Planning your Banff Rafting Adventure

Once you’ve seen our great Banff rafting rates and purchased Banff rafting vacation package, the real adventure begins. Find out about rafting gear you’ll need for your Banff Rafting Association tour, and learn about things to do in the Banff, Alberta area. Also check out our FAQs for answers to all your Canada rafting questions.

Your Personal Rafting Gear

When selecting your personal equipment for your Banff Rafting Association rafting adventure you’ll want to keep safety and warmth in mind. With all of our trips, you’ll be provided the following items dry and clean:

• Warm, fleece sweaters.
• Hooded nylon spray or paddle jackets.
• Thick soled wetsuit booties (so you won’t need river shoes).
• Government approved, whitewater lifejackets and helmets.
• Neoprene gloves to keep your hands comfortable while rafting.
• 5 mm, expedition weight wetsuits.

Rafting Equipment

Rafting is one of the best vacation activities in Banff, Alberta, but you need to have the proper rafting equipment. At the Banff Rafting Association, we choose only the best equipment for the job and refuse to cut corners when it comes to selecting gear for use on the river. Our “self-bailing” rafts are technologically on the leading edge of raft design and perform exceptionally well on the tough, Alberta whitewater rivers. Our variety of models can be modified by the guide to use either our custom-made rowing frames, in which some of the crew paddle and some simply enjoy the ride, or we can arrange to have the entire crew paddling under the instruction of your guide. This versatility enables us to select the most appropriate rafting style for each crew based on the different rivers on which we operate and the constantly changing water levels. Generally, we use our “oar with paddle assist” setup for our half-day trips, while our multi-day trips are “all-paddle.”

Our RiverBase Daylodge – Our operations hub

Warm change rooms, large, sunny deck (on which to enjoy a hot coffee, bakery treats and a chat with your guide following your river trip) and equipment cleaning and drying rooms are the features that you’ll find at our beautiful new building. Located on 13 wooded acres overlooking the Kicking Horse River valley, we are easy to find just off the Trans-Canada Highway, 1hr 20 min. west of Banff and 45 min. west of Lake Louise in Alberta.

You will need:

We will provide you with as much essential equipment as is possible, however, you will need to bring a few personal items for your trip. For all of our trips, you will need to bring:

• Swimsuit
• Towel
• Warm clothes to change into after your trip