Float Mom Down the Grand Canyon for Mother’s Day With VIP Treatment

A grand way to gift a favorite mom this Mother’s Day is to put her on a raft and float her down the Grand Canyon.

Rafting pioneer Western River Expeditions (http://www.westernriver.com/) has such an experience up its sleeve on two six-day, ive-night departures May 8 and 9.

“Beyond the gift of gazing up at surreal scenery from the comfort of Western’s custom J-Rig raft, exploring hidden waterfalls, delighting in delicious riverside meals and sleeping under endless stars, each mom will be treated like royalty with a number of special surprises and a complimentary ‘Canyon Gift’ on both Mother’s Day launches. The entire trip promises to be a gift she’ll never forget and one that will bring the whole family together in an amazing way,” said Brian Merrill, CEO.

See: http://www.westernriver.com/trips/grand6day/mothers-day.php.

The pros of rafting in May include mild daytime temps (in the 70s and 80s), blankets of spring flowers, thundering waterfalls and more consistent, drier weather. The J-Rig raft assures dry seating if desired plus pontoon seating for the gung-ho who live in the thrill of getting wet.

The Grand Canyon is Western River Expeditions’ signature trip conquering more than 60 major rapids during a 187-mile run in six or seven days. Per person rates for 2012 begin at $2,495. There is also an option to do a shorter three- or four-day trip covering 100 river miles starting at $1,145 to $1,560 per person, respectively.

Traditionally Grand Canyon trips book full more than a year in advance. “The year is somewhat of an anomaly,” explained Merrill. “Our Mother’s Day departures still have lots of room while the rest of the season is pretty much booked to capacity.”

Western River Expeditions (http://www.westernriver.com/) is an adventure travel company headquartered in Salt Lake City, with operations and offices in Moab, Utah and Fredonia, Arizona. Annually from March through October it escorts more people down rivers on professionally guided rafting trips in Utah, Idaho and Arizona than any other company. It is the largest licensed outfitter in the Grand Canyon and the largest single tour provider in Moab, through its division Moab Adventure Center (http://www.moabadventurecenter.com/).

Western River Expeditions, providing Grand Canyon rafting, Utah rafting, Oregon and Idaho rafting trips, was founded in 1961 by Colorado River rafting pioneer Jack Currey. Today it pursues a “guiding green” philosophy and belongs to some of the top environmentally conscious organizations in the world: Grand Canyon River Outfitters Association, American Rivers, Leave No Trace Outdoor Ethics, Utah Rivers Council, America Outdoors, and National River Cleanup Week.