guides made the day. We had a lot of laughs, talked about interesting stuff, and had a great experience on the water.
Response from Host, Nov 2023
Thanks Sara, we had a blast too, with you and your two boys! :)
Rachelle_S, Nov 2023
Amazing trip with ever better guides, only criticism is that the snack could have been better and more of them
Response from Host, Nov 2023
Thanks for the review. I am very sorry about the snacks, the cookie time delivery didn't arrive in time for the trip. :(
Allen_G, Feb 2023
This is a great trip to see the land and hear about the local history. Since I’d already been traveling in NZ by car for a month the scenery was not my reason for the activity. The rafting was fun and well done but was a small portion of the time spent getting to/from the location. The road is also very dangerous in my opinion. It’s very narrow, gravel and many blind corners.
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thanks for taking the time to leave us a review! The journey to and from the river is most definitely part of the adventure! Yes, there are a few narrow sections/tricky corners on the road, but we can assure you that our drivers care very much about the safety of everyone on board and drive to the conditions :)
Denise_Z, Jan 2023
Was a little nervous to raft but it was light rapids. So much fun. Jumping off the rocks. Floating in river and riding rapids. The drive is the scariest part. Amazing views. They even take pictures that you can buy it was so much fun!
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thanks Denise, so glad to hear you had fun :)
Irene_H, Jan 2023
This was a memorable part of our family holiday in Queenstown. The guides were very helpful and had great personalities. Thanks for an epic adventure.
Response from Host, Feb 2024
It was a pleasure to take you on the epic adventure! Thanks for your review :)
A_P, Jan 2023
Fantastic activity for the family. Perfect for younger children - gentle river, but still loads of fun. Guides were great. Scariest part of the trip was the bus ride along the edge of the canyon.
Response from Host, Feb 2024
The bus ride is definitely the scariest part for many people on our trip! Luckily our drivers are the best in the business ;) Thanks for your review!
Katrina_W, Jan 2023
Very professional set up! Skilled staff who were supportive of all skill levels. Relaxing day! Crazy bus ride along skippers canyon!
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thanks for taking the time to leave us a review :)
Niv_M, Jan 2023
The family Adventures Rafting was fantastic and awesome experience . The adventure started with the bus ride in the mountain to the start point. The guide was informed and was fun . The base had facilities to change . The raft guides were helpful, loved their work and experienced. They kept safety in mind all the time and created a lifetime experience for us .
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Very kind words, thanks for your review. We're thrilled to hear you had a great time!
smashtokyotoys, Dec 2022
I'm going twice!
Professional staff.
*Listen to your ramblings.
*They take a lot of photos.
*They let you do weird things (I jumped in the river)
*Awesome, scary trip in and out.
Very very tame rapids...even 3 year old scaredy kids do it.
I had tore up my legs the day before and could barely walk and literally took myself to hospital afterwards and STILL This is the best thing to do in Queenstown if you just want a relaxing little thrill.
THIS IS FOR YOU! STOP CRYING AND DO IT.
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thanks so much for your kind review!
Leanne_B, Oct 2022
Our guides of Mark, Holly & Claudia were awesome in their knowledge of the area and of the rafting experience. We felt safe and reassured each step of the way. Clear instructions on what to do whilst on the shotover ! Great morning out with great people.
Response from Host, Oct 2022
Thank you for your kind review and feedback. :)
Wynand_K, Jan 2022
A great adventurous dirt road trip to our spot where we launched from. The river was lower then expected but offered many opportunities to swim and jump and to sometimes just float slowly downstream with the raft. Amazing and great fun especially for the kids. My 11 year old son gave this trip 6 out of 5😁
Response from Host, Jan 2022
Wow - a 6 out of 5! Thats great to hear, thanks for joining us :)
Alexandra_S, Jan 2020
Felt safe and fun. For a younger couple though this one is a little tame, the grade 3+4 one is more suited to younger people who want to do adventure activities, this is awesome for families with kids.
Response from Host, Jan 2020
Thank you for taking the time to review us, we believe we are a perfect activity for families and non-water confident adults, we leave the crazy adventures stuff to the other companies! ;)
I'm glad you still had fun, thanks again.
JoAnn_H, Mar 2019
This was a fantastic time with a little excitement and much more enjoyment! I would highly recommend!
Jasinta T, Jan 2016
Great experience for the whole family. We went with 3 girls age 10, 8 and 5. Everyone loved the experience and I think it's just th right length for the kids. All the guides were friendly and experienced - they are also great in interacting with the little ones.
From $174.65
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