SLOW TRAVEL
Beyond Cruising: Meet Western River Expeditions
Western River Expeditions was founded in 1961 and owes much of its longevity and success to the travel trade. Western River and its sister company, Moab Adventure Center, report that bookings from travel professionals represent a consistent 20 percent of their business.
Grand Canyon trips are always in high demand and fill quickly. Dates for 2024 Grand Canyon Trips are now available. 2023 season 6- and 7-day trips are full but limited spaces are still available for 3- and 4-day 2023 trips. The National Park Service regulates the number of rafting participants traveling through the Grand Canyon each year, creating space limitations. However, there are comparable (but perhaps lesser known) rafting destinations throughout the West such as Cataract Canyon and Desolation Canyon in Utah. For families wishing to experience a river rafting trip, Desolation Canyon is arguably one of the best family rafting adventures on the planet.
The river rafting season on the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon runs from April into September. The longer 6- and 7-day trips with the thrills of class III-V rapids are open to guests as young as 12. The minimum age is 9 for 3- and 4-day trips that come with class II-III rapids. Western’s exclusive J-Rig raft provides accessibility for first-time rafters on even the largest whitewater rapids in the Grand Canyon. Rafting trips include plenty of hiking in the Grand Canyon that allows access to waterfalls, slot canyons, native ruins, and geologic wonders that the 5 million or so casual hikers from the rim will simply never see.
For details on the trips, Western River Expeditions offers complimentary Expedition Guides in PDF format (https://www.westernriver.com/expedition-guide). The comprehensive guides include river maps, overviews, full itineraries, camping and weather information, details on physical requirements, packing lists, and more.
About Western River Expeditions
Western River Expeditions is an adventure travel company headquartered in Salt Lake City, with operations and offices in Moab, Utah and Fredonia, Arizona. Annually from March through October it escorts more people down rivers on professionally guided rafting trips in Utah, Idaho and Arizona than any other company. It is the largest licensed outfitter in the Grand Canyon and the largest single tour provider in Moab, UT, through its division Moab Adventure Center (http://www.moabadventurecenter.com/).
Western River Expeditions, providing Grand Canyon rafting, Utah and Idaho rafting, and international multi-sport trips, was founded in 1961 by Colorado River rafting pioneer Jack Currey. It has been named one of the “Best Adventure Travel Companies on Earth” by the editors of National Geographic Adventure magazine. The company is the proud recipient of the “Best of State” award through Utah’s Premier Recognition and Awards Program for the past nineteen consecutive years (2004-2022).
