Family Adventures is the perfect name for this activity. An adventure for the whole family (3 years and up) into Skippers, Queenstown and out again. Snacks, gentle splashing rapids, river jumps, wishing rocks, entertaining guides and history over a five hour trip. As we were nearing the end of the rafting my daughter was disappointed and wanted the adventure to continue. The other two children asked if they could do it again tomorrow please.
I’m liking
The way the guides create a sense of fun and adventure with their humour, the little tidbits of insight into the area and how there came to be a road into the back of beyond. I loved that there were two snack breaks to keep my kids going. I was appreciative of photos I could purchase on a memory stick at the end as I left my camera at home as it’s not waterproof. I liked that I learned more about how my children approach challenges, each of them very different in nature but this was a fun way to get to know them a little better – I can see why it could be a good team building experience. I liked the links to the Lord of the Rings books that my daughters have been reading and with The Hobbit’ about to come out, they were excited to see the “Ford of Bruinen”. My son was fascinated with the metal left behind from efforts to mine the river for gold.
Things that made me go hmmmm
I thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience! The only thing that could make some people a bit anxious would be getting changed in or out of the rafting gear. There is one big warm room and this was brilliant for the two families on the trip however for a bigger group with people who like their privacy there were only two toilets for individual changing spaces.
Prices at first sight are expensive however this trip is value for money in Queenstown and there is plenty for all in a family to enjoy with everything provided including snacks (you do have to wear your own togs and take a towel).
The conclusion
I loved our afternoon family adventure and the kids all loved it too. My children are 9, 10 and 12. On the trip there was also a child about 3 or 4 and a child who was approximately 6 they appeared happy throughout the trip too. I would recommend this trip to visitors to Queenstown who want a gentle introduction to river rafting and who have young, old or even family members who need support with physical mobiliity. Local families too would enjoy this experience as a drive into Skippers and back again could lead to some bored children but throw in some river rafting and a sense of adventure and you have a winning formula. Save your best jokes and riddles for the trip back…our guides worked hard to get us laughing but were a tough crowd!
