Private 1 Day Whanganui River Guided Canoe Tour

Experience one of New Zealand’s Great Walks by canoe. Travel the upper reaches of the Whanganui River, Taumarunui to Ohinepane on a private tour run exclusively for you and your family or friends. You’ll pass through a mixture of farmland and native bush and be in for some excitement as you shoot down rapids on this section of the river.

The Canadian Canoes used, are well suited to negotiate the 3 largest rapids of the journey including the Ngaporo Rapid and the Autapu Rapid. No canoeing experience is necessary and all training is given on the day for a fantastic experience, suitable for the whole family and all abilities.

Emerald Lakes in Winter
Tongariro in Winter
Mt Ngauruhoe
Blue Lake

Tour Times

Paddling time: 4 – 6 hours

Summer 1 October – 31 May

Meet at the Adrift Tongariro Base: 9:00am
Return: 4.00pm

Tour starts and finishes at the Adrift Tongariro Base 53 Carroll St, National Park Village. There is plenty of free on-street parking outside the Adrift Tongariro Base which has no time limit or vehicle size restrictions.

Trip departures available summer only (1 October – 31 May) on application and confirmation.

We endeavor to remove the risk of clients not having adequate clothing and equipment for the conditions. To achieve this we request clients to meet at the Adrift Tongariro base to improve both safety and service as this is outfitted with all equipment and clothing needs for the conditions of the day. Adrift Tongariro provides our vehicles to transport you and the guides from the Adrift Tongariro base in National Park village to the river put in, and at the end of the tour we transport you from the river take out back to the Adrift Tongariro base in National Park Village. Once you arrive back at our base you then return in your vehicle back to your accommodation. You can park your vehicle outside the Adrift Tongariro base safely, at no cost for the day.

Included

  • Private Guide/s
  • Transport. Between the start and end of the tour and the Adrift Tongariro base included.
  • All canoe equipment. Canoe, dry barrels for your gear, PFD’s, paddles.
  • All clothing hire.  See the Fitness and Gear Requirements tab for recommended gear and gear available to hire from Adrift Tongariro.

Not Included

Lunch is not included in this tour but is available as a separate booked item at an additional cost at the time of booking. We have two options: standard or vegetarian. Any other dietary requirements are not able to be catered for so clients must bring their own.

Private Accommodation Transfers

We recommend that clients with their own vehicles self drive to our shop. Clients can park their vehicle outside the Adrift Tongariro base safely, at no cost for the day. If this is not an option, private accommodation transfers from Whakapapa Village, Turangi and Taupo CBD can be booked as an additional service and cost over and above the tour cost at the time of booking.

Fitness Requirements

A basic level of fitness is required for this tour, no canoeing experience is required however you do need to be confident in the water. This section of the Whanganui River has a number of level 1 rapids, all of which are easily navigable with directions and instructions from your guide.  There is however always a chance of a capsize which is not common but not outside our day to day management of the tour. Our guides are professional, qualified and experienced and are used to handling this and any other event we may encounter during the day. We do give a safety briefing, and paddling training, and information about what to do if you do fall out. You are wearing a life jacket so keep calm.

Gear Requirements

Summer

  • Water bottle
  • Personal medications (e.g. Asthma Inhaler, blister protection etc)
  • Sun hat, sunscreen, sunglasses
  • Covered sandals
  • Shorts
  • 1 light top and 2 warm top layers (wool, merino, thermals, fleece, soft shell etc. are good layers)
  • Waterproof raincoat
  • 1 set of spare warm clothing to change into at the end of the day
  • Own lunch if not ordered via Adrift at time of booking

Gear Hire

Adrift Tongariro has available for hire personal equipment footwear and clothing to supplement that which you don’t have and need including boots, socks, thermal longs, fleece longs, waterproof pants, thermal tops, fleece tops, waterproof tops, warm gloves, warm hats, sun hats, sunglasses.

Safety regarding weather, river levels and conditions are taken into consideration when allowing clients to participate in this tour. A minimum of two people are required to offer this private tour. See Terms and Conditions.

1 Day Whanganui River

PRIVATE

Guided Canoe Tour

$ 850 per adult

REFUNDS AVAILABLE*

Reschedule for up to 12 months

*Subject to Terms and Conditions

Canoe equipment included
Canoe, dry barrels for your gear, PFD’s, paddles

All additional clothing hire included

Transport
Between the start and end of the tour and the Adrift Tongariro base included

Private accommodation transfers an optional extra
Taupo CBD, Turangi, Whakapapa Village

Lunch an optional extra

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Interested in a 3 day group tour?
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Reconfirmation

All customers are required to reconfirm between 10:00am – 5:00pm the day prior to trip date.  Single bookings 3 days prior to establish if minimum numbers have been met.

Phone: +64 7 8922 751  WhatsApp: +64 274 462 364 

Waiver

Each participant is required to fill out a waiver prior to arriving on site. Look out for your unique waiver link in your inbox 3 days before your tour date.

What to expect on the day

Call the day before to reconfirm your tour and start time. Private trips have the luxury to be flexible with start times if pre arranged with Adrift Tongariro. Those that have booked private transfers will be picked up from your accommodation and driven to the Adrift Tongariro base. Clients who have self-driven can park their vehicle outside the Adrift Tongariro base safely, at no cost for the day. 

Your private guide will be waiting to greet you. No need to wait in line, your private guide will check everyone in and organise any additional clothing you may need. Adrift will supply you with dry barrels to pack your gear into. Please note these are not guaranteed waterproof. Once we meet you, you are under our guidance so you can then relax and enjoy the journey with Adrift. 

We will then transport you and the guides from the Adrift Tongariro base in National Park Village to the river put in. Make sure to leave your spare clothing in our van ready for you when you get off the river. It is a 45 min drive from the Adrift Tongariro base to the river put in. Here we give a safety briefing, and paddling training, and information about what to do if you do fall out. 1 hour after arriving we start the journey. 

At the end of the tour we transport you back to the Adrift Tongariro base in National Park Village. Once you arrive back at our base you then return in your vehicle back to your accommodation.

Adrift Tongariro Base
53 Carroll Street
National Park 3948

River information

Total distance: 22km (13.7 miles)
Paddling time: 4 – 6 hours
Rapid grading: 8 ungraded rapids, 6 grade 1 rapids

We divide this section of the river into three parts.

First river section
We continue the paddle training which is then used to navigate the grade 1 rapids in the second half of this section. If clients request or the guide considers it to be the best technique, canoes can be rafted together with the guide’s canoe to navigate the rapids. After successfully negotiating the last of the grade 1 rapids we finish this section with lunch on the riverbank. 

Last two river sections
The last two sections of this tour have less rapids and it is a chance to enjoy the beautiful Whanganui National Park. If clients wish and the guide agrees, for those that were previously rafted to their guide’s canoe this is the time to separate and paddle by themselves. If you need a short break we can take one after 15 km however we prefer to meander down taking in the beautiful scenery. 

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