Just got off the river from the 5 mile "4 hour" trip. Take advantage of the weekday rate which is 35 instead of 50. Reservation and arrival went OK. We were told that the trip would take 4 hours and we planned the day around that. We are not experienced kayakers but we finished in just under 2 hours.... The trip was uneventful, a leisurely float. We saw a blue heron and some geese. If you are looking to kayak in a wilderness setting, this part of the river is not for you. Nothing against the company but in 2 hours we had to dodge upwards of 100+ people floating on tubes not to mention flotillas of other kayakers and canoers. And the end of the trip we had to wait 40 min to be picked up and be brought back to were we parked and the driver was speeding and had the radio blasting--not very professional. The tandem kayak we were in was in good condition, name brand although the paddles were cheap. The star rating here is due to inconvenient transportation setup and driver professionalism (or lack thereof) read more

Northern Extremes - Saco river - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Conway, New Hampshire

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We used a "sister company" during the winter for snowmobile trip and LOVED it. Signed up for a tubing trip one sunny day in early August. Honestly so much fun!!! We had 10 in our group and it was awesome. Next time we will take a longer trip. This operation has thought everything out, Covid precautions were met and well thought through. DO IT! Plan a day trip next summer you won't regret it. Wear sunscreen read more

I've been here every at least once a year for the past 3-4 years and it never disappoints. Staff always seems friendly and happy, we usually go right before prime busy season (Before July 4th). They have plenty of items in store if you're missing anything. They also have an air compressor you can use if you're in need of inflating some floatable items. I highly recommend the Intex Floatable Cooler. Best investment easily. I also recommend having a pair of water shoes. The river itself is relatively easy going, although I always see at least one person flip during my trip down the river. Keep your phones dry or don't bring them! read more

Great experience!! Very organized and friendly. Mark helped us get accommodated with our snow mobiles and he was great! Very knowledgeable and helpful with trails. read more

One day we decided we wanted to float down the Saco River on some inflatable tubes. Northern Extremes helped us make that happen. While our particular group was of the tubing persuasion, Northern Extremes is also equipped to accommodate kayakers and canoers. They only have 50 tubes available for rental, so we were really glad that we reserved tubes for our group a week in advance. The run was about 4 hours, with minimal rapids, but lots of beach stops and amazing scenery. They even provided us with an inflatable cooler to fill with goodies for our aquatic journey. The Saco River had some heavy traffic with other water fanatics, not to mention a variety of obstacles to avoid (sharp sticks and ass rocks), but overall this was a relaxing and beautiful river run, complete with crystal clear water. The whole thing was fairly well organized by Northern Extremes, and the staff was very kind to us. $20 buys you a tube for the day, a map, and a shuttle ride to the drop off point and back to the car, plus four fabulous hours of river time-- a pretty sweet deal. read more

Every so often a friend of mine invites me to one of her getting in the shark cage-esque adventures, albeit the generally mild ones. After surviving snow tubing, river tubing seemed the logical next step. First thing to note, I am a professional indoorsman and avoid sunlight with a skill second to none. You need shade? Find me, I'm in it. Thus I have a bit of a creamy complexion. Other than the possibility of a few minor rapids I was assured the only real danger I'd be facing on the Saco was the sun. Pro or not there would be no shade. This is a lazy river ride but there is some paddling involved. Depending on water levels you may become "beached" on a shallow section. Since its mostly sharp rocks and you're kind of in a turtle on its back predicament getting up to move can be awkward at best...better to get flat and try to paddle for deeper waters. There are also rocky/pointy sticky sections you may want to exert some energy to avoid. Totally safe and all good but keep an eye out. Get a floating cooler so you can have snacks on the water...nothing quite like chicken nuggets and cold bottled water after a few hours paddling in the sun. Two last things: Don't lose your tube and Don't fall in. I did both at the same time because Woog said there were snapping turtles, long story... read more

My family and I wanted to start some summer traditions and so I took to Google one day. We have always love going to NH, so I searched for things to do around North Conway, NH since we had visited and really liked the area. I thought canoeing would be fun, but I was not sure it was doable with a 2 year old. Well, we tried it anyway, and it was awesome! I found a link on-line for Northern Extremes and I started reading their website. It was simple! I called, reserved a canoe for the four of us and that was that! When we arrived we were so excited, and the staff there was so friendly and they knew what we they were talking about. They gave us a map to follow on the river, told us what to look for and where to get off. They drove us with all the equipment and they also picked us up. They are reliable and to this day we go out on the Saco in NH, renting from Northern Extremes. We have recommended them to two other families, which have also been using them for 2 or 3 years now. Can't wait to go back this coming summer!!! We now have a Boxer pup that we are going to start taking with us to have fun in the river. Should be a blast! I already called and asked and they drive us with the dog too! They are awesome! Check them out! read more

Northern Extremes - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Conway, New Hampshire

They are the best to rent tubes or yaks from. We had over 20 of us some had their own tubes and some rented they dropped us if where they usually don't drop of tubes so we could finish at our campsite. Every year we rent from them and they always go out of their way to work with us. If u rent from anywhere else you won't be as happy ! read more

The bus ride their was quite sketchy because the bus needed some tlc and the bus drivers driving was not exactly the safest. The river trip started off nice but eventually the current got slower and it almost seemed like we were going backwards at some parts. Overall their wasn't as many rapids as I would have liked. Also my family did experience a women who was drunk so I would say this trip is not great for kids or great for people looking for more thrills and adventure considering it was so slow. There is one rope swing along the river but it's not that deep in so I would not recommend using it. The bus ride back was fine though. All the employees were relatively friendly. I would recommend another river trip that ends where this particular trip starts that is by Saco Canoe Rental. read more

Woman behind counter was a real "female dog"...complete BS with the floats they had available. We purchased a cooler float after we were told none were available to rent and then when we got to river the party in front of us took our cooler and we were never reimbursed. LIES, LIES, LIES....poorly run company. The only highlights were Chris and Jake the drivers of vans...super friendly and willing to help. I hate to give a bad review to anyone , but beware! read more

This was SO much fun! The service was excellent - they took us right to the river and picked us up as soon as we were done. They explained everything perfectly and it was a blast!! The price was very reasonable! We will definitely be doing this again! read more

We rented snowmobiles from the, this morning after the place we reserved at never showed up. They were very nice and informative. When we got back from several hours on the trail, they gave us hot chocolate and let us aw out by their heater. Will rent from them every time. read more

I feel oddly comforted by the fact that another reviewer experienced similarly horrendous treatment from Northern Extremes. Simply put, I've never in my life dealt with a company that exhibited a greater degree of incompetence than Northern Extremes. The lack of professionalism and utter dearth of common decency that I witnessed still enrages me to this day. I am not one to post reviews online. The heinousness of NE's business practice, however, pushed me to register with Yelp solely in the hopes of preventing other vacationers from enduring similar mistreatment. There are many other options for canoe rentals in the area. I urge you, take advantage of them. read more

I recently went here on a Sunday morning the 10:45 trip and enjoyed it! after calling the Saco river canoe company (which recently bought out northern extremes) they said they had no availability until 1:00 which isn't much time if you have to be in by 5, and one of the employees recommended that we call this other location in North Conway! You park in the back, get on a shuttle, and me and boyfriend got a double kayak. Then you get off and they shuttle you back about 5 minute drive to your car. $50 for the both of us including shuttle, not a bad price! There were a lot of tubers we had to dodge but they're from other companies as well. Have been tubing, kayaking, and canoeing and would recommend tubing for larger groups, kayak/canoeing for smaller ones. We did the 5 mile trip and I.T took us about 3 hours stopping along the way, but if you kept going I.T would be less than 2 easily. read more

So happy with our experience with Northern Extremes. We have two little ones (2 and 4 years old) and the guys at NE were very professional and honest about letting us know that the Saco River trip would not be recommended for such little ones. But instead of just saying "No", they came up with an alternate canoe experience for us on Conway Lake. They shuttled the boat out to the lake, and we drove behind them. We spent a wonderful day at the lake canoeing, swimming, and picnicking. When it was time to pack up, we called them and they came to pick up the canoe within 10 minutes. Highly recommend going to Northern Extremes because they take the time to create a fun experience that works for you and your family. Note: If they are having a busy day, they may not be able to spare a shuttle for you to take custom trip, so call ahead and try to go midweek when they may not be as busy. read more

The river is beautiful and great for kids. The flyer is very misleading as far as prices go. They had a weekend and a midweek price, but when we arrived on Friday we were told that it was 'weekend' rates. Nowhere on the flyer does it indicate that Friday is a weekend. then, they have a family special...4 singles or a double and a single for $75. We wanted 2 doubles...how much more could it be than 4 singles or a double and two singles? It was $120 and the guy kept telling me it was a great deal. We were all ready and the kids were excited so we went for it, but I definitely felt mislead by the flyer. It was fun and beautiful, I just wish I was not surprised by the price. read more

Been coming to Northern Extreme for about three years now to do our kayaking and we love it. Not only is the price reasonable, the kayaks of good quality but the employees are as friendly as can be. They drive you to the area that you start out and bring the kayaks to the rivers edge, let you know before hand what areas you need special attention for and of course pick you up at the end! I know there are other companies that have boats on the river, but I will stick to this one as they are awesome and that part of the river changes slightly from year to year so it is always something different and fun read more

Very nice people to deal with. We reserved online and received a prompt response. At the shop, they explained our route and made sure we were outfitted properly. The shuttle drivers were friendly and worked very hard to take care of everyone quickly and then shared our enthusiasm for our experience when they picked us up. We would definitely use them again! They are very conveniently located and the drop off and pick up locations were only a few minutes away. Thank you for a great day - next time canoes! read more

The people there are very helpful and our first experience kayaking with the family was very good. Today however was a little different. We were later today close to 12 noon and got tubes w/o cup holders and head rests and figured well we were later, however the group of young girls who came after us, did get the tubes with the head rests. They said because a group was finished right after we left- unhappy but okay we were like fine. Good day on the river except some really drunk tubers yelling obscenities. When we were leaving to go in the van, they said they could fit us in. well the drinking group left their drunk friend in the back seat, where that was all that was left for us to sit. My 11 year was near her, didn't realize she was intoxicated until we were squeezed in. She was drinking in the van and spilt beer on my daughter's towel. I just kept her near me. First off they should have seen the open container, 2 they should have made the drunk party sit together, not mixed together with families. Really uncool. read more

These guys are the best. I go up to NH with a group of about 30 for a tubing trip every summer and they are always so accommodating. In all the years we've been going up we've always had a great experience with Northern Extremes! read more

I wholeheartedly agree with the previous comments about Northern Extremes. My experience with this company was nothing but a hassle. They were unprofessional, rude, and not very eager to accommodate their customers even when they were in the wrong. They did not care about customer satisfaction or concerns in the least and cared only about getting their money. The way my family was treated in dealing with this company was atrocious. I will never again do business with Northern Extremes. When this was mentioned to them, they flat out said they did not care about my business. If you want to deal with a company that doesn't care about their customers and is not willing to help you than you have found the perfect place! Like the others that commented on this company - stay away! It is not worth it. There are much more reputable companies in the area that are much more worth your time and money and with zero aggravation! I tried this company because most other companies in the area had sold out for the weekend of my trip. There is definitely a reason for this! read more

OK....where should I start. First off, I dont want this to sound like a retaliation but you have a lot of nerve writing this on here. You must all know eachother because either its a strange conincidence you all posted these reviews within a couple days apart or you all have eachothers phone numbers. The word travels fast around these parts and a lot of people are disgusted at what you are trying to pull. I live in Maine and know all the launches and landings the canoe companies use....and I have to say. you couldnt be more ignorant to leave your cars where you did. It's not the companies fault here.. thousands of people use those spots every summer and it's very clear where and where not to park. So trying to hold this company responsible and placing blame is not the way to go. Take responsibility for youre actions. As far as the company (northern extremes) goes, they are actually nice friendly people and what you are saying about them really just seems like you are pissed off that you have to pay for the towing and feel like writing reviews on the internet is going to put the company out of bussiness or something... good luck people.... and try to find something to do with your time thats useful. We really dont want people like you on the river with such lack of common sense. read more

This is a very poor place to bring a family and to have a good time. I don't by any means suggest using this company. Saco canoe rental in Conway would be the place to go to instead. I had a horrible time there there boats leaked none stop. The drivers are unprofessional. They don't care about anything except making more money. For you own summer funs sake don't go there. read more

Absolutely terrible place. My family made reservations here and it was the worst mistake ever. My brother has autism and my mother asked the staff about their opinion and they gave the most obnoxious response. When we got to the river, they were short on tubes and life jackets. They told us we should all wear life jackets but they didn't have enough for everyone so I don't know what was on their mind. They had to drive back to get another tube. 2 of my cousins accidentally went past the destination point and got lost. Who knows where they could have ended up? They could have been stranded in the middle of the ocean. When my aunt and uncle confronted the staff, they reacted completely carelessly. This place is very despicable and hurts the community. They put their customers in danger by not providing life jackets and not caring when the customers are in danger so I would strongly recommend staying away from this place. read more