I can't sing the praises of this outfit enough. We came there as a family of 9 with ages from 6 to 76 with little to no experience and they were able to accommodate us. We went on the Race expedition which was easy enough for novices but thrilling enough for the adventurers. My 76 yr old dad has balance issues and fell out but Ben quickly got him back in. He got a little scraped up and Ben handled it professionally and calmly, minimizing the inconvenience of having to do some first aid on the river but taking it seriously enough to provide care. He rearranged the seating somewhat and there were no other scares. He was a truly fantastic guide. read more

My husband and I recently visited NM for a couple of days. He had purchased us this adventure and I was excited, but nervous, since I had never been river rafting before. Brian was our guide for the AM Racecourse and eased my apprehension with his knowledge and welcoming personality. By the end of the course, I was ready to do it all over again! I can totally understand the importance of having a safe group who will handle all the details and a well versed instructor. Super fun way to spend a morning on the Grande. read more

Big River Raft Trips - Waiting at the Visitor Center before drop In. - Tours Near Me - Pilar, New Mexico

YES YES YES, this is the company to use. Have kids under 5 or pregnant? No problem, they have an awesome "lazy river". Midway through we pulled over on a sand bar and our guides welcomed us with a fresh watermelon, multiple snacks, and refreshing beverages. Besides the humor and politeness, they were very knowledgeable about the interesting history. Jumping to the point, the other rafting companies are sticklers, Big River let us float beside the boat during the extended calm parts and even let us jump off "dive rock", helmets were optional with the current low water level. Overall, if I could rate them more than 5 stars I would! read more

Big River Raft Trips - Tours Near Me - Pilar, New Mexico

See all

On our first trip up in 2022, we booked the racecourse and rode with Mads and Brian. We had so much fun that we returned in 2023 and booked a full-day run through the Box and Racecourse. Unfortunately, the Box section was too low and dangerous, so we did a double Racecourse: boats in the morning and fun yaks in the afternoon, and it was the best choice! Billy was excellent at communicating with us about the changes, and our two guides, Migs and Zach, were fantastic! We had so much fun, and every time we come here, we will be booking with Big River! read more

We Had A Blast!!! Brian was great as our guide. Safety first. His knowledge of the area was very informative. Great weather for us. A wonderful time!!! Highly recommend!!! read more

Big River Raft Trips - Brian getting our Raft ready - Tours Near Me - Pilar, New Mexico

Ben, Hunter, Madeline were the guides on our trip. We were in Ben's boat and had an amazing time. All the guides were friendly and knew so much about the river. Ben has been a guide for more than 10 years and knew that river like the back of his hand, which made us all feel very safe and comfortable. This was an amazing trip! The rapids were class 2-3, very fun, but also great for non-experienced rafters (like me). The rapids are also spread out, making for some very relaxing and peaceful moments in the water. read more

Big River Raft Trips - Tours Near Me - Pilar, New Mexico

See all

Big river raft trips are AMAZING! We met Bill our raft guide at an easy to meet location and he gave us the option of the relaxing river float or the more advanced river run. We decided we were up for the adventure and chose the advanced run. We were so glad we did! Bill is an expert and made our raft trip fun while keeping us safe. Rafting the Rio Grande was incredible and we would highly recommend it! We did the half day trip (about 3 hours) which was perfect for us. Be ready for a good workout, a great time and memories you will never forget. Bill and Big River Rafts thank you! read more

Big River Raft Trips - Bill and the City Slickers! - Tours Near Me - Pilar, New Mexico

My fiancé and I were looking for a White Water Rafting experience on the Rio Grande and reviewed several options, given many have made changes during COVID19. We chose Billy & Big River Raft Trips as he was very responsive and accommodating to our request. He gave us the clear guidance on where to meet (an area with no cell service and followed up with us to check at that we were on the way). Everyone in our group wore masks except when we were on the raft in the river itself. They provided all the equipment and made us feel safe as we navigated the rapids. We did the half day and it took about 2.5 hours. They had a dry bag for our phones and took pictures of us when we asked. It was very fun and would recommend to anyone looking for single, double, or group rafting opportunities. read more

See all

!Very personable and wholesome crew! So much fun, great thing to experience with your loved ones. They even provided chips and salsa, granola bars, water& Gatorade for our little "beach" break down the River. Would do again and again. read more

First off, guides make the trip. And ours were very knowledgeable about not only rafting but the geology surrounding the Rio Grande, which kept us engaged and aware of our surroundings! I learned so much about the Santa Fe rock formations and the fault lines! We also saw 2 beavers, which I definitely thought was a highlight! Brian (guide) was awesome! He even continued to share knowledge about the area on the van ride back! My favorite part was surfing the rapids! read more

Big River Raft Trips - Splished, Spashed, and Had A Blast with Big River Rafts! - Tours Near Me - Pilar, New Mexico

My 13-year old daughter and I did a half day float on the Race Course run. We liked it so much we did it again. Our first run was with Hunter as our guide in a raft with 4 others. The second time we wanted to get a bit wetter, so Billy suggested we take the smaller raft with just us and the guide. Doug, our second guide, made sure we did indeed get very wet. Both guides were very skilled and knew the river very well. I'm glad we chose the snack stop. The chips and salsa and gorp really hit the spot. Along the way we saw lots of mallard families, a blue heron, and a muskrat. On our second ride there was a little disorganization regarding our request, but they sorted it out quickly. Don't leave your gopro at home. read more

We booked a trip during our family vacation to AngelFire. Booked online and the directions to the visitors center were easily followed. They arrived on time for or trip. Mads and Chris were our guides. We were a large group. There were nine of us on this family trip. The ride to the put in spot was enjoyable. They both made conversation and were happy to answer our questions. They split us into two rafts. I can't express how much we enjoyed the trip. They were both very knowledgeable about the area and the plant life. The views were amazing. My neck hurt the next day. But that's because I could not stop looking up at the canyon. When we came to a calm section everyone in our raft hopped into the river. It was so refreshing. We stopped about halfway through the trip for a snack break. Chips and salsa never tasted so good. I talked with Chris a little about the area. We got on the subject of the Taos Pueblo. The respect they have for the local people and land is unmatched. My review doesn't really touch the surface of how much we enjoyed the trip. Many thanks to Mads and Chris. If you are looking for a morning or afternoon adventure. Look no further. Big River is top notch. We will book this company again when we come back. read more

This was my family's first ever rafting excursion, and boy have they made life long customers out of us! We went with my Dad, husband, daughter (4), and son (8). Our tour guides were Ben and Topher, both having a lot of experience and knowledge to share about our beautiful surroundings. At the beginning, we are given a short safety demonstration which really comes in handy. Then, we depart on our boats and learn a little about paddling, you catch on real quick. Throughout the journey, we stopped to admire the wildlife, swim in calm areas, and learn about the history of our surroundings on our 5 1/2 mile trip! I have to say, the rapids were my favorite part, you are hitting stage 1 to stage 3 rapids and it is quite exhilerating. My family is already planning our return trip! read more

See all

We had an amazing time! Paris, our guide, was very knowledgeable about local history as well as the challenges of the river at different stages. The before-float prep was detailed and made it far less scary when we flipped (violating the "stay in the boat" rule) on the "Big Rock." We all got wet, lost a hat and a shoe, but otherwise unscathed. Perfect length (1/2 day trip) for our fluffy, newbie selves. Muchismas gracias! read more

By far one of the best white water rafting experiences I've had ever!! This guy is Awesome and puts a level of scare even to a class 3 rapid!! I appreciate that because they all play safe too much and it kills all the fun out of adventure!! I highly recommend him to anyone that wants to go rafting in this area or would like to go rafting period!! read more

The goal: white water raft. Achievement earned. It was great day to raft with high waters. Guides instructions were on point and we had a blast. The gear was well weathered All in all, I thought the price was reasonable for what we got. read more

There are better raft companies...use one of them We booked a trip for 1:00. They did not show. We called the company and asked about why. They first accused us of not having a valid reservation, then on checking said,"uhh, yup, there you are. I totally missed it." He then offered to put us on for 3:00, but after waiting an hour, he told us that it would be more like 5:00. We asked for a refund, then he called us back offering 4:00. We agreed, then, we waited at the meeting spot only to have the guide show up late. Then he told us that we would need to follow him to the take out site and drive him back to the start location. We were concerned about the shape of the van which looked as though it had been involved in a serious rollover accident, but, no worry, the van only made it about three miles before dieing. We then had to drive the guide back to his house to get his pickup. We got about a mile down the Jeep trail before our rental car high centered and he got out and walked. We finally got to the start point at 5:00, about 4 hrs. after we had planned. The trip down the river was uneventful and the guide was ok, but the poor planning and execution caused us to miss out on our evening plans. We saw numerous rafting companies pick up their clients on time in clean well maintained vans. There is absolutely no excuse for what we had to endure. https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g2209364-d2203926-r612093459-Big_River_Raft_Trips-Pilar_Taos_County_New_Mexico.html# read more

The price was a tad steep, though better than its competition. And the guide--I think his name was Tom--was incredibly smart and lots of fun. We took the 2-ish hour ride and he could probably talk the whole trip without taking a breath, he knew so much about the geology of the region. Besides that, he showed us a good time doing fun stuff on the rapids, and he gave great advice about where else to go in the whole South-West area. The whole business has a pretty good attitude. I don't know what the competition is like, but these guys are good. read more

The price was great, the trip was just the perfect length, and the guides were fun. Did a family half day trip early in the morning, found the pick up location easily, website map was perfect. Wish they would do more pictures, I wouldn't mind a price increase to cover that. The trip was fun and relaxing. Definitely going again, heard next year might be even better rapids. Lots of great scenery in between rapids, which I'd had a waterproof camera, but nice to just take in. read more

Billy is an authentic New Mexico character and a very experienced river guide. He specializes in taking people on a fun and splashy white water adventures. As a guide myself in Arizona, I think the prices on the river trips in Taos are very very reasonable and would advise visitors that one of the half day trips is the best way to experience this amazing river and beautiful part of nature. read more

Awesome Experience!!! Don't worry, it seems sketchy and parts of it is (like the path to get to lunch and where you eat lunch) but realistically they accommodate your every need and you get to eat anything or any amount once you pay your Food Fee. The guides (like Big River Billy) do a great job of keeping you safe and know much more than you'd get from other companies. I went at a good time when the water was high due to snowmelt and that made the rapids even better! read more

This is the best kept rafting experience in N.M! There are definetly bigger companies in Taos , but don't miss this gem! Kudos to Troy & Jeff for their knowledge , attention to detail, and personalities. We were fortunate to take this rafting trip out of all the possibilities out there. It truly is the best way to experience Taos . All the people on our trip had family ties to N.M .. I think that says it all! read more

Big River Rafting was the best choice we could've made for our first time white water rafting. Billy our guide was informative, eccentric and most of all fun. He made the experience my friends and I had an exceptional one. I definitely recommend his full day trip, which is very reasonably priced, to anyone looking to really experience the beauty of the Rio Grande. read more

June 2017 the water level is outstanding. Our guide, Tabitha off the chart good. This outfit answered phone calls, arrived on time, affordable pricing. Air conditioned shuttle van. GO NOW WHILE THE WATER IS FLOWING AT 1700 plus. From Albuquerque on a Saturday morning the drive is around 2 hours there, 2 plus back in the afternoon. Meeting place is the Pilar visitors center on the right hand side of the road, river to the left of road. Suggest: drinking water, sunscreen, insect repellent, secured hat, non cotton shirt and shorts, water shoes, towels or a change of clothes, water tight freezer bag for phone and wallet. Cash for a tip. Drinking not recommended- it's harder than it looks. **T. call me sometime** read more

Today seven of my closest friends and I drove from Albuquerque, NM for a fun day with your company. We had two rafts with guides Hunter and Paris. They were a blast! We all definitely recommend booking with these guys. They were very knowledgeable and made our trip one to remember. Thank you! read more

I had never been rafting in the 25+ years I have lived in New Mexico. As someone with physical limitations it didn't appeal to me. This year, my yearning for water got the better of me and I went on a 2+ hour float trip. It was lovely! We opted for funyaks, individual inflatable rafts, definitely a right choice as we went at our own pace. Our guide, Greg, was knowledgeable, kind and patient. The river was the perfect temperature and so quiet! I hope to make this an annual pilgrimage from now on. read more

Brian was our guide. Truly experienced and enjoyable (and funny) guide. Talked about the geology and some history along the way. Let us surf a couple times. The water was low so the rapids weren't what they could be, but Brian made it a good trip. Even gave hiking and scenic driving suggestions afterwards. I would definitely go back next time I'm around. read more

Went with Billy and his awesome guides again! As always, they were meticulous with their safety instructions and reminded everyone who forgot to leave their electronics in their car, that they provided dry bags for them, as they always do. .....Ziploc sandwich bags don't work people! ........ The scenery was beautiful and everyone had a fantastic time! Big River is the best !!!!!!!!!! read more

Billy and his crew of guides were AMAZING! Despite some others (not in our group) who had been drinking, they kept their cool, stayed professional, and kept all of us safe. They were great at communicating all of the safety rules, guiding our trip and being friendly! I would definitely recommend them, and I will definitely come back to raft with them! Thank you for your great service and a fun day! Slow claps all around! read more

Our guide Julia was awesome! We enjoyed our raft trip SO much! I think they are the only ones to offer the racecourse EXPRESS. It is a bit cheaper and shorter. 2 hours was a perfect amount of time on the river. We had so much fun! I highly recommend Big River Rafts!! All the guides on our trip were professional and experienced. After realizing how much instruction we needed as a group I was very glad to not be guided by a 20 year old college student! read more

Spent my son's 16th birthday on the Rio Grande. We had a great time with the other Mother/Son duo and our guide Hanko. He is very knowledgeable about the river and really works hard to make your trip fun. Highly recommend them for anyone looking to spend the day laughing, relaxing and enjoying all that the river has to offer. read more