Raft the Tara River in Montenegro
Paddle through a UNESCO protected biosphere as you tackle the entire navigable length of the mighty Tara River
Raft the Tara River in Montenegro
Paddle through a UNESCO protected biosphere as you tackle the entire navigable length of the mighty Tara River
DURATION
3 nights
LOCATION
Montenegro
ANNUAL LEAVE
2 days off work
SEASON
Apr—Jun
GROUP SIZE
Up to 14 people
MEETING POINT
Dubrovnik Airport, Croatia
ACCOMMODATION
Classic
Lodge · Hotel
DIFFICULTY
Easy
No rafting experience is needed, just confidence in the water and the ability to handle 4-5 hours of activity each day
Escape to a UNESCO-protected wilderness of plunging waterfalls, lush forests and rushing rivers with water so pure you can drink it straight from the raft
Raft the entire, 70km navigable length of the mighty Tara River and spend each night in a comfortable river side eco-lodge
Charge through exhilarating rapids, soar across a canyon on a zipline and visit some of the most beautiful locations in Montenegro
Day 1
Hello Montenegro
Head to your eco-lodge on the banks of the lovely Piva River and settle in. Take a wander through the beech forest or hike along the water and then get to know your fellow adventurers around the campfire as the cook prepares dinner.
Day 2
Run the river
Rafting
6hrs · 40km
Take a scenic drive through the Piva and Durmitor National Parks, stopping at the Great Bridge of Djurdjevica Tara. Look down - you'll be passing beneath it later today! Get your heart pumping with a zipline ride across the deepest canyon in Europe and then launch onto the Tara River. Raft for 40 km passing beneath the 165m high bridge you visited earlier and then navigate a section of canyon that narrows to just 4m across. Dock your raft and then spend the night at another eco-lodge where a delicious Montenegrin meal will be waiting for you.
Day 3
Back onto the water
Rafting
3hrs
Paddle through the most wild and scenic part of the Tara River as it passes through Durmitor National Park. Navigate exhilarating class III, IV and even V rapids - don't worry, with yesterday's experience you'll be more than ready to tackle them. Return to your lodge in the afternoon and take a hike to a Montenegrin monastery or join a body balance class.
Day 4
Time to head home
Relax over a last Montenegrin breakfast and then head off for a couple of hours walking before jumping in the van and returning to Dubrovnik for your flight home.
Included
Guides
Experienced, English-speaking professional rafting guides
Accommodation
3 nights in an eco-lodge
Meals
Munch on tasty food throughout
Transfers
To and from the airport and everything in-between
Equipment
All your rafting equipment (this includes wetsuit, wet booties, anorak, life jacket)
Permits
All entry fees and taxes
Not Included
Personal expenses
Travel insurance
Flights to and from the meeting point
Visas where required
Day 1
Lodge · Twin or triple share
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Day 2
Hotel · Twin or triple share
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Day 3
Lodge · Twin or triple share
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Day 4
Departure day
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
What is the food like?
You'll enjoy home-cooked meals made with local ingredients whenever possible. Expect lots of fresh and organic fish and meat.
Typical breakfast: Tea and coffee, made-to-order omelettes, fresh doughnuts, fried eggs and bacon, ham and sausage, locally made cheese, granola, yoghurt, milk and fruit. Typical lunch: Delicious soup, quality meat (lamb, veal, chicken, trout or pork), and pasta. Typical dinner: Freshly grilled local specialities like cevapi, pljeskavica, raznjici and musaka, pasta, local cheese, salad, pastries, rice or chips.
All food is freshly prepared and your hosts can accommodate any dietary requests. Just let them know beforehand.
What is the accommodation like?
Riverside Eco-Lodge
You'll spend the first and last night at your host's eco-lodge on the banks of the Piva River. You'll either stay in a new wooden bungalow or in a twin or triple bedroom in the main building. The cabins are built in the style of Montenegrin pioneer cabins, with the addition of a few contemporary comforts like private baths, hot water and comfy beds.
Žabljak Hotel
You'll spend the middle night at the very comfortable Hotel Porto Tara. This four-star hotel offers a private beach and a back to nature-experience with a vast terrace. Rooms are twin-share with private ensuite bathrooms.
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 at the time of booking.
The Area
Logistics
Starts
Dubrovnik Airport, Croatia
16:00
Ends
Dubrovnik Airport, Croatia
15:30
Transfers
Your host will pick you up and drop you off at the airport. If you are staying in Dubrovnik before the trip or after, there are regular buses from the airport into town that cost approx. 5Euros a journey. At the end of the trip, please book a flight that departs after 17:30
Travel options
There are regular flights to/from Dubrovnik 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 equipment (this includes wetsuit, wet booties, anorak, life jacket)
What do I need to bring?
- Breathable, quick-drying, sport clothes
- Hiking boots and slippers (you will be provided with neoprene booties)
- Swimsuit (towels will be provided by your host)
- Sun protection (hat, sunglasses, sunblock)
- Warm layer for evenings by the river and a jacket
- A light rucksack to take to the second rafting camp (your luggage will be safely stored at the Waterfall Rafting Centre)
- 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
Loved this trip! Great group, beautiful scenery, what more could you ask for?
Good trip overall, very welcoming hosts and some of the most amazing scenery you will ever see. The mind still boggles that we rafted down a canyon that was over 1km deep in places. Transfers were unexpectedly long but worth it for the scenery!
Absolutely incredible trip, without doubt the best MBA trip I've done, and probably the best short trip I've ever done. Montenegro is absolutely stunning, totally blew my mind and expectations out of the water.
The hosts are wonderful on this trip, so welcoming and accommodating, the accommodation is also situated in the most beautiful place.
Couldn't recommend this trip enough, would do it again tomorrow.
We had an incredible time on the trip. Hosts were amazing and we met some great people. Montenegro is a beautiful country and should be on more people's must-do lists!
Excellent trip. Host very accommodating, fantastic scenery, great vibe, would definitely recommend
Great trip if you like hiking. We went in Summer, which was the perfect time to see the gorges. In sunny weather it provided shade and cool from the water, in rainy weather it provided shelter from the wind and rain.
Transfer arrangements were poor. We received incorrect vehicle transfer information on our first day making it difficult to meet the transfer at the airport. The transfer home was over an hour late, meaning that it was very stressful wondering if we would get back to Dubronvik airport in time for flights and onward connections. Rafting on day 1 was very tame, many of us in the raft felt it was a bit boring. 2nd day a bit more interesting
The trip itself, including the experience, the scenery and the adventure was phenomenal. Our guide on the raft was very experienced and ensured it was both safe and thrilling. The group were fantastic and gelled immediately. Make sure you bring more cash than you think. Perhaps don’t book after June if you are looking for intense rapids as the river was becoming calmer in mid-June.
This trip was excellent value for money. The coach journeys were long without many toilet stops, but the scenery was breathtaking. The rafting was great fun but a basic level of fitness is needed. The host was very accomodating
Great adventure with a lovely group, organised by some very conscientious hosts. Would highly recommend
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 85kg 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.
During the high water season when the rapids are at their best you’ll raft a 90km section of the Tara River
On the first day, you'll mostly encounter class II and III rapids, which are fun and exciting and a good way to prepare for the second day.
On the second day, you'll navigate class III, IV and V rapids. These are big enough to get the heart racing and challenge even experienced rafters, but your guides will ensure you get through safely.
No rafting experience is needed, just confidence in the water and the ability to handle 4-5 hours of activity each day. Your guide will give you full instructions and a safety briefing before you start.
Sure can! Over 50% of our travellers travel solo, it’s a great way to meet like-minded people.
Summer is the best season to explore the Montenegrin Mountains. The average temperature is around 25 degrees, but it cools down at night so you may want to bring warm clothes for sitting around the campfire.
The best time of year to run the river is between April and June when the water levels are at their highest and most exciting. Guides will monitor water levels and weather conditions especially during early springtime to ensure the safety of the group.
You can leave your excess luggage at your host's eco-lodge on the banks of the Piva River, where you will be staying during the first and last night of your trip.
Our recommended travel insurance provider is Campbell Irvine.
Travel insurance is compulsory on all of our adventures. Your insurance should include adequate protection for overseas medical treatment, evacuation/repatriation, your baggage and equipment and the specific activities involved on your adventure.
Your insurance policy should also include specific Covid-19 cover, including cancellation and curtailment cover if you, your travel companion or a close relative are diagnosed with Covid-19.
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.
