What the rafting day looks like
Pickup is early, usually between 7:30 and 9:00, from hotels across the Side region. The transfer runs through Manavgat and Serik and climbs into Köprülü Canyon National Park, where the base camps sit on the river. After a safety briefing and helmets and life jackets, you are on the water for roughly two to three hours with breaks for jumping in, floating and photos. Lunch is served at the camp, and you are back at the hotel in the late afternoon.
How hard is it really?
Köprülü is a beginner river. The rapids are grade 2 to 3: enough to splash, bounce and shout, not enough to need experience. A guide steers every raft and does the reading of the river; you paddle when told and hold on when told. The one thing that surprises people is the temperature. The water comes out of the mountains and stays cold all summer, so the first splash is a shock even in August.
Combinations
Most guests add something to the rafting. The buggy and zip-line combo puts you in a two-seat off-road car on a forest track and on a zip-line over the river. Canyoning adds a walk and climb through a side gorge with jumps into pools. Kayaking is for those who want their own boat and a guide alongside rather than a shared raft.
Age and health
Rafting is open to children from around seven years old on the family rafts; the exact minimum age and any weight limits are on each tour page. Buggy drivers need a valid licence. Rafting is not recommended during pregnancy or with heart conditions or recent injuries.
What to bring
Swimwear under light clothes, sandals with a strap or water shoes, a towel and dry clothes for the return. Leave phones, cameras and valuables at the hotel or in the camp locker; photographers on the river sell photo sets at the end of the day.