Seven West Virginia-licensed outfitters run rafting trips from bases around Fayetteville: ACE Adventure Resort, Adventures on the Gorge, Alpine Ministries, Cantrell Ultimate Rafting, New & Gauley River Adventures, River Expeditions and West Virginia Adventures. They share the same rivers and the same rapids, and no public data compares them on safety, so the smart way to choose is on what they publish: the youngest age each takes, what a day costs on the day you can go, what's included and what happens if plans change. Here's all of that in one place.
The seven rafting companies side by side
All figures are New River trips, per person, from each company's own site on September 22, 2026, listed alphabetically. On a phone, swipe the table sideways.
Checked September 22, 2026 against each company's trip, FAQ and policy pages; names link to its main New River page. "Not published" means the company's pages didn't say.
| Company and base | New River prices | Minimum ages | Lunch | Photos | Cancellation | Weather and high water | Check-in |
| ACE Adventure Resort 1 Concho Road, Oak Hill 800-787-3982 | Upper New from $129 adult, $69.50 youth; Lower New full day from $119; half day from $99 adult, $79 youth; plus a $5 resource use fee | Upper 6; Lower 12, or 10-11 in an oar raft | Full days, riverside; half day no | "All our whitewater rafting trips are photographed"; sold in the Outfitter Store; no price published | $25 non-refundable deposit per person per activity; full refund minus deposit over 30 days out; rain-check for one year if cancelled by noon the day before; no cancellation insurance sold | "All raft trips go rain or shine"; may change section, river or raft size | 60 minutes before, 90 with breakfast |
| Adventures on the Gorge 219 Chestnutburg Road, Lansing 844-823-2684 | Upper New from $139 (in inflatable kayaks, rafts on request); Lower New full day from $139; half-day Rapid Run from $119; prices before taxes and fees | Upper 6; Lower 12 | Full days, riverside, plus a beverage and pool admission; Rapid Run no | White Water Photography on the bank; buy at the kiosk or online; a few GoPro-mount helmets | Online bookings paid in full; phone bookings 50% down, balance 30 days out; optional Trip Cancellation Protection refunds all but its own price up to 3 days before arrival | River trips "still go in the case of thunderstorms"; may change river, section or boat size | Not published |
| Alpine Ministries 161 College Drive, Mount Hope 800-806-2180 | Upper New $80 weekdays, $89 Saturdays; Lower New $80 Monday, $89 Tuesday-Friday, $99 Saturday; Lower Express $75 weekdays | Upper 8; duckies 12; Lower 13 | Duckie trip lists lunch; raft trips not stated | Not published | Not published on the pages read | Not published | Not published |
| Cantrell Ultimate Rafting 49 Cantrell Drive, Fayetteville 304-877-8235 | Not published; the trip pages carry titles only | Not published | Not published; reviewers say full days have included breakfast and lunch | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| New & Gauley River Adventures Lansing Road off US 19, half a mile north of the bridge (no street number on its site) 800-759-7238 | Upper New $109 weekdays, $140 weekends; kids 5-11 $89 and $99; Lower New $109 Monday-Friday, $140 Saturday-Sunday; half days $99 Upper, $109 Lower | Upper 5; Lower 11 on the trip page, 10 on its trip chooser; Wildside boat 10 and 90 lb | Full days yes | Video can be reserved with the trip; no photo price published | Full refund minus a 15% processing fee 30 days out; "NO REFUNDS" inside 30 days | "All trips go rain or shine"; may move trips to other rivers or sections | 30 minutes before |
| River Expeditions 900 Broadway Avenue, Oak Hill 800-463-9873 | Upper New $115 weekdays and Sunday, $145 Saturday; Lower New $125 and $150; express from $85 Upper, $95 Lower; plus 6% tax and a $5 river usage fee | Upper 6; Lower 12 | Full days: continental breakfast, riverside deli lunch, drinks after; express trips no | Taken on most trips; viewed in the Outfitters Store; flash drives from $55 | Full refund over 30 days out; half at 15-30 days; none inside 15 days; $20 fee per guest cancelling; optional 7% Cancellation Guarantee | May change format, river, section, raft size or guests per raft for weather or water | Not published |
| West Virginia Adventures 286 Sunday Road, Hico 800-292-0880 | Family Upper New $125 a person; Lower New $145 a person; groups of 4-12 pay $110 and $125 Monday-Thursday; private raft for up to eight $825 Upper, $939 Lower | Upper 5; Lower 11 | Lower New day: buffet with build-your-own sandwiches; express trips no | Site has a "Get Your Photos!" page; no price published | 50% refund with 30 days' notice; inside 30 days no refund but a free reschedule with 72 hours' notice | Not published | 9 a.m. meet, 3 p.m. return (Lower New day) |
The seven come from the state's licensed outfitter list, which gives each company's address and phone but not the rivers it runs, and the Park Service's commercial whitewater page names the same seven. The state list also includes Precision Rafting Expeditions of the Gauley River, with a Friendsville, Maryland address.
Searching for an old name? Appalachian Wildwaters, founded in 1972, folded into River Expeditions in 2008 along with Rivers Resort and USA Raft, according to River Expeditions' company history, so map apps may still pin its old base. And Adventures on the Gorge has been owned by Aramark Destinations since July 2024, per Aramark's announcement.
Which day of the week is cheapest?
A weekday, and after that a Sunday. River Expeditions charges its premium on Saturday only: $150 for the Lower New against $125 on a weekday or Sunday. New & Gauley charges $140 on both weekend days and $109 Monday through Friday, a $31 gap. Alpine Ministries prices its Lower New three ways: $80 on Monday, $89 Tuesday through Friday and $99 on Saturday.
Families feel Saturday the most. ACE and Adventures on the Gorge both let a child aged 6 to 11 raft the Upper New free with a paying adult, and both exclude Saturdays (ACE's offer also runs only from Memorial Day to Labor Day); River Expeditions makes the same offer and lists no exclusion. West Virginia Adventures has no free-child deal but takes $20 off its $145 Lower New price for groups of four to twelve booking Monday through Thursday.
Only Alpine puts a year on its New River prices, on its rates and forms page ("Based on 2026 rates"), and River Expeditions' trip pages still cite last year's holiday dates, so confirm the price when you book. The budget page adds up the rest of a gorge weekend.
Meet the seven outfitters
Here's how each company describes itself, with the details worth knowing before you call.
ACE Adventure Resort, Oak Hill
A full resort as much as a rafting company: ACE's FAQ describes a "1500-acre resort" with "over 40 Deluxe Cabins with hot tubs," cabin tents and bunkhouses, a waterpark and three places to eat, and says 251 of its acres lie inside the national park. It sells every New River format, including private and overnight trips and an oar boat that takes 10 and 11-year-olds on the Lower New. More on the ACE lodging page.
Adventures on the Gorge, Lansing
The other big resort, on US 19 across from Bridge Walk's headquarters, with cabins, glamping tents, RV and tent sites, a pool and restaurants. Its 16-foot rafts "comfortably seat eight rafters and one river guide," with 14 and 12-foot boats as upgrades. The resort is cashless ("you can still tip your guides or servers in cash") and has no lockers, so "use your car as your locker." More on the Adventures on the Gorge lodging page.
Alpine Ministries, Mount Hope
Based at Appalachian Bible College, Alpine calls itself "the only licensed Christian rafting outfitter on the New River" and builds a devotional into every trip, which is good to know before booking. It uses 14-foot rafts, runs from mid-April to October, has the lowest published prices of the seven, and aims its pages at church and school groups.
Cantrell Ultimate Rafting, Fayetteville
Cantrell calls itself "West Virginia's only remaining family-owned and operated rafting company" (New & Gauley also says it's family owned), with campgrounds, cabins and "Our House Pub & Grill" on site. Its trip pages list no prices, ages or policies, so this one is a phone call: 304-877-8235.
New & Gauley River Adventures, Lansing
"Family owned for more than 30 years," its homepage says, and its Upper New page says "Established in 1977." The base, half a mile north of the bridge off US 19, has cabins, the Meadow River Campground, the Undercut Pub & Grill and horseback riding. It takes the youngest Upper New rafters of any company here (age 5) and sells a four-person Wildside raft on the Lower New.
River Expeditions, Oak Hill
A "160-acre campground" with cabins, a zipline, pool, saloon, lodge and restaurant, by its own description, and the company that absorbed Appalachian Wildwaters, Rivers and USA Raft in 2008. Each standard raft "holds 8-9 guests, plus a guide." Want a smaller boat? It offers the seven-person Wildside or four-person Extreme Wildside for $140 per boat on the New River, plus $20 a person on Saturdays.
West Virginia Adventures, Hico
A smaller operator whose trips leave from its BaseCamp on Sunday Road. It sells private rafts for up to eight guests and is the one company here that publishes group pricing on its trip pages. Older listings still show a Glen Jean base, which TripAdvisor marks closed.
What past rafters say
These are visitor reviews, mostly from TripAdvisor, so read them as individual opinions rather than a verdict.
Adventures on the Gorge reviewers describe easy check-in and experienced guides; one 2025 Lower New reviewer said a prepaid video held about one minute of the group and was blurry, and others mention disorganized check-in or an unpleasant individual guide. ACE reviewers in 2026 praise the guides and the riverside lunch; one couldn't hear instructions from the back of the bus, and another regretted a prepaid meal plan and wished they'd eaten in Fayetteville. River Expeditions reviewers like having cabins, camping, a bar and a pool on one compact campus.
New & Gauley reviewers single out senior guides who explain what to do and why; one called a $65 photo package excessive. West Virginia Adventures reviewers like dealing directly with owners and guides rather than a resort process, and Cantrell's 2026 reviewers use words like "family" and "personalized." On Reddit, commenters describe New & Gauley, West Virginia Adventures and Cantrell as the independents left after consolidation. Alpine has little public review material.
Questions worth asking before you book
Four questions tell these companies apart better than their marketing does. How many guests go in each raft, and can your group have one to itself? Has the guide run this section at the level forecast for your day? Can you see the photos and video before paying for them? And if the river is too high or too low, what happens to the trip and to your money? ACE, Adventures on the Gorge, New & Gauley and River Expeditions all reserve the right to change section, river or boat; West Virginia Adventures, Alpine and Cantrell publish no weather or water policy, so ask them directly. Still choosing the section itself? See Upper or Lower New.
Matching a company to your group
The published facts sort neatly by situation. Bringing a 5-year-old? Only New & Gauley and West Virginia Adventures take one on the Upper New. A 10-year-old who wants the Lower New? Ask ACE about its oar raft, or ask New & Gauley, whose trip chooser says 10 while its trip page says 11; at 11, New & Gauley and West Virginia Adventures both take them. Watching the budget on a weekday? Alpine's prices sit well under everyone else's, as long as your group is comfortable with a devotional. A family on a weekend will find the lowest price on a Sunday on River Expeditions' Upper New, where a child 6 to 11 rafts free with a paying adult. And if you'd like lodging, meals and other activities in one place, ACE and Adventures on the Gorge are the two full resorts; compare their cabins against other places to stay nearby before taking a package.
Book early for summer Saturdays and any Gauley weekend (the Gauley season page has 2026 prices and ages), and read the cancellation terms before paying: they range from a $25 deposit at risk (ACE) to no refund at all inside 30 days (New & Gauley).
