“Listen to your instructor and you’ll come out alive” Jack said with tongue in cheek humour. The gesture only lasted a second, but he removed a tooth cap with his tongue to reveal a gap in his smile, where one of his incisors previously were. There was a collective gasp and nervous laughter, this was the theme throughout the rafting: high-spirited jest and mischievousness that can only be associated with the brilliance of guides who willingly throw themselves into Grade V rapids everyday.

We were booked with Rotorua Rafting on a 9:00am slot for rafting, the experience lasted 2 hours in total with one hour of paddling on the Kaituna river. I was so excited to raft Tutea Falls: at 7m it is the highest commercially rafted drop in the world.

We checked in at HQ and the whole experience was seamless, each participant was asked to fill in a waiver on a tablet. There was a safety briefing and everyone was kitted up in neoprene wetsuits. The operation was slick! There was no fussing around with sizes or swaps as instructors could immediately gauge which wetsuit was suitable for each participant. I was worried about the cold, but this concern was put to rest right away, we were given wetsuits with velcro straps across the top of the shoulders, a 2nd zipped up neoprene jacket, a life jacket on top of this, then a helmet. Watches, backpacks and any jewellery was safely stowed away in lockers. I was delighted when the guide managed to source a helmet with a screw attachment for my Go-Pro, I’d forgotten to bring the claw attachments with me on the trip and a guide brought over a suitable helmet without me even asking.

Once we were all kitted up, it was a short 5 minute bus ride to the rivers edge. Instructors awaited the group next to large bright yellow rafts and we were divided into groups of 6. Our group consisted of Alex and I, two French girls travelling together and a couple from the US. Do you guys want ‘Old Jack’ or ‘Young Jack’?! one of the guides asked flippantly. No-one wanted to express a preference until one of the backpacking groups said ‘Young Jack!‘ This left us with the ‘Old Jack’ who had addressed the group and conducted all of the briefings, our nerves settled as we entered the raft together.

The first couple of rapids were an incredible thrill, the Chute was a grade 3 introduction, followed by Cascades rapid, another grade III. It’s a feeling of impending thrill as you paddle towards the swirl and gurgle of the white water, it makes your blood freeze, but you’re smiling from ear to ear at the same time. Under the watchful eye of our instructor, Jack was very quick to highlight any warning behaviours from each rafter whilst we were on the water. He was direct and thorough when individuals didn’t hold on, didn’t get down quick enough, or if he noticed any bad paddle etiquette. It was professionalism at its best with the unpredictability of a white water environment.

We approached our first grade V rapid, Powerhouse and Weir. Before tackling the rapid, we had a quick briefing, and we were instructed to only paddle forward once the whistle was blown. The support network with rescue kayakers, and a photographer on the river bank, was second to none.

We felt the kayak tip forwards as we plunged head-first into the water, in these brief seconds we’re at the complete mercy of the rushing water, holding onto the support ropes for dear life. From crashing downwards to bobbling away from the waterfall, there is rush of pure excitement combined with relief that we’re still in the boat. Statistically the guides said it’s a 50/50 chance we flip upside down, if it’s some reassurance, Rotorua rafting have sent over 30K guests and realistically it is around a 1/20 chance of flying out of the raft.

Prior to descending down the 7m drop, the rafts were collated together in a calm stretch of water. We were told about the legends of the Kaituna river, where the lifeforce of the river came about as a result of the Māori Ranginui’s tears from a family separation. We all chanted a blessing and a thank you for enjoying the lifeblood of the river.
The Māori view is that the rivers and watercourses support all realms of life such as tuna, inanga, kūtai (mussels), pipi, kōura, kahawai and other plants, and the best way to retain the lifecycle was by keeping the water pure and to treat nature with respect. It was a pragmatic and true idiom that I grew to cherish and love throughout our journey in New Zealand. In practise, I would recommend reading The Tiaki Promise, a basic ethos that describes how we are all guardians of our world.

At Tutea Falls, the raft prior to us descended and flipped as we heard screams echo through the canyon. My heart dropped to the floor when we plummeted, the white-wash lasted only a few seconds before our rafted bobbed up with an almost comical calmness. “Well that’s a one in 500!” Jack said with a cheeky grin. It was testament to his experience that we all stayed on the surface without churning into the white water itself.

We descended a couple more rapids until our instructor announced “So, who wants to swim one?!”. 4 out of 6 rafters jump out of the raft and into the water, including Alex and I. We were sternly instructed to only swim forwards at the blow of the whistle. Rescue kayakers surrounded the base of the white water as each swimmer descended down the waterfall. I remember feeling completely at mercy to the violence of the water as I plunged like a stone deep into the rapid, the water held me down for a few seconds before I bobbed back up and swum back to our raft. Alex dived into the water ahead of me and it took a few moments for me to realise that he was still under the water. I watched as the rescue kayaker pulled several rafters out of the churn. In an attempt to move away from the washing machine effect, Alex swam as hard as he could to the side, only for the currents to drag him back once more to the vortex of white water. Jack managed to grab Alex as he was disorientated from swallowing water. Once we were reunited Alex exclaimed ‘God, I thought that was the end of me’.

After the swimmer’s Grade III rapid, we had a couple more Grade III rapids before finishing up the 1 hour experience on the Waituna river. Rotorua Rafting won the award for the best experience in New Zealand and the best experience in the South Pacific – I can vouch for this and describe it as the most fun I’ve ever had in an hour.

Trip Tips 💡

• The trip experience with Rotorua Rafting is $125pp (NZD) which is approximately £60 per person. It is a 25 minute drive from Rotorua, or transfers can be arranged with the company as well for an additional charge
• You are kitted up with everything you would need for the rafting. If you have a GoPro, I would recommend bringing the ‘Mount clip‘ attachment to clip the camera onto your helmet
• The instructors are world class and can cater to any fitness level and even non-swimmers as well, they advocate for travellers just to embrace a sense of adventure
• Professional photos are available for $40 (NZD), approx £20.00.
• Please feel free to contact me here via Hayes & Jarvis / Enchanting Travels if you are planning a private trip to New Zealand, I’d describe this experience as unmissable in Rotorua
• The experience is 2 hours in total with 1 hour on the water, the site is next door to Okere Falls Store + Craft Beer Garden (they do a great toastie)
• The minimum age for white water rafting is 13 years old for grade 5 trips (grade 3 trips can take children from age 10 upwards). The maximum weight is 130kg.
• If you have any questions at all, feel free to comment here and I’ll be happy to help