Family Vacations
Choose Your Vacation
Our family vacation choices offer a broad range of adventures, with activities appropriate for family members as young as 4. Along with whitewater rafting, Wildwater also offers overnight camping trips, kayaking, & canoeing clinics, rentals, shuttles,high and low ropes course, climbing walls, new Canopy Zipline Tours, meals and lodging, We realize that all you want to do on your vacation is to have a stress free, fun experience with your loved ones. Wildwater can make this happen by providing trained guides to navigate your family through the rapids safely and successfully so that you can concentrate on having fun. If you want to test your own abilities as a guide Wildwater offers raft and inflatable kayak rentals as well as “guide assisted” trips on the Nantahala River. Wildwater Ltd. can meet your family vacation needs with one-stop shopping.
60 pounds or more:
Anyone who weighs 60 lbs or more may experience the Nantahala River, the most versatile river adventure we offer. The Nantahala River flows through the verdant Nantahala Gorge, near Bryson City NC, with lush vegetation draped over the river's bank, meandering through rapids ranging from Class I to III, scattered along the length of the river.
Half-day trip available is the Nantahala Classic Fully Guided and for a full day adventure, you may choose the Raft n' Rail®. This option adds the relaxation of an open-air rail car trip through the countryside and up the Nantahala Gorge, along the riverbank to the top of the river, where we will transport you to the put-in for your river trip.
The truly adventurous may rent your own raft or inflatable kayak and brave the whitewater of the Nantahala on your own. You may provide your own shuttle or we can provide shuttle. We will drive you to the put-in and pick you up at the take-out.
For large groups, such as family reunions, we offer our Whitewater Olympiad, an on-river competition, which will be custom designed by our Olympiad coordinator, Jeff Greiner and his staff. For more information on the Olympiad, please contact Jeff at, (828) 687-1411.
"I just wanted to thank you for putting together the Olympiad for our group over the 4th of July. It really made our vacation great. We loved all the guides. It would not have been as much fun w/o a little competition. I know that you worked hard to put that together for me and I just wanted you to know that I really appreciated it!" Shelly S.
Age 4 and up:
Little ones can experience the great outdoors on the half-day, Lower Pigeon Fun Float, minimum age 4, the perfect introduction to the exciting world of whitewater for youngsters.
Age 8 and up:
Next you may step up to the Pigeon River Upper or Chattooga River Mini trip: both half-day trips, appropriate for beginners and experienced whitewater enthusiasts alike. The Chattooga Mini combines beginning whitewater with the beautiful scenery of the National Wild & Scenic Chattooga River, a federally protected, free-flowing river.
Children age 8 and up may also raft the full-day Chattooga River Section III trip. This trip includes a lunch, with 5 hours on the water / 7 hours total. This trip floats down the Chattooga River through easy scenic stretches, with more challenging rapids during the latter portion of the day.
Also available for those 8 years and older are our Chattooga Climbing Wall and Pigeon Climbing Wall with auto-zipline. Each wall is 40 feet tall with two auto-belays, permitting tandem climbs. Include a Chattooga Low Elements Ropes Course activity in your plans.
Age 10 and up:
Our High Ropes Challenge course is available to groups of 6 or more who are 10 and older. Our state-of-the-art High Ropes course is designed in a figure 8 configuration, with elements of increasing difficulty. Our Climbing Wall, with tandem, auto-belay system, is integrated into the High Ropes configuration permitting easy use with the High Ropes Challenge. For a full day, participate in the Low / High Ropes / Climbing Wall Combo.
Families with kids ages 10 and up can also participate in our new Zipline Canopy Tours located at the Nantahala, Chattooga and, our newest, at the Pigeon (to open early May, 2010).
Age 12 and up:
All trips on the Ocoee River are available to those 12 years and older. The Ocoee offers half and full-day trips. For half-day options you may choose the traditional Middle Ocoee, with a continuous whitewater ride, or the Olympic Upper Ocoee, more scenic, with large rapids in the Olympic Course, designed for the 1996 Olympics. The Ocoee is the only Olympic whitewater course in the United States.
For a full day option, including lunch, tackle the Upper and Middle in one day, with a Combo. This trip covers the full 11 miles of the Ocoee River. Parents may choose to encourage their kids on a life of healthy activity by getting them involved with a kayak or canoe clinic on the Chattooga River. Our instructors provide close and personal direction on a full-day adventure, including lunch, on the mildest portion of the Chattooga River. No experience is necessary.
Age 13 and up:
At 13, the grandest family adventures we offer, become available. The Chattooga River Section IV and Overnighter encompass some of the most beautiful scenery and biggest whitewater available in the southeast. Section IV is dotted with scenic waterfalls and Class IV-V rapids, as well as the crown jewel - the Five Falls. The Five Falls are five Class IV-V rapids, near the end of the river, in a ¼ mile stretch - everyone's favorite stretch of the Chattooga River.
The Overnighter is a two-day trip, rafting both Section III and Section IV . The trip begins on Section III. After a day of rafting this calmer, scenic section, the trip camps in the river corridor, having a steak dinner at the campfire. The next morning, after a hot breakfast, its time to brave Section IV, followed by a leisurely lake tow, two miles across Lake Tugaloo to the Section IV take-out.
Age 16 and up:
The Cheoah River takes rafting in the Southeastern US to the next level. It is four miles of Class III warm up followed by five miles of Class IV/V intense and continuous whitewater rafting. With a half dozen Class III, thirteen Class IV and Class V rapids stacked one after the other with narrow, blind, and constricted channels, the Cheoah adds an experience not found before in this region. The Cheoah is an advanced trip appropriate for experienced rafters. You must be 16 and have recent Class IV whitewater experience.
Large Family groups:
Wildwater Ltd. is dedicated to making your trip the best it can be. We are experienced at working with Family Reunion groups and can arrange transportation and meals along with your rafting trip to make planning a breeze. All of our rafting centers can cater meals for your group and there are plenty of fun activities for those that choose not to raft. Volleyball, climbing walls, horseshoe pits and picnic pavilions are located at most of our rafting centers. We can also accommodate Family reunion groups who would like to offer trips with different intensity levels to their families. On the Pigeon we raft both the Upper and Lower at complimentary times so that groups can choose their level of intensity and be finished their trips at about the same time. We can accommodate everyone in your group from 4 – 94 years old.
Lodging:
The Group Lodge at Falling Waters is a great location for Family reunion groups. We offer kitchen and Dining room facilities as well as space for 44 people to sleep in bunk style rooms. The Yurts at Falling Waters are perfect for “Glamping” or glamorous camping. These unique Mongolian style tents include all of the amenities of a more traditional hotel room including: comfortable queen sized beds, futons, coffee makers, refrigerators, use of a hot tub and large decks overlooking the pond or tucked amongst the pines. This is truly the perfect place for your family or family reunion.
Wildwater Ltd. also works with several resorts that offer activities to suit everyone in your family. Please go to our lodging partners page to see a full list of our lodging partners. Transportation to and from our lodging partners can be arranged.
