The staffperson working yesterday (Sunday) was very nice, but the rental bikes were not in good condition. My wife and I each rented hybrids, and it took me several tries to find a bike that seemed functional. Multiple had loose front wheels that wouldn't tighten, but after a few attempts the attendant was able to get one tightened. Sizing and fitting aren't really part of the process -- this was more of a "just pick whatever bike you want" situation. Soon after we left, I realized that my tires were underinflated, so we had to go back for air. And midway through our ride, huffing and puffing to maintain speed, we realized that most of the brakes were rubbing -- both wheels on my bike, and the front wheel on my wife's. At $40 for a half day per bike, this was a disappointing experience. If you're looking for a rental bike to bum around for a few hours, this might be fine, but if you want to go for a real ride I'd recommend renting elsewhere, or making sure that River Outfitters improves their maintenance practices. read more

WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND! Short version of the story: We rented out bikes and stopped at Hotel Indigo for a drink and parked our bikes out front. Hotel Indigo rented out our bikes to some of their guests so they were gone when we came downstairs. It was the last night of our trip and so we couldn't get the bikes back from the hotel to return them. The hotel said they would drop them off and didn't. The River Outfitters actually went to the hotel and retrieved the bikes for us and didn't charge us anything for going over time or the inconvenience after hearing our story. They were super understanding! I wish more companies would treat their customers like this. read more

Amazing people, new and nice gear and a spectacular lake to paddle or Kayak on. We came early in the day and had the giant lake almost to ourselves sharing only with blue dragonflies, white geese and ducks. Well worth the visit. We will return. read more

Make sure you call before you arrive to see if you can still take your trip as planned (and paid for)!!!!!!!!!!!! We paid for the Boardman Lake Experience -$50 each- which was supposed to be a trek across Boardman Lake into primarily a river excursion that ended in the Bay where you could hop out and pick from multiple restaurants and breweries. We were looking forward to a nature filled day and at least a few hours of paddling as advertised on the site. When we got there, we were told the river was closed and we could only go across the lake to the park and one restaurant. We couldn't tell how short it would actually be so we decided to go. Now- we were offered bikes for the rest of the day at no charge but neither my mother or I are bike people and had zero interest in that (IN FACT we chose this company instead of another kabrew tour just so we could avoid a bike ride- not our thing). We got about 45 minutes out on the water by the time we made it across to the other side. We pulled up our kayaks to a park next to a waste water treatment facility and then went to find a place to eat. We ate and drank at The Filling Station which was fine (good food, great beer, neat atmosphere). When we were done, we couldn't have gotten back on the lake even if we'd wanted to, it was far too windy to go back the other way. The staff was nice, it seemed like when running smoothly people look to have enjoyed this experience and it's probably a great time. I think it may have been the owner who picked us up to take us back to our car- he offered us free trips next time we come by giving us a business cards with a note on the back when we said we were disappointed but I don't know, the whole thing rubbed me the wrong way. A) Who knows when or if we'll be back? B) We felt like someone should have called or emailed us ahead of time to warn us that we could only do 1/3 of what we paid for. We 100% understand that River Outfitters can't control construction schedules or weather conditions but they did have all of our contact info and could have very easily gotten in touch with us. At the very least, we shouldn't have been charged full price when we didn't get even close to the full experience. Assuming all people will be happy with free bike services instead isn't very fair either. We only had one day of nice weather while we were in Traverse City and we really wanted to spend that nice day out on the water. We felt like that choice was taken from us by not letting us know we couldn't take the full trip until we arrived mid-morning. We didn't really have a chance to find somewhere else to go. It was the #1 thing I was looking forward to doing in Michigan, getting to paddle- on an actual river, not on a very small lake surrounded by condo complexes and commercial buildings. Very disappointing :( read more

The River Outfitters - Boardman Lake - Bike Rentals Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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The tour for KaBrew was a great day on the trails and water. We met at the park and had an warm welcome and easy checkin with Tree. Aaron was our guide through the day and bars and was great mix of involved, but easy going and conversational. Would recommend this to anyone who is in the area and enjoys a good time, a few drinks and a nice tour of the cities establishments!! read more

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Tawny and team at The River Outfitters were so welcoming and hospitable during our visit to TC! Exploring the area on the Tart Trail was something my boyfriend and I had been looking to do and I'm so glad we chose to ride with them. Bikes were well maintained and came with a helmet and bike lock if needed. Super friendly staff and great location within a short distance to downtown! We will be back again! read more

Wonderful experience! Had a great time. They also sanitized everything before they gave them to customers - so no worries there!

Great service! Friendly folks that had a great selection of bikes. Cleaned in front of us. Bikes were great quality. The path was right in front of the shop and it is such a nice bike path to town! read more

THIS PLACE WAS AMAZING! Firstly, they had a Pokemon discount when we went in last weekend. Super cool, and being rewarded for my hard work catching and training Pokemon wasn't a bad way to start the day! Secondly, my group (4 people) had a late start but we were still able to rent exactly what we wanted, no problem. We rented 2 double kayaks and got to our starting place very quickly. I also enjoyed that they had several route options within the same price and since we were not renting for a set time we could explore multiple options if we had wanted. Dropping off the equipment when we were done was also a breeze. The whole vibe of this place was fun too. You can tell the owners (I think) really love the outdoors and what they do. It was also so calming (I usually get a lot of anxiety near water) and had the perfect (unexpected) beach bum feel. I would HIGHLY recommend using this place to rent anything for your outdoor Traverse City needs. read more

The River Outfitters - People keep asking what the point of catchin' 'em all is-- a bomb ass discount here is the point!!! - Bike Rentals Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

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Everyone was extremely helpful and friendly. The lake had lots of fun stops. My friends and I rented a kayak and 2 paddle boards. We did 4 hours and everything was well worth it read more

Went and rented a stand up paddle board for an hour after work, it cost $25 which I think is very reasonable. The location is great, right in clinch park. The staff is very friendly and looking to make sure you have a good time out in the water. We got a couple minute instruction on the various ways to use the paddle board and were sent off. I will probably be renting a board from them again next summer. read more

The River Outfitters - Bike Rentals Near Me - Traverse City, Michigan

My family & I had a great day. The River Outfitters got us set up with 2 double kayaks. We kayaked through Boardman Lake to Boardman River to the Bay. They had bikes waiting for us to continue our journey to some breweries then bike back. We had a memorable day & would highly recommend this business! read more

Okay this company is awesome! We had a "HOOT" of a great time! Shaun and Amberlyn were amazing guides! We had a blast at all of the brew/cocktail stops!! Definitely the types of people you wanna hang with for a day of biking, kayaking and beer testing! I feel like we all became besties! The bike trail was easy (only one real hill) with that being said I'm injured but got approval to go on this great adventure before hand. Shaun and Amberlyn were so sweet and patient and really well super cool with my injury. So, if your intimidated or have something holding you back, throw caution to the wind and book with this company! You won't regret it!!! Good time had by all! Thanks Shaun and Amberlyn for such a rockin awesome afternoon! read more

We rented tandem canoes for the Boardman River tour. Everything went very smoothly. We made our reservation online and met at the airport road location. We followed them to the river entry and they provided helmets, life jackets and paddles and helped get us in. The river was really nice and we enjoyed it. I'd say you need a little experience to do it because there were some really sharp, protruding logs and sticks on the sides of the waterway and sometimes you went flying towards them. We almost got impaled a couple of times. But it was exciting and we still had fun! They were there to help us out at the other end. Would definitely recommend. read more

These guys are awesome! So helpful and made sure I was at ease with everything. Gave us all kind of route options and because it was during the week and had just rained, told us we could stay out as long as we wanted. We went out to the furthest drop off point and made easy time to get to the first stop for Right Brain Brewery-there are steps to get up the slope and they are tagged by a little flag in the cove. We went across Boardman lake to the Filling station and had some lunch and then hopped back and went to the river and came out behind their location. It was a good three hours and there was no one out! So peaceful! It was a little pricey I thought, but we both ended up thinking it was well worth the money for our experience. read more

Wonderful experience with wonderful people. We dropped in to TC on a last minute trip back in June with our newly adopted dog. It was a very short stay and we were unfortunately unable to find suitable doggie daycare sitters. Everyone at the business were super helpful, right from the owners to our guide Savannah. They were more than happy to watch our puppy while we embarked on our KaBrew tour. It certainly helps when the owner has extensive experience working for the humane society. Side note: you can actually take your furry friends on the kayak, I just wasn't sure how crazy our puppy was going to be. The tour itself was great, we visited not just the breweries but were offered the option of some distilleries and bars on the way as well. We met some of the other tour groups on the way and were glad we chose this company - our tour was definitely more laid back, relaxed and intimate since the group size was much smaller.  Definitely recommend having a pizza at the Filling station and The Parlor had good cocktails.  I've actually used this company before (at their old location), they seemed to be transitioning to this new spot and in the midst of reorganizing. Overall, would definitely come back when in TC! Thanks a ton! read more

I took my 4 year old kayaking in the bay yesterday. I wasn't sure how we'd do since I am not an avid kayaker. The wonderful staff assured me the kayaks they use are very stable in the waves. We received instruction on how to paddle and turn. We stayed within 100 ft of the shore. The waters are 7 to 10ft deep and crystal clear. We found out after our adventure that the water was 46 degrees. Several people were on the beach. Next to the beach is a water playground which is much warmer for kids to play in than Lake Michigan. They also have an open air eatery. Kayaking and playing in this area is a highlight of our trip. It was $35 for a double kayak for one hour. At this price and the amount of fun we had, I would love to go again. read more

I found this place on Yelp while getting ready for our trip to Traverse City. We were staying right next door at the Indigo, and walked over to book a Kabrew tour for later that day. We brought our own bikes, which they very kindly accommodated, and got to explore all of the fun spots around the city we would not have been able to chose between if left to our own devices. It was definitely a great way to get familiar with the city! Our tour guide Madison was so nice and even gave us recommendations for brunch the next day. I definitely recommend booking the Kabrew tour - it is so much fun! read more

This guy has a great business! Slammed. Great gig going...reasonable pricing. Safe bikes. Checking out with the bikes was a bit delayed but remember it is the holiday week and he did a good job given the crowds. Personable. Great option when in TC! read more

Nice work, riv! This is exactly what nor MI is about - the outdoorsy stuff. SUP the boardman if you're feeling adventurous, or kayak around west bay if you are feeling relatively lazy. Then rent a bike and trot around like a tourist and love TC all the more. They will lead you in the right directly depending on what you are looking for and often have great deals on UpNorth Live & facebook. Not to mention the money location they have at Clinch Park. Go get on it/in it! read more

Rented kayaks and SUPs multiple times in the past few years from The River Outfitters TC. I wouldn't go anywhere else. They're always accommodating. I definitely recommend. read more

I cannot rave enough about this place! My cousin and I went here today, a Saturday afternoon, and we had the entire lake to ourselves to paddle board. The lake was super quiet and smooth which was exactly what we wanted. The staff was so nice! Tawny was so kind to us and said she just enjoyed seeing people happy, like we were If you're in town I definitely recommend this as your kayak/paddle board/bike rental place! You will not regret it! read more

Rented kayaks here for a trip down the Crystal River. An easy rental process and we were on our way. The river is slow and fairly shallow. You can paddle or just float. Great for kids since the river is pretty shallow. A fun time! read more

We celebrated a friends bachelorette weekend in Traverse City, and we found the River Outfitters was the perfect adventure to do some exploring around the city! The staff is fun, knowledgeable, and accommodating. They gave us an overview of all of the different routes we could go, and options on where to leave our bikes / kayaks for pickup! They also answered all of our questions and let us use their sunscreen :) At the end of the trip, we even got an amazing recommendation for where to explore nightlife in TC. There is no better way to explore a city than from tips from locals! We would do the paddle picnic again in a heartbeat. read more

I loved this company! We did the Kabrew trip! Aaron was our guide and was AMAZING! He knew the area and by the end of our trip it was like a friend we had know for years! The bike trail is beautiful and so is the kayak journey!! 5 stars in my book! read more

A fun Kabrew tour! We had a group for a bachelorette weekend. We didn't feel like we needed a guide, so we went through it ourselves, but the staff was very helpful in making sure we knew where to go before we started, even giving some tips on stops of interest not on the itinerary. The bikes were comfortable and the ride was smooth and not difficult. The stops along the way were each fun and unique, my favorite stop was The Filling Station - the pizza was amazing! The staff was also very prompt in meeting us to switch out the bikes for kayaks, as well as picking us up at the end. The gentleman who picked us up even gave us suggestions for where to go out on the town later in the evening. I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone -- it's not by any means a strenuous trip but you do feel like you did something for the day. It makes for a wonderful and different party activity too! read more

If you want a peaceful, chill day run by an awesome company, look no further. My husband and I came to go kayaking and stayed to keep biking and touring the area. I was a little nervous as I was a first time kayaker, but the owner of river outfitters was super relaxed and great to us. Talk about friendly down to earth people. We come to traverse city every year and will be coming back here, maybe to try something new again next time! Check this place out you won't go wrong!!! read more

Overall joyful time, kind and informative staff and beautiful city. My friend and I did the KaBrew tour, had a wonderful time hiking and kayaking around the beautiful city. We were given a detailed map with good directions and really loved bouncing from brewery to brewery. Everyone wore masks and only members of our own group were in the shuttle on the way back to our car, safety precautions were definitely in place during COVID. They also gave good recommendations for things to do around traverse city, 12/10 experience read more

KaBrew was awesome! Very efficient and laid back experience. Our guide was fantastic, very personable and had a ton of knowledge to share about TC and each brewery. The breweries were all very good - the pizza at Filling Station was ridiculous. Thanks for a great time! read more

We had an absolutely wonderful time with TRO. Their Kayak, Bike and Brew tour was fully customized for us and much more personal than similar tours offered by area competitors. We actually passed droves of tourists with the other companies and their group sizes were 20-50 ppl. This is definitely the tour you want to sign up for. read more

Tawney is the Bomb! Awesome time on her tour of the boardman river trail and all the stops along the way via bike and kayak! Highly recommend for anybody who is new to TC or even a seasoned local looking for a fun activity! Even if you're not a huge biker or kayak-er, this is a painless and very fun way to experience some of the best spots in TC all while getting some fresh air and exercise ‍ read more

#1 choice if you want the lowest price and the best service, lowest cost, and max flexibility!!! This is by far unquestionably the best kayak company in Traverse City. I called every other kayak rental companies on Google but no one was flexible enough to do a multi-day rental. Hourly rate is too costly for a full day or multi-day rental and The River was very flexible to do customized pick up and drop off. No company in this region can beat them in terms of thinking for your needs. read more

Excellent customer service. Absolute must for outdoor adventures in Traverse City. Don't forget they do wine tours!

Awesome people and a fantastic time. Family of 6 and they took care of use. My wife and daughter paddle boarded and loved it. The rest of use kayaked. 3 miles across the lake and through the river. read more

What a wonderful day my friend and I had kayaking. Tawny, Tree and Fisher were so very helpful in getting us out into the water (including moving us forward when we got stuck)! Such a lovely experience and one I will definitely try again when I find myself in Northern MI again. read more

Had a great time. Friendly staff. Great options and availability. Easy pick up and easy return. Thanks a lot guys.

Horrible experience! Where do I start? The business is not well organized, and the prices listed are not necessarily what you will pay. We rented kayaks for the "kabrewing self guided tour". You have to paddle across the lake and they don't send you out with a map or any tangible information on where to go. Nobody told us what to do with the kayaks when we stopped to go to the breweries listed, and when we got to the first brewery there was no marked or defined place to leave our kayaks, and nobody from River Outfitters would answer the phone to tell us what to do. We paddled down to the next brewery (which wasn't marked or pointed out in any way) and discovered that there is a dam that you have to get out and carry your kayaks over. We found some other kayakers there who finally told us to just leave the kayaks on the bank when going into the breweries, so we did. River outfitters finally called us back at this time and confirmed that we just leave the kayaks unattended on the bank. We had one beer at the 2nd brewery ( which turned out to be the 3rd because we couldn't find the second and couldn't get ahold of anyone to find out what to do for the first) and when we rounded the corner to retrieve our kayaks from the bank, River outfitters was HAULING THEM AWAY. So we called them and I was told I would get a refund for the "experience". 5 days later.... still no refund. And again I can't get anyone to answer the phone. DO NOT RECOMMEND read more

Great experience for bachelorette party, loved our tour guides!! We had a great time :)

This place is awesome! Stellar customer service and great SUP rental experience. Mike and his crew were so helpful. I would totally come back here. Added bonus, I was able to purchase a swimsuit from their shop. read more

This is a great business. Staff is friendly and knowledgeable about local trails, providing good personalized advise. Best of all, they are open till 8pm and flexible enough that you can return bikes on your own time. Other bike rental shops in the area close at 4pm or 5pm and won't let you return equipment after they close. That sounds silly during the summer months when people are on vacation and want to enjoy the day till the sun goes down. Kudos to River Outfitters! read more