Tully River
Tully River
4.5
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4.5
47 reviews
Excellent
29
Very good
11
Average
2
Poor
2
Terrible
3
ManitobaMike
Edmonton, Canada18 contributions
We did the Extreme river raft. We had a fantastic day. The guides were great and overall it was a good experience. The lunch was not very good and is the one thing they need to improve.
Written 31 August 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
mummamissy64
Brisbane, Australia41 contributions
July 2019 • Friends
Totally totally loved our river guide ‘DJ Pauly’ who was super chilled but at the same time very safety conscious (drill Sargent). For us the day started at Mission Beach and the bus ride up to Tully Gorge was informative and hilarious.
Before getting in the rafts water safety instructions are given and then Pauly made us jump out of the raft to practice how to float if we fell out and how to help others back in the raft if they fell out. I have never felt colder water in my life...
We were given the option of how we wanted to participate e.g easy or extreme. We opted for the extreme and that’s exactly what we got. The rapids were insane and there’s so many of them.
Lunch is provided - this included hot soup, and you helped yourself to fresh meats, salads and fruit. This is where my only criticism would be.. I didn’t like that the river guides are responsible for packing up the lunch and the tables before heading back on the rafts. Surely they have other staff that can do this.. takes away the professional feeling.
This is not for the faint hearted and you need to be prepared to get wet, wet, and more wet. There is even the chance of falling out of the raft which none of us did...
I am in my fifties and have rafted down the Grand Canyon on the Colorado river which was amazing but to experience the Tully Gorge with the 4 gates open was without a doubt the best day of my life and ‘DJ PAULY’ you rock buddy and I thank you for your experience, professionalism, wisdom and enthusiasm for life.
Before getting in the rafts water safety instructions are given and then Pauly made us jump out of the raft to practice how to float if we fell out and how to help others back in the raft if they fell out. I have never felt colder water in my life...
We were given the option of how we wanted to participate e.g easy or extreme. We opted for the extreme and that’s exactly what we got. The rapids were insane and there’s so many of them.
Lunch is provided - this included hot soup, and you helped yourself to fresh meats, salads and fruit. This is where my only criticism would be.. I didn’t like that the river guides are responsible for packing up the lunch and the tables before heading back on the rafts. Surely they have other staff that can do this.. takes away the professional feeling.
This is not for the faint hearted and you need to be prepared to get wet, wet, and more wet. There is even the chance of falling out of the raft which none of us did...
I am in my fifties and have rafted down the Grand Canyon on the Colorado river which was amazing but to experience the Tully Gorge with the 4 gates open was without a doubt the best day of my life and ‘DJ PAULY’ you rock buddy and I thank you for your experience, professionalism, wisdom and enthusiasm for life.
Written 1 August 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Pat S
Middle Island, NY117 contributions
Feb 2018 • Couples
A day filled with high water excitement. Six people in a raft with a crazy and wild instructor named Travis. Fell out a few times which is part of the fun and danger. Lunch is included and a stop at the end at an historical bar called El Arish Tavern. Super nice people. Came away with a few bruises but hey, that’s part of wild rafting. If this sounds too crazy for you, go on the mild Barron river rafting instead.
Written 3 March 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
FranckH949
Amsterdam, The Netherlands1 contribution
Mar 2013 • Friends
We went rafting with raging thunder on the Tully river last march. We paid 185 dollar to go with the australian riverguide Marty. This guy liked to play with his customers. We were with 6 people in one raft. He told us he did not like boring rides on the river. Just before a rapid he told all six of us to sit on the front of the raft and toldmus to hold hands. We went down the rapid and he threw us out of the raft. My girlfriend landed underw water underneath the raft and could not reach the surface and paniced completely. I got caught in a water centrifuge underneath the rapid, allthough i had a life vest i could not reach the surface of the water. I started to get water in my lungs and thought I was going to die. We all were completly shocked by wath happened. River guide Marty said we were all softies and really did not care anything about people being scared for his way off playing with peoples lifes. I will never ever go back to a company threating his custumers like this.
Franck & Marije
Franck & Marije
Written 9 April 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
penml
Adelaide, Australia119 contributions
Nov 2011 • Couples
We did the Tully River rafting tour quite a while ago. I wish to warn people that you will have a great time IF nothing goes wrong. Our guide was a young hoon. He had us all remove our helmets before going under the waterfall and the force of the water on your head is not pleasant. Another negative: I almost drowned as I was caught under the raft as it capsized over one of the rapids. Our guide just sat in the raft. One of the fellow rafters pulled me back into the raft gasping for air, and the guide just stated "You were under there a long time". When he was asked if anyone had died, he simply stated "Yes". On the way to the rapids, we were all asked to sign a waiver of responsibility form. On the way back after the rafting, we were shown a video of all the things that have gone wrong. I was horrified. We were told that they do not show this BEFORE the rafting, otherwise no one would do it. I was pretty angry at this stage. I had a close to death experience on this tour. I accept that there is a risk in everything in life, but I do think it is irresponsible not to let people know that this CAN be dangerous.
Written 19 October 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Anna
1 contribution
Dec 2018 • Couples
Was a horrible experience. The company we went with advertised it as if you are in a two seater raft boat with instructor, but it was nothing like that. Having 0 experience we got told all these facts and what you were supposed to do, which was a complete information overload. Almost drowned when the boat flipped, was the scariest experience of my life. The instructor just laughed and said let’s keep on going, ‘she’ll be alright’.Also, there was a croc in the river, the instructor just pretended not to see it even though me and my partner saw it! We pulled out half way, didn’t want to risk life. The river was too full due to heavy rains, and I think they just got away that nothing serious happened. Also when you sign ‘terms and conditions’ there were too many questionable sections.
Written 30 December 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kingsand
Sydney102 contributions
Nov 2014
A scenic peaceful drive west of the town of Tully with its dominating sugar mill, is well worth a detour.
The is well known for its white water rafting, but even if you cannot afford or haven't the energy for that, take the drive.
several viewing stops and lots of little bridges.
There is a spacious camping ground or even a good spot for your picnic lunch.
This was not our first visit as we always camp in the gorge. Great shower and good loos. Oh yes, cold showers. Wonderful on a hot humid day then you are ready for your barbecue, so don't forget to call at the great butcher at the top of the town. Enjoy!
The is well known for its white water rafting, but even if you cannot afford or haven't the energy for that, take the drive.
several viewing stops and lots of little bridges.
There is a spacious camping ground or even a good spot for your picnic lunch.
This was not our first visit as we always camp in the gorge. Great shower and good loos. Oh yes, cold showers. Wonderful on a hot humid day then you are ready for your barbecue, so don't forget to call at the great butcher at the top of the town. Enjoy!
Written 26 December 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Julien B
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia1 contribution
Mar 2012 • Friends
so its poor for one reason, and i think its a very important reason for a review. the business doesn't appreciate the customer. the rafting is good but you can raft somewhere else and have just as good of an experience. They company charges you a good chunk of money to go, but then its just fees after words. I could be unique in feeling this way, but when you pay that much money, a light snack in the morning instead of passing a menu around to see if you'd like to spend more money to buy some food, would be nice. An offer of rafting shoes maybe for those who might not want to be busing and walking around in soaking sneakers instead of charging a 4 dollar charge. and pictures. the pictures are taken already. but 100$ for a few pictures that are all taken in burst shots. if they have 10 boats going, they are squeezing another 1000$ out of their "loyal" customers instead of just realizing that these people keep the business alive and just saying, thank you for choosing us, we aren't going to charge you 100$ for a few pictures. i think that its important for a company to appreciate their customers and not take advantage. for this reason i give them a bad review, but by all means go rafting at some point, but make sure you go with a company that offers a good price because this one does not
Written 19 March 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Erik R
Denver, CO8 contributions
Oct 2011 • Couples
Okay so maybe I'm a bit spoiled having rafted some good rivers in Colorado, USA but I wasn't much impressed with Tully. Everyone I talked to said it was a "must do" but the water was pretty low (don't know why as it's controlled release), the group was huge which meant we spent half the day waiting for other rafts to go by, and the biting flies were terrible. Lastly I thought the boats were pretty sad. They let a lot of air out as the river was low which meant at every rapid it would bend in half. Pretty lame.
The guide was really nice (as most river guides are) and the other people along for the ride were nice. The outfit running it (Raging Thunder) took us to their hostel/pub afterward which it was nice to have a beer but felt like they were trying to fleece us for more cash basically.
Anyway go in with low expectations and you'll have fun. Rafting in the wet is likely an entire different experience.
The guide was really nice (as most river guides are) and the other people along for the ride were nice. The outfit running it (Raging Thunder) took us to their hostel/pub afterward which it was nice to have a beer but felt like they were trying to fleece us for more cash basically.
Anyway go in with low expectations and you'll have fun. Rafting in the wet is likely an entire different experience.
Written 12 November 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Neet Ken
Cairns, Australia21 contributions
May 2017 • Friends
Living in Cairns for 10years, I always wanted to raft down the Tully River but it never happened until last weekend- and it was just ridiculously awesome! I must admit you will have to be adventurous in order to do the extreme tour and need a strong grip and most likely a few beers after to celebrate you are still alive! Nevertheless, our guide 'DJ Paul' did a fabulous job and made sure we are all safe, no matter how retarded we acted in some situations! Thanks a lot Raging Thunder crew:)! I will be back!!!
Written 15 May 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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