Island in the Sky by 4x4 · The Colorado by Raft
Canyonlands Rafting
The one day trip that puts you in Canyonlands and on the river: NAVTEC's morning 4x4 through Island in the Sky, the Shafer Trail and part of the White Rim, a buffet lunch at the river, then an afternoon rafting the Colorado near Fisher Towers.
- 4.6 / 5 223+ Reviews
- 8 hours Duration
- 8 hours 4x4 + River
- Class II Day-Trip Rapids
- Free Cancellation
The Experience
What the 4x4 and Rafting Day Covers
NAVTEC's combo: morning in the park, afternoon on the river.
Highlights
- 8 a.m. to noon: 4x4 through Island in the Sky, the Shafer Trail and part of the White Rim Road
- Buffet lunch by the Colorado River
- Noon to 4 p.m.: rafting the Colorado near Fisher Towers, inflatable kayaks on request
What's Included
- Lunch (buffet style) at the river
- Professional guide
- Inflatable Kayak - single or double (upon prior request)
- Ice Water for re-fills (please bring a water bottle with you!)
- Coast Guard approved life jackets, river dry bag for your belongings if need be
Not Included: Soft drinks (you are welcome to bring your own), Gratuity to Guide, Park entrance fees ($15/person unless you have an Annual National Parks Pass)
How a Moab Rafting Day Works
Check in, get fitted, shuttle to the river, float.
Meet at 8 a.m. on Main Street
The combo starts at NAVTEC's office, 321 N. Main St., at 8:00 a.m.; arrive 15 minutes early. You are back at about 5 p.m.
Give Weights When You Book
NAVTEC asks for every passenger's weight at booking, sets a minimum weight of 50 lbs (23 kg), and requires a signed liability release before departure.
Dress for Both Halves
The listing suggests wearing the same clothes all day: sturdy shoes, quick-dry layers, a swimsuit or fast-drying shorts, sun protection and a waterproof camera if you have one.
Budget the Park Fee
The Canyonlands half of the day needs park entry: $15 a person on the listing, unless you have an annual National Parks pass.
Photo Gallery
From the Mesa to the River
Photos from the combo listing: the 4x4 roads of Island in the Sky and the Colorado below Fisher Towers.
Book Your Experience
Check Dates for the 4x4 and Rafting Day
Dates, times and the live price open on the tour's Viator page.
NAVTEC Expeditions
Moab Combo: Colorado River Rafting and Canyonlands 4X4 Tour
- 4.6/5 from 223 reviews on Viator and Tripadvisor
- 8 hours
- From $330 per person (checked October 2026)
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before
- 8:00 a.m. at 321 N. Main St., Moab; back about 5 p.m.
Three Ways onto the Colorado
A day that adds Canyonlands, a half-day float and the multi-day whitewater. Prices as listed on Viator in October 2026.
| Feature | THIS PAGE 4x4 + Rafting Day | Half-Day Float | Cataract Canyon, 5 Days |
|---|---|---|---|
| What You Pay | From $330 per person (October 2026), park entry extra | From $109.91 per person (October 2026) | From $2,150 per person (October 2026), meals included |
| Time | 8 a.m. to about 5 p.m. | About 4 hours, 2 of them on the water | 5 days |
| Rapids | Mild, on the Colorado near Fisher Towers | A few Class II | Roughly 16 miles of whitewater, Class III to V depending on flow |
| In Canyonlands? | The morning half, by 4x4 | No; upstream of Moab | Yes, through the heart of the park |
| Cancellation | Free up to 24 hours before | Free up to 24 hours before | All sales final |
| Rating | 4.6 from 223 reviews | 4.9 from 779 reviews | 5.0 from 3 reviews |
| Check dates | See the half day | See Cataract Canyon |
Just the River
More Moab Rafting Trips
Half-day and full-day floats on the Colorado, an evening dinner cruise, and the multi-day trip through Cataract Canyon.
HALF DAYMoab Afternoon Half Day Rafting Trip - Colorado River
An afternoon half-day on the Colorado through Castle Valley: about two hours on the water, a few Class II rapids, and a shuttle from Mild to Wild's Moab office.
FULL DAY + LUNCHMoab Full-Day Rafting Trip with Lunch, Colorado River
A full day on the Colorado from Castle Valley back toward Moab, mostly floating with a few Class II rapids, and a deli lunch on a beach.
ON GETYOURGUIDEFrom Moab: Colorado River Guided Rafting Trip
Experience a guided rafting tour suitable for beginners and all levels of experience along the Colorado River. Depart from Moab and spend half the day navigating …
EVENING CRUISEMoab: Colorado River Dinner Cruise with Music and Light Show
Begin the evening on the banks of the Colorado River, just 2 miles north of Moab, Utah. Savor a delicious cowboy-style Dutch oven dinner in a dining room overlooking …
CATARACT CANYONCataract Canyon 5 Day Rafting Trip in Colorado River
Five days and 96 miles on the Colorado through Canyonlands: about 50 miles of flat water, the confluence with the Green, then roughly 16 miles of Cataract Canyon's rapids before Lake Powell.
The Guide
Rafting in Canyonlands: What Runs Where
The rivers inside the park are flat until the confluence. The day trips run upstream of Moab.
Rafting and Canyonlands go together in people’s heads, and less often on the map. Above their confluence in the middle of the park, the Green and the Colorado are flatwater, “miles and miles” of it in the park’s own words, suited to canoes and sea kayaks. The whitewater begins below the confluence, in Cataract Canyon: about 14 miles of Class III to V rapids that NPS describes as hazardous, isolated and for experienced river runners only. Guided trips there run one to six days (NPS).
The half-day and full-day raft trips sold in Moab run somewhere else: upstream of town, on the Colorado through Castle Valley and past Fisher Towers, outside the park. They are mild, with a few Class II rapids, and the listings call them suitable for all fitness levels. So the question is what you want from the day.
The day that does both
NAVTEC’s combo, in the booking box above, is the one day trip that puts you inside Canyonlands and on the river. The morning, from 8 a.m. to noon, is a 4x4 tour of Island in the Sky, down the Shafer Trail and along part of the White Rim Road, with stops at rock art. After a buffet lunch by the river, the afternoon from noon to 4 p.m. is a raft trip on the Colorado near Fisher Towers, with inflatable kayaks available on request. It costs from $330 a person and is rated 4.6 from 223 reviews (checked October 2026). Park entry for the morning half is extra, and the tour needs at least three travelers to run.
If you only want the river
Moab Combo: Colorado River Rafting and Canyonlands 4X4 Tour
Island in the Sky by 4x4 in the morning, the Colorado by raft after lunch.
Check dates →Moab Afternoon Half Day Rafting Trip - Colorado River
About two hours on the water through Castle Valley with a few Class II rapids; shuttle from the Moab office.
See the half day →Moab Full-Day Rafting Trip with Lunch, Colorado River
Castle Valley and the red-rock canyon back toward Moab, mostly floating, with a deli lunch on a beach.
See the full day →Prices, ratings and review counts from the Viator listings (checked October 2026). Operators price by season; treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.
Mild to Wild runs the half-day float as a morning or an afternoon trip; Castle Valley is where Fisher Towers, Castleton Tower and the Priest and Nuns stand above the river. The water is warm from late spring to early fall. For an evening on the same river without getting wet, Canyonlands By Night & Day’s dinner cruise with a sound-and-light show leaves from just north of Moab.
Cataract Canyon
The real Canyonlands whitewater is a multi-day trip. Mild to Wild’s five-day expedition motors about 50 miles of flatwater through the park, passes the confluence and runs roughly 16 miles of rapids before Lake Powell; Adrift Adventures runs a three-day version. Both are non-refundable once booked and have only a handful of reviews so far, so read the Cataract Canyon page before committing.
To spend the dry half of a day in the park instead, the Island in the Sky tours and the White Rim day go further on the 4x4 roads than the combo’s morning.
Guest Reviews
What Rafting Travelers Say
Read the 223 reviews of this tour on Viator
See All ReviewsThe Park and the River in One Day
NAVTEC's combo: Island in the Sky, the Shafer Trail and part of the White Rim by 4x4 in the morning, a buffet lunch, then rafting the Colorado near Fisher Towers. Inflatable kayaks on request. Starting from $330 per person.
Check dates on ViatorCan't Make These Dates?
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Find a tour that fits your schedule. Dates and cancellation terms are on each listing.
Rafting Near Canyonlands: Questions
Where the rapids are, what the day trips are like, and what the park requires.
Yes, though the classic day trips are mild. The half-day and full-day trips run the Colorado upstream of Moab through Castle Valley and past Fisher Towers, with a few Class II rapids: mild trips. Bigger whitewater means Westwater Canyon, a separate full day near the Colorado border, or the multi-day Cataract Canyon trip through Canyonlands.
Yes, but the rivers above the confluence are flatwater and the rapids are in Cataract Canyon. NPS describes miles of flatwater on the Green and Colorado above their confluence, suited to canoes and sea kayaks, and about 14 miles of Class III to V whitewater in Cataract Canyon below it. NPS says guided Cataract trips run from one to six days; the ones sold on Viator are three and five days. Every river trip in the park, flatwater or whitewater, needs an NPS permit, which outfitters hold for their guests.
Late spring to early fall for warm water; May and June for the biggest flows. Mild to Wild says the Colorado stays fairly warm from late spring to early fall. Adrift Adventures describes Cataract Canyon as wildest in May, June and early July with the snowmelt, and calmer with warmer water and sandbars from July to October.
The day trips near Moab, generally yes; Cataract Canyon, not for young children. The Castle Valley floats have a few Class II rapids and are listed as suitable for all fitness levels. NAVTEC's combo sets a minimum weight of 50 lbs (23 kg) and asks for every passenger's weight at booking. Cataract Canyon's Class III to V rapids need a high level of fitness.
No. NAVTEC lists park entry as extra, $15 a person, unless you have an annual National Parks pass. Lunch, guides, life jackets and a dry bag are included, and inflatable kayaks are available on request at no charge.
Quick-dry clothes, a swimsuit or fast-drying shorts, sturdy shoes that can get wet, and sun protection. That is NAVTEC's list for the combo, which suggests wearing the same outfit for the 4x4 and the river. In spring and fall bring a rain jacket; Mild to Wild provides splash jackets and helmets on request.
Still have questions? Email us at info@canyonlands-tours.com