Route Highlights

The tour starts from the Kayaking Tours basecamp in Vadul lui Voda, where from participants are transported up the river to Criuleni city, where the route starts. Route goes all the way down the river and finishes in Basecamp in Vadul lui Voda.

Kayaking distance: 22 km
Difficulty level: Beginners, Medium
Note: in case of  south-west winds this route becomes challenging and  the difficulty increases from medium to medium or high. This type of wind happens very rarely. 

Duration: 6-7 hours
Start hour: 09:00 – 12:00 (flexible, can be agreed with the group).
Minimum group
– Sunday/Saturday: 2 persons or 1 if other bookings are available.
– Monday to Friday: 4 persons

In the weekend additional transportation is arranged from Chisinau and back for an extra 10 eur/pers for a group of 15 people and more.

Route

Itinerary

When the group is ready, they are transported from Vadul lui Voda basecamp to Criuleni city, where the route will start.

Before the group starts the instructions are done and each participant is trained:

• how to get into the kayak;
• how to get out of the kayak;
• how to pedal correctly;
• how to turn left-right;
• rules on who is sitting in the back and in the front;
• how to stop and park the kayak;
• other

Each participant carries their kayak from the trailer to the river (20 meters). After training is done, each participant signs an agreement for being responsible for himself and the other participants in his(her) boat.

There is absolutely no risk for people who can’t swim. the kayaks we use, are very stable, and for 4 years we have never had a case when the kayaks would overturn. The professional life vests are keeping the participants absolutely safe.

The average water speed is about 4 to 5 km/hour. Groups usually have 2 stops during the route to get sunbathes, swim, or just take their lunches. When the route finishes, each participant gives back the kayak in a clean form and helps to carry it to the trailer.

What is included:

• kayaks;
• life-vests;
• instructions on the starting point;
• transportation with kayaks from Vadul lui Voda Basecamp to Criuleni city.

What to take with you:

Kayaking means exposure to the sun almost the whole day. We recommend that you make sure you have the following things with you:

• swimsuit and sun protecting cream – if you want to catch a beautiful tan! or long-sleeved shirt and long pants if you want to protect yourself from the sun ( recommended);
• hat, sun protection cap (hat is preferred, to cover neck and ears), a bandana to cover neck;
• sunglasses;
• comfortable shoes to get into the water;
• anti-mosquito cream/spray (only if you plan to stay overnight somewhere);
• bottle of water;
• gloves (as desired);
• zip-lock package, or a hermetic closing case – something for protecting your cell phone/camera from getting wet.
• some specific medicine (if necessary).

Food & drinking water

By default, no food is arranged for the group by the organizer. Also, there is no drinkable water on the river.
Food could be arranged in a form of Catering as an extra, and the price depends on the menus agreed. Kayaking tours have arranged few places on the river with tables/seats, down the river where the participants could have their lunches. These places are marked and could be easily observed from the water.

Alcohol & drugs

Any form of alcohol consumption on the river, or getting in the kayak being drunk is strictly prohibited, and the money paid for the tour are not returned. Any form of drugs is strictly prohibited.

Group size

The standard group size is 5-20 persons. In the case of 40+ people, the estimation might be seriously different due to increased logistics difficulty.

The maximum number of attendees we can process: 230 persons on kayaks + 10 bicycles (see cycling tours).

Kayaks

We use top and best touristic kayaks from soviet, with 2 and 3 seats.

Taimen 2. Two-seat kayak is composed of aluminium base and is wrapped in special PVC tent. The maximum load in the kayak could be up to 250 kg. Kayak has 85 cm in width and 5 meters long. This is the best kayak when you go for multiple days tour and take with you the tent, sleeping bag, food and many other necessary things. Kids from 2.5 to 7 years old are offered a free seat in the middle section if both parents are kayaking.  Kids aged from 8 to 12 years old have a 50% discount. 13 and older are considered as adults. The minimum age for kids travelling with us is 2.5 years old. Weight of kayak: 24 kg.

Taimen 3. Three seat kayak has just another section, which makes the kayak fit for 3 travellers. This type of kayak is naturally faster than 2 seats one but has a bit less space inside for multiple days tours. Weight of kayak: 28.5 kg.

More details you can find in section about our fleet.

Environmental & Social Responsibility

We feel responsible for the clean nature around us. And always give some extra bags for garbage for each tour participant. The main rule – to leave less garbage than we found, in the place, we go through.

The great thing about kayaking is we can visit remote hard to reach beaches that few people visit. At the first glance many of these beaches look pristine, but on closer examination traces of civilization can often be found in the plastic, Styrofoam, and garbage that floats in the water.

When we find garbage we pack out what we can in our kayaks, especially Styrofoam as it can break down into tiny pieces that are next to impossible to collect if left in the elements. On our base camp tours, our kayaks are not heavily packed so there is lots of room and on our explorer tours we create more room in our kayaks as the trip progresses and we eat through our supplies.

When unable to pack out items in our kayaks we will collect garbage and securely pile it and notify our representatives to pick it up.