Everything you need to know to prepare for the 2026 Opening Day
Thank you for your interest in rafting with us in 2026! We look forward to getting you on the Colorado River through Grand Canyon. Below you’ll find all of the details you’ll need to be prepared for our 2026 opening day. If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email, and we’ll be happy to assist you.
The Basics of Opening Day
- Opening day is Tuesday, December 3, 2024.
- Online reservations will be open at 9 AM MST (Arizona does NOT observe Daylight Savings Time). Our phones will also turn on at 9 AM if you choose to reserve over the phone.
- Reservations will be first-come, first-served.
- We HIGHLY RECOMMEND you reserve online. That has proven to be the most expedient way to make your reservations. You are welcome to call and reserve over the phone as well. Just note that the groups who have done that in the past have been on hold so long that the trips they wanted were full by the time they got through to us. We cannot guarantee you’ll get your preferred date whether reserving online or over the phone; we’ve simply noticed that those reserving online had the best luck.
- If you are having any difficulties with the online reservation process, call our office while you continue to attempt to reserve online. Once you connect by phone you can work with us directly to reserve your trip.
- We will NOT take reservations prior to December 3.
- Dates will be published on Tuesday, November 26 to allow you to start planning over the holiday weekend.
Online Reservations
- THIS IS OUR RECOMMENDED WAY TO RESERVE.
- Once you click on one of the links below (once active), you’ll be taken to the availability. If you have a trip in your cart, it will be held there for only 10 minutes so you must confirm it as quickly as possible in order to reserve the date.
- If you reserve online, you will be required to enter your credit card information, however, your card will NOT be charged the 15% non-refundable deposit until 10 days after reservation is made.
- Do not email us your reservation request. We cannot guarantee we will be able to make your reservation by email in a timely fashion.
- If you are planning to reserve a partial canyon trip (6-7 day upper or 9-10 day lower), read through the information on our website to ensure everyone in your party is able to hike the Bright Angel Trail, a strenuous 7.5 mile hike.
- You will receive an email notification with your online portfolio link soon after reserving if your online reservation was successful. Questions you might have may be answered in your portfolio. Be sure to check your spam folder.
Group Reservations
- Have only one person reserve online for parties that wish to separate invoicing. This way, you can get your whole group reserved at one time, which lowers the risk of your entire group not making it on the same trip. You can email us later that week to confirm group details, including payment and contact information for each party.
- Our maximum group size is 14. You will be able to reserve this many spaces online, and is generally the fastest way to do so in our experience.
- Please do NOT reserve a group larger than 14 by having someone else reserve additional spots for your group. We kindly ask that you respect our maximum group size. If your group goes above 14, we will cancel parties until your group is back to the maximum number of 14.
- You are welcome to call us to reserve your large party. Please note that in years past, we’ve seen people not get one of their top 3 dates because waiting on hold took too long, and their dates were reserved online before getting through to us on the phone. It might be wisest to call AND try to reserve online at the same time. That way, you can reserve in whichever method ends up being fastest.
Phone Reservations
- If you are having difficulties with reserving online, or you wish to speak with someone over the phone, you are welcome to call us at 800-786-7238 or 928-526-8200 from 9AM-4PM MST.
- Please be ready to provide us with your first, second and third choices so we can check on availability of all three (or as broad a time frame you want to raft as possible). This increases your chances of being able to reserve your adventure of a lifetime.
- A 15% non-refundable deposit per space will be due 10 days after confirmed reservation.
- We will keep your initial reservation conversation pretty short if you choose to reserve over the phone. Be sure to read all of our follow-up emails for all details.
- Keep a list of questions after you make your reservation, and plan to email or call us back later that week. We want to assist as many people in their reservations that day as possible. Many answers to your questions may be found in your online trip portfolio, which will be emailed to you soon after you reserve.
- When you call in, there will be a phone message to listen to, and then you’ll be placed in our call queue. Continue listening to the message, and wait in the queue until you get through to us.
Watch a video on how to make an online reservation!
SAVE the link that you are wanting to reserve on Tuesday! That will help you get to the page you want to get to directly quick enough without searching through your emails or our website. These links take you directly to where you want to go. You may have to select “click here to see additional trips” that is right underneath the last date to expand the list and see all available dates.
Here are the dates!
All-Paddle Adventure 2026 Dates
FULL Canyon Classic Adventure 2026 Dates
UPPER Canyon Classic Adventure 2026 Dates
LOWER Canyon Classic Adventure 2026 Dates
Other tidbits of information for 2026 opening day
- Once you are on the reserve online page for your trip choice, there is an area in the upper left-hand corner for you to search for the amount of spaces you want. If the button next to the trip you want says “inquire”, there is not enough space for your group. You can only reserve space on a trip with a blue “reserve” button next to it.
- Don’t worry if you don’t get the exact time frame you wanted. We can wait list you for your preferred dates/time frames, as there can be quite a bit of fluctuation from opening day until deposits are due. It’s possible your preferred date will open up. However, it’s also important to be okay with the date you do reserve in case space doesn’t open up on your preferred date(s).
- If you are on the 2025 waiting list for a date, we will make your wait list HIGH PRIORITY if you are booked with us in 2026. This means your odds of getting a 2025 date are increased and we will move payments back to the previous year for no penalty. You MUST contact us to let us know if you want your wait list for this year to be changed to HIGH PRIORITY.
- If you have 10% repeat discounts (having rafted with us in 2023, 2024 or 2025) or Granite Adventure Club 10% discounts (rafted with us 4 or more times), or the 5% group discount (parties of 10+), please remind us at time of deposit and we will apply discounts after all deposits are made.
- We have set aside all the charter dates (parties purchasing all spaces on a trip) for 2026, and there are some still available if you’re interested in filling an entire trip with your family and/or friends. Those dates are not available to reserve for general reservations. Throughout the year, we keep a list of those interested in filling an entire trip, and we reserve as many of those as we can first. If you’re interested in a charter, email or call us to see if any dates remaining work for you!
- Our Granite Adventure Club members have already reserved per benefits of being a repeat guest of 4 or more trips.
All-Paddle Adventure Information
Thank you so much for your interest in rafting with us in 2026. We look forward to getting you down river and sharing this beautiful place with you, and are honored to be your outfitter of choice!