I still remember the time when I was at the river rafting point in Leh. The salesman there was asking me to book a slot profusely, I was like, “Bro, I have done the river rafting in Rishikesh, No way I am going to ruin my experience of this adrenaline activity, here”.

I believe river rafting in India is a synonym to river rafting in Rishikesh because any way you are not going to experience a 10-28 km long ride on a paddle boat right through the middle of the holiest river of India, Ganga with more than 16 rapids to make your heart skip a beat and adrenaline rush high than ever, anywhere other than in Rishikesh.

I mean it gets so thrilling that you would definitely yearn to return to Rishikesh just to experience river rafting again.

The icing on the cake is the water of Ganga. I mean it flows down directly from Gangroti ( The origin of Ganga) and after passing through almost all the major destinations in Uttarakhand, it finally reaches a place, we call the spiritual capital of India, Rishikesh.

You will find people performing various yoga poses at the bank of this river along with believers of Hinduism who consider it as the living goddess and come from different corners of India to take a dip and blessings.

But we will predominantly talk only about river rafting here.

What is the total distance of river rafting in Rishikesh?

Most of the vendors will offer you four choices, 10 km, 16 km, 21 km, and 28 km. I personally tried 16 km for two times and 21 km for once. 

They usually take all the rafters to Shivpuri from Rishikesh in a sharing vehicle and start rafting from there. Slowly and steadily paddling and flowing along with the river, all the way they come down to Rishikesh again.

What is the cost of rafting in Rishikesh?

Earlier it used to be cheaper like 500 INR for 16 km. But now they have hiked the prices. They ask for around 800 INR for 16 km.

They might also try to sell you their camping packages. In it, they will offer you one-day camping in the jungle with food which also includes river rafting, for somewhere around 1500–2000 INR. 

Please double-check before finalizing the camping as they sell the packages by showing lucrative pictures of the camps but after reaching you will not even be able to recognize the place.

What is the best time for river rafting in Rishikesh?

The best time is the pre-monsoon i.e from March to June. After that the water level of Ganga increases which brings safety concerns.

Is river rafting in Rishikesh safe?

It personally found it safe as they provide life-jackets and helmets. Also, proper instructions will be given by the rafting guide. All you have to do is follow the instructions properly.

Is the river rafting safe for non-swimmers?

Pretty much as life jackets won’t let you drown. Even if some emergency situation arises, the rafting guide will deal with it as they are very well trained in this. Also, the moment will come when you can jump in the water from the boat or even a cliff-jumping point is also there in between, where you can leap all the way down from a considerable height.

I have witnessed many non-swimmers doing the cliff-jumping. So unless and until you are wearing the life-jacket properly and a bit cautious, there is no need to worry.

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