Budget-friendly Alternatives to a Grand Canyon Rafting Trip

4 River Trips That Rival Grand Canyon

Yes, a Grand Canyon rafting trip on the Colorado River is undeniably gorgeous, exciting, educational, restorative, and fun—the trip of a lifetime. The downside to this bucket list adventure is that trips tend to fill more than 18 months in advance and can be cost prohibitive for many travelers.  For example, a one-week rafting trip in Grand Canyon National Park with an outfitter can cost a family of four more than $16,000.

But you don’t have to have that kind of travel budget to experience the majesty and awe of some of the West’s most spectacular river canyons. These alternatives to Grand Canyon offer world-class whitewater, breathtaking scenery, and rich history at far more manageable prices and without the long waitlist.

1) Colorado River Rafting through Cataract Canyon, UT

Upstream of Grand Canyon and Lake Powell, the mighty Colorado River flows wild and free through Cataract Canyon and the heart of Canyonlands National Park, providing rafters unique access to the park’s remote Maze and Needles District. Hidden slot canyons, stunning vistas, and 16 miles of some of the best whitewater rapids on the Colorado River await you on this legendary expedition. Beyond the rapids, paddle calm stretches by inflatable kayak or stand-up paddleboard, discover ancient Ancestral Puebloan rock art and archaeological sites, and marvel at the wonders of this red rock wonderland. At night, relax on sandy beach camps under some of the darkest, star-filled skies on Earth.

2) Green River Rafting through Desolation Canyon, UT

There are few places as wild and untouched as Desolation Canyon, but this underrated stretch of the Green River is nothing short of majestic. It’s a place of rugged beauty where dramatic bedrock walls, talus slopes and colorful crags tower as high as Grand Canyon in some places.

Hidden within the canyon’s walls are remnants of past visitors—rock art and stone ruins left by the Fremont Indians, abandoned homesteads and outlaw hideouts—waiting to be discovered by paddlers. A rafting trip through Desolation Canyon also offers exciting stretches of whitewater, including more than 50+ Class II-III rapids that offer family-friendly thrills, as well as a scenic flight to the put-in.

3) Green River Rafting through the Gates of Lodore, UT/CO

Before it converges with the Yampa and eventually the Colorado River, the Green River winds its way through billion-year-old, red quartzite canyons, which offered renegade outlaws such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid refuge from the law.

A Green River rafting trip will get your heart pumping with Upper and Lower Disaster Falls, Triplet Falls, and Hells Half Mile—named by early explorer John Wesley Powell—before passing through historic Echo Park; scene of David Brower and the Sierra Club’s first conservation victory against a proposed dam.

4) Yampa River Rafting in Dinosaur National Monument, UT/CO

Rafting down the Yampa River gives visitors a backstage pass to some of the most remarkable pieces of geologic and human history. Over the course of four or five days, you are transported into the heart of Dinosaur National Monument where you can discover 150-million-year-old fossils and encounter 1,200-year-old petroglyphs and pictographs from the Fremont Indians.

Lose yourself in the geologic record on the river while you navigate Class III and IV whitewater beneath stunning rock formations like Cleopatra’s Couch and Tiger Wall and hike to spots like Mantle Cave and Wagon Wheel Point.

Learn more about some of the lesser-known canyons in the heart of the Colorado Plateau.