**Rafting review** I made the reservation online which was super simple to do. When we got there, it was easy to check-in. You then get a quick review about how to raft, plus you get fitted with a personal flotation device, and get a paddle We did a guided ride down the 2-3 lower rapids since we had 4 kids with us. Our guide was Cookie and I HIGHLY, like VERY VERY HIGHLY RECOMMEND you ask for if you go on a guided ride. He was amazing which I will get to in a bit. The bus ride to the top of the water a quick one. Every helps carry the raft down to the water's edge. Cookie was our guide. He was amazing! Seriously he let the kids "take the lead" and they really enjoyed all of the conversations with him. We were all laughing on the trip. He taught us how to do spins in the tube and really tried to get the kids wet since you know that's what they wanted. The kids even wanted him to hang out with us afterwards. We did a Friday afternoon which was great because the water wasn't too busy. When we drove by on Saturday, the parking lot was PACKED! You are going to want to wear shoes that can get wet and comfy clothes. Don't worry about bringing your phone. You won't have time to use it. Bring money to TIP the bus driver and your guide. They deserve it!! We will definitely be doing this trip again during our next visit. read more

This was my first time here and nerve-wrecking, but we were here for the birthday girl's 50th birthday wish. Half of us ladies had never done white water rafting before. There were 2 guides for our crew with 2 different rafts. Jeremy helped trained us on how to raft and what to do if we or someone were to fall. Our raft had Jeremy and our friends had the other guide, Dale (an older gentleman). Jeremy was awesome! He helped give us a brief history of all the landmarks and even popped a few corny jokes here and there. I felt like we were the fun raft b/c the other raft seemed very quiet. Heard from the other ladies later on that they didn't have any brief history commentaries and Dale didn't really converse with them unless he was asked a question. So glad we got Jeremy...stating so, we were extra super glad we had him b/c our friend fell off the raft!!! She couldn't swim either and due to the way the currents were, she had to glide down with the water while we quickly move the raft to where she was. Everything we learned went out the door. Jeremy dropped her once or twice while the rest of us were hit with thick tree branches, breaking them with our backs, heads, and ears...it was scary, but Jeremy saved the day and was able to safely pull our friend back into the raft. It was very scary and honestly, I will never white water raft again even though our guide was a professional and awesome. I never wanted to do it and this would be the last time. With our last "bump" before the end of the river, I fell off my seat into the raft and couldn't even get back up. Yep, no more for me, but thank you to Jeremy and Carolina Outfitters for an experience never to forget! You're a cutie, but nope, not for me :P read more

Rafting review... Unfortunately our trip down the river was extremely lame. Our poor guide Eli just wasn't into it... we kind of just floated down the river. I've always used a competitor but our trip was last minute and they were fully booked. Maybe just an off day... read more

This was a great experience and I would recommend to all my friends and family! And most importantly our tour guide Dale Sine made the ride so much better. He was doing things with our group that other tour guides we're doing and we had so much fun! He's very personable and a very respectful guy. He made the trip a 10/10 and when I come back I'm only asking for Dale! read more

I stayed in the #9 Chalet House Vacation Apartment Apr 6-7. They have it listed at $59 a night,but tack on hidden fees. I paid $155 for 2 nights. There was Mold and Mildew on shower curtain, loose foreign matter on mattress cover, no hot water to bathroom sink. Then top it all off I had my socks hanging on end of bunk bed duringI the night and the next morning I woke up having to look for my socks. I found one sock laying on bottom bunk. I then suspected a critter got my sock and after looking for clues i found a hole on the end of the mattress of the top bunk where something was living. The owner of Carolina Outfitters was not sympathetic to my complaints or problems I had during my stay. I took pics of the hole in mattress and the mold on shower curtain. And No I never got my sock back. read more

Carolina Outfitters - Hole on end of top bunk mattress. Something got my one of my socks . My socks were hanging on that end. - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Topton, North Carolina

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Great pick for river rafting, especially if you want to take beginners and not want to scare them for the first time (like when my mom took me for a level 4 river rafting for my first when I was 15-- but hey I survived). This time I had my little cousins with me, one. that would take on any challenge and another that was frightened of everything. Solution: take Carolina Outfitters on this river. The guides are friendly and explain everything you need to know about river rafting. The river is a good mix of calm and excitement so depending on your mood, you can have a laid back, easy going ride through the river enjoying the misty river and forest scenery, or if you're up for it, paddle your raft in circles in the rapids, spin off stones, and do all sorts of tricks. My little cousin became so comfortable that she enjoyed the whole ride and wants to take on the higher levels. Tips: -The water is really cold so you may want to take their offer of wearing the jackets -The front gets the most WET, so be prepared to get soaked -Buy the CD of pictures, it's worth it than just buying them separately -No flip flops allowed. Wear sneakers or even better water shoes. read more

I was very unhappy with our experience with this Outfitter. My party of five (all responsible and in-shape ladies) were on site and checked in and then my group was left off our first scheduled bus run. We had told the person up front we were going down to our cars to wait and came back at the time we were told to return. We were almost left a second time as well. The older man on site then yelled at us like we were teenagers smoking behind the science building. Someone else wrote about the rude older man, maybe he is the manager? He is awful. He clearly does not like his job and takes it out on the very people who pay him. Once we were told it was time to go, the life jacket/safety training process was handled by unfriendly employees and extremely rushed. I could barely follow the safety training because the young man speaking was talking so fast, we were joking he sounded like an auctioneer. Honestly, I wonder if the manager has set up this negative environment because the employees mainly seemed like they would have been very nice if encouraged to behave as such. My friends and I were doing duckies. We were NOT EVEN OFFERED helmets even though we planned to go over the final falls. I ended up falling out on the final large rapid, again without a helmet. It was a terrifying experience and as bruised as I was, I am very lucky I didn't hit my head since I didn't have a helmet on. I just wish I had been told not to go over the final rapid without them. I would have had no problem sitting it out. But they never even mentioned it. The river was beautiful (I'd give the river experience five stars!) and the rapids were super fun (until my fall) but my advice is to use a different outfitter and if you are doing duckies, don't do that final set of Class III Rapids unless you are experienced and then only with a helmet on! read more

Super fun, friendly and welcoming staff. First time rafting and our family had a blast. Highly recommend using a guide for first timers. We had Evan as our guide. Julie was our instructor. Both were awesome, amazing people. Get out there and go see Carolina outfitters rafting co. It was awesome! read more

Had a wonderful trip with Matt as our guide. We had two teens and a seven year old who started getting hungry and tired and winey towards the end and he was very patient with him. Overall we had so much fun and got to try some fun maneuvers. The teens enjoyed jumping off the homemade trampoline into the freezing cold water. read more

Excellent service! Very accommodating. Super friendly. Very professional. We'll be here again in the fall! Do the guided tour rather than self guided. Much better experience. Ask for Casey as your guide, she's great. read more

Great experience with Beth as our guide. Forth time using CO. Every time we go there we get Beth as our guide and she is what keeps bringing is back. After every adventure I swear I won't use this company again because of the horrible attitude of the general manager named Bill. He is a miserable, negative, angry man who has no business's running a business. This last time was our last time at CO. I wish Beth would just leave and find another job. I plan on calling and voicing my concern to the owner tomorrow. Retire and go away Bill. read more

Had a great time rafting today on the Natahala River! Bud made the experience even more fun! Can't wait to do it again!

I stayed in one of their 2 BR units for two nights. Friday and Saturday night. They advertise for $49.95 per night. When I called, they said they were $59.95 per night. This is the first thing which bothered me. She (who I think is the property manager) said that there was a festival at the NOC and they raised their prices. I wanted to be close, and there was nothing else available, so I said OK. She did indicate they were "camping cabins." Never occurred to me that if these places were so great they would already have been booked. There were pictures on the webiste, and everything looked old on the inside, but I thought how bad could it be? Generally, the unit appeared clean. 1. The bed - I have NEVER seen/paid for a mattress like this. Mattress sagged on one side and the 2nd BR mattress was just the same. They were really, really old or really, really cheap - or both. It ended up that I could feel the individual coils as I moved around. The matress compressed almost completely when I sat on it. I called Friday even when I arrived and found the mattresses and said basically the same above. This is when I mentioned that I had stayed in hostels for more than half the price and the mattresses were more comfortable. The same woman above said the owners would not make any upgrades to the cabin and she did not offer any concession. They get $100/night during high season. So I thought I'm stuck with this (because I did not want spend Friday night looking for a place that would cost me MORE $$). I thought, I'm just going to have to suck it up. Over the rest of the w/e: 2. I noticed that the curtains did not close all the way - they were pinned together and the hoops that they hung from on the rod were broken. Also, the kitchen table chairs had fabric seats and were dirty. 3. I saw a live roach in the bathroom. Only one but that's one too many. I never did take a shower. 3. There were mouse droppings on the mattress cover. 4. My feet were black on the bottom because the carpet had not been cleaned in a VERY long time. 5. The a/c does not work to its capacity. On my way home, I decided to call the property manager and let her know the rest of the story. Her tone was dry (because they really doesn't care) and she asked me what I wanted and I said 50% cost cut to which she said you will not write a review on social media if I give you a 50% discount? I thought for a mintue and I said never mind. It's not about the $$. It would be great if you had pride and a customer service approach to your business. To which she replied that there is a notice on the refrigerator that if you are unhappy that you are to call the property management office (which I did and she did not remember) and that that someone would come out so see the situation and they would refund the $$ and you could find another place to stay. I learned a tough lesson and the hard way - buyer beware. If after all of this you decide to stay here anyway, I would at least ask the last time the carpet had been shampooed, the furntiure fabric cleaned, how old the mattresses are and what condition are they in, the last time the place was sprayed for bugs, and if the drapes had been repaired and/or replaced recently and if so, how recently, and if they have a rodent problem - oh and the a/c - does it function at capacity. read more

The staff are so friendly and helpful. Emily and Alex are great river guides. The rates are reasonably priced and you can tell they love what they do! read more

These guys did a really good job, our guide made our rafting very enjoyable. I would definitely recommend this place to others.

I had a great time! Our guide, Will, was very entertaining and made an effort to make the calm parts of the river more fun. This was my 3rd trip with this outfitter and the best one yet. It's a better time when the employees love their jobs as well. read more

Our guide Michael was awesome! Had lots of knowledge and great dinosaur jokes! It was my daughters first rafting experience and she and I both loved him! Can't wait to go back ASAP! I will most definitely ask for Michael again! Thank you!!!!! read more

This was our first rafting trip. Teenage daughters and friend opted for a guided trip and they had a blast. They talked me in to going with them and we got Ben as our guide again. He was so helpful and kept us entertained the entire trip. We chose the Nantahala river excursion. Beautiful place and because of the friendly service, we will definitely use Carolina Outfitters in the future. read more

Excellent service all around! Even scheduling last minute on Labor Day weekend, we were handled with expertise. The trip was incredibly gorgeous and the guides were nothing but friendly. Most importantly, the prices couldn't be beat! I can't recommend Carolina Outfitters strongly enough! I can't wait to visit again! read more