Raft, Hike and Canyon in Montenegro
Explore Montenegro's crystal clear rivers and tackle Europe’s deepest, longest canyon over one wild long weekend
Raft, Hike and Canyon in Montenegro
Explore Montenegro's crystal clear rivers and tackle Europe’s deepest, longest canyon over one wild long weekend
DURATION
3 nights
LOCATION
Montenegro
ANNUAL LEAVE
2 days off work
SEASON
Jul—Sep
GROUP SIZE
Up to 14 people
MEETING POINT
Dubrovnik Airport
ACCOMMODATION
Classic
Cabin · Hotel
DIFFICULTY
Moderate
No rafting or canyoning experience is needed, just a reasonable level of fitness and the ability to handle 3-4 hours of activity each day.
Splash, slide and jump your way along the Nevidio Canyon in the heart of one of Europe's least-visited wildernesses
Raft white water in the Tara River Canyon, the longest and deepest gorge in Europe and a UNESCO-protected biosphere
Visit the glacial Black Lake, nestled in the breathtaking mountains and deep forest of Durmitor National Park
Day 1
Into the forest
Driving
3.5hrs
Touch down at Dubrovnik Airport, meet your host and jump in the van to be whisked off to the banks of the Piva River, where you can settle into your cabin in the forest. Grab a locally brewed beer and relax around the campfire, listening to the babbling river with your fellow adventurers as the cook prepares your dinner. Have a chat about the adventure to come before heading to bed ahead of the action tomorrow.
Day 2
Rafting down the 'Tear of Europe'
Rafting
3-4hrs
Tuck into breakfast before heading to the banks of the mighty Tara River. Get kitted out and clued up on the safety procedures with your guide before hitting the water. Paddle a calm section for the first few kilometres, with the tension building as you hear the first sounds of the rumbling rapids downstream. Tackle 17 different rapids of Grades 2 and 3 on this stretch, taking breaks at various scenic spots with calm pools and waterfall swim spots filled with some of the clearest, cleanest water you can find anywhere in Europe. After a wild few hours rafting 18km downstream, you'll reach Šćepan Polje – get back on dry land and dive into your host's restaurant for a well-earned late lunch. Head back to base for some downtime late afternoon, relaxing in this beautiful spot ahead of another delicious dinner while sharing stories around the campfire.
Day 3
Canyoning adventures and hiking Black Lake
Canyoning
3-4hrs
Wild Swimming
1hr
Hiking
2-6km
Drive to the beautiful village of Poscenje with its two glacial lakes and stunning waterfall at Skakavica. Head to the rarely-visited Nevidio Canyon where you'll slide, jump, wade, splash and crawl through a wonderland of water, rock and vegetation before taking a short but steep hike back to your vehicle. Have lunch at a local restaurant, then drive to nearby Black Lake for the afternoon where you can hike the walking trail around the lake and dive in for a dreamy wild swim. When you've had your fill of glacial swimming, spend the night in a hotel in the nearby town of Zabljak.
Day 4
Return to Dubrovnik and home
Relax over a last Montenegrin breakfast, then hop back in the van and return to Dubrovnik to catch your flight home.
Included
Guides
Local, English-speaking, qualified guides
Accommodation
2 nights in a cabin and 1 night in a hotel
Meals
3 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 3 dinners
Transfers
To and from the airport and everything in between
Equipment
All your rafting and canyoning equipment
Permits
All park entry fees and taxes
Not Included
Flights to and from the meeting point
Travel insurance
Personal expenses
Visas where required
Day 1
Cabin · Twin or triple share
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Day 2
Cabin · Twin or triple share
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Day 3
Hotel · Twin or triple share
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Day 4
Departure day
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
What is the food like?
Breakfasts will consist of made-to-order omelettes, fresh doughnuts, fried eggs and bacon, ham and sausage, locally made cheeses, granola, yoghurt, milk and fresh fruit. Lunches will be delicious soups, local meats including lamb or veal, or fresh trout served with various vegetables, seasonal salads and dessert. For dinners, expect freshly grilled local specialities like cevapi, pljeskavica, raznjici and musaka, or pasta with veggies, fresh salad and pastries. Your chef uses local produce whenever possible and all food is freshly prepared. Special dietary requests including vegetarian and vegan can be accommodated, just let your host know beforehand.
Please be aware that meal times in Montenegro tend to be later than what you may be accustomed to at home. It's not uncommon for lunch to be served mid-afternoon, or for dinner to start beyond 21:00.
What is the accommodation like?
In the forest
You’ll spend two nights in wooden pioneer cabins in a purpose-built area near the Bosnia & Herzegovina border. Designed in harmony with the natural, riverside setting, each cabin contains 2, 3 or 4 single beds, while others have double beds and are more suitable for couples.
Zabljak
To maximise your time canyoning, on your final night you’ll stay in a lovely hotel in the town of Zabljak, most likely in Hotel Zlatni Bor or similar.
Upgrades
For solo travellers looking for their own space, there is an option to upgrade to a private room (subject to availability) - see Optional Extras for prices. Just request this at the time of booking.
The Area
Logistics
Starts
Dubrovnik Airport (DBV)
16:00
Ends
Dubrovnik Airport (DBV)
15:30
Transfers
Your host will pick you up at Dubrovnik Airport at 16:00 on Day 1. At the end of the trip, they will drop you off at Dubrovnik Airport at approximately 15:30 on Day 4 – please book a flight that departs after 17:30.
If you are staying in Dubrovnik before or after the trip, there are regular buses from the airport into town that cost approximately £4/€5 per person, each way.
Travel options
Dubrovnik Airport is served by regular flights from airports across the UK and Europe.
Enjoy 12.5% Off Outdoor Gear
In need of a few more items? All bookings receive a 12.5% discount to use at Cotswold Outdoor, Snow + Rock and Runner's Need.
What's included?
- All your rafting, canyoning and safety equipment (this includes wetsuit, neoprene booties, anorak, life jacket, helmet (appropriate for attaching GoPro cameras), 1 waterproof bag per raft for storing cameras or mobile phones)
What do I need to bring?
- Breathable, quick-drying, sport clothes for getting changed into after wearing your wetsuit
- Hiking shoes or boots for walking through the forest when visiting the Black Lake
- Casual shoes or sandals/flip flops for outside use when you are not in the water
- Slippers or indoor shoes for use around your accommodation
- Lightweight trousers, shorts or skirts for when you are not in the water
- T-shirts or long sleeve shirts for when you are not in the water
- Swimsuit (towels will be provided by your host)
- Sun hat
- Sunglasses
- Sunblock/suncream
- A warm jumper for evenings/mornings in the forest by the river (it can get quite cold at these times of day, even in the height of summer)
- A light waterproof jacket
- Travel towel
- Passport
- Cash for any extra bits you'd like to buy. There is a cash-only bar on site, but no card-payment facilities are available.
Optional Private Room Upgrade
Payable Before Departure
Optional Private Room Upgrade
… Per Person
Great trip, hike out from the canyon is a killer but worth it.
Fun challenging activities with good guides on the rafting and canyoning. There was no local guide present with us to tell us a schedule so we didn't know any plans until we texted a WhatsApp group at 10pm the night before to find out we were moving accommodation. We liked going to the lake but we had no information on the area or the significance of it. We spent a total of 17+ hours driving over the 4 days and the van we had on the 3rd day didn't have working seatbelts for everyone and the driver drank alcohol at lunch before driving us again for 1.5 hours. The food was all nice but lunch was often at 5pm - too long from 9am breakfast and too soon to 8pm dinner. The hotel we stayed at didn't having working lights in the room and the electrical sockets had fallen out of the wall so we were unable to use them. We didn't end up going on the hike on the 2nd day but we didn't know it had been cancelled so we were waiting around to go - had we have known we would have gone for our own walk. As a group we enjoyed the campfire at night and the bar/restaurant was reasonably priced. We enjoyed the cat and dog at the waterfall rafting accommodation.
Brilliant trip, real 'middle of nowhere' kinda feel which we loved as we could really switch off and enjoy the beautiful scenery and fun activities. Not super luxurious or anything but great fun. Highly recommended.
A thrilling weekend of activities combined with jaw-dropping scenery and abundant wildlife in one of the few remaining parts of Europe to not have been spoilt by humans. Overall, an unforgettable experience with a great crowd of people.
Canyoning is definitely the highlight well worth on its own! Communication with host could of been better.
The trip was fantastic, highlight definitely the canyoning, it had everything. The host Milada at the chalet was friendly, very attentive and couldn’t be more helpful, all staff including the drivers were great and the instructors were excellent and the equipment was good.
Great people, great guides, incredible scenery! Loved the semi camping/hut (glamping) experience and the chilled feel of the place. A chance to get a flavour of the local culture. Don't think, book it!
This is an outstanding trip with an amazing and wonderful host (Milada). Milada always go beyond the call of duty. We had a fabulous few days and the canyoning trip was the highlight for most. This is a trip with basic accommodation and significant time in a minibus. If you are comfortable with that and have an average or better Le vel of fitness, just book it! Our party of 11 loved every minute.
Excellent experience in itself, booking process and comms can be improved a little
An excellent balance of activities and beautiful scenery in a less well travelled part of Europe. The canyoning in particular was great fun but hard work at times - a great balance for this kind of adventure activity trip. The location for the Waterfall Centre was amazing and waking up to the sounds of the waterfall across the river was something which you don't get many places in the world! I great bunch of people made this a memorable and enjoyable taster of activities on (and in) the water.
We've crunched the numbers to work out the total carbon footprint of this trip, and plant enough trees to suck 2x as much back out the atmosphere.
What's the number?
It works out on average at 176kg of CO2 emissions per person, including all local transport, accommodation, food, activities, guides, staff and office operations.
The only thing it doesn’t include right now is flights and travel to the destination. We do make an overall estimate across all our customers separately, but as we don’t book flights, have customers from all corners of the world, and no way of reliably knowing their travel plans, we simply can’t include an individual number in the figure on display here. We’ve got a goal for 2023 to fix that, so that when you book, there is a way to measure and mitigate the carbon emitted by your flight too.
But what does the number mean?
Yep, hard to picture eh? To give you an idea:
- Driving 1000miles/1609km would be approx. 281kg of CO2 in an average car (or 140.5kg per person if there was 2 of you in it).
- A return economy class flight London - New York would be approx. 1,619kg (1.66 tonnes) per person.
- 10 trees in a temperate forest are estimated to remove approx. 250kg of CO2 from the air in a period of 5-10 years.
What are we doing about it?
Our trips are relatively low-carbon by design, and we're working with all our hosts to develop long term carbon reduction plans. For every person booked with us since 2016 we’re planting enough trees to suck at least 2x more carbon out the atmosphere than is emitted by their trips. All native trees, as part of amazing projects that are re-foresting degraded land, tackling the biodiversity crisis and supporting local communities at the same time. We go further than that too, also funding re-wilding projects worldwide to help protect important keystone species from extinction. See the reforestation and re-wilding schemes we support. See our carbon action plan.
Want to know more?
Amazingly, no international travel company has ever publicly published their carbon measurements before, as far as we know. We believe that must change, quickly. So we’re openly sharing the method we used in the hope that other companies will be able to more easily follow suit and build on what we've done so far. You'll find it all here.
No rafting or canyoning experience is needed, just a reasonable level of fitness and the ability to handle 3-4 hours of activity each day. Participants for canyoning must be over 18 years old, able to swim and not suffer from any kind of heart or lung diseases.
Nevidio Canyon is 2.7km long and in some places squeezes down to just 0.5m wide. You'll be swimming through narrow sections, jumping into pools, wading and diving your way through – however, your guide will always be on hand to help you cross every obstacle. The water is chilly in the canyon, but wetsuits will be provided.
You'll raft an 18km section of the Tara River with 21 sets of Grade 3 and 4 rapids. These are big enough to get the heart racing and challenge even experienced rafters but are not out of reach of the adventurous amateur.
Sure can! Over 70% of our travellers travel solo, it’s a great way to meet like-minded people.
Summer is the best season to explore the mountains of Montenegro. The average temperature is around 25°C, but at night it cools down so you may want to bring warm clothing for sitting around the campfire.
You can leave your excess luggage at your host's eco-lodge on the banks of the Piva River for the first two nights. On Day 3, your luggage will be travelling with you to Zabljak.
Our recommended travel insurance provider is Campbell Irvine.
Travel insurance is compulsory for all of our adventures and you are required to provide your policy information before departing.
Your insurance should include adequate protection for overseas medical treatment, evacuation/repatriation, your baggage and equipment and the specific activities involved on your adventure. We also strongly recommend it includes cancellation and curtailment insurance, should you be unable to join your trip for specific reasons such as illness.
We fully endorse Campbell Irvine as their insurance offers all of the above, so get in touch with them or call on 020 7938 1734 to get your insurance sorted. We suggest that you book travel insurance as soon as you book your adventure, just to cover you for any last-minute life changes. We know you’re an active lot and injuries do happen!
We automatically convert prices from the local currency that a host receives to your chosen currency. We update our exchange rates on a daily basis so this does mean that prices displayed on the site are subject to currency fluctuations, which is why you may see them change over time.
If you wish to change the currency you pay in, head to the bottom of the page.
All of our group adventures are specially designed for adults to enjoy (18+) as we want these adventures to bring together outdoorsy people who are truly like-minded. Children can be accommodated on some private departures.
You're in good company. Our adventures are typically made up of a mix of solo travellers and small groups of two or three friends who simply love adventure, pushing themselves and meeting awesome like-minded people. See here for more info about our lovely bunch of Much Better Adventurers.
Want to book a private trip? Just tap ‘Private Group’ in the dates and prices tab.
Your trip is led by carefully curated local hosts and expert guides. See here for more info about the guides we work with.
Pay In Installments
You can choose to pay for this trip in as many installments as you like, with no interest or fees.
Full Financial Protection
Your money is safe. Every booking is fully financially protected.
