Elora Raft Rides — Local services in Centre Wellington

The owner of this place is utterly unprofessional - I wish that I could give it a negative star!

I had reached out to the Elora Raft Rides a few weeks before my wedding asking if they had availability and what the price would be to rent the gondola for 30 min for some photos with our photographer on our day. The person I spoke to initially was very pleasant, and said that they had to check in with their manager before answering - completely understandable. They got back to me offering a half price rate of $55 for two people since we were only renting it for half and hour. I called back a few days later with a question, and once again confirmed the price with them - $55+tax.

One week before, I reach out again to ask about payment and waivers, and spoke with the actual owner Ken - he originally seemed very nice and once again confirmed that the price was the same.

Flash forward to our wedding day, we head over to discover that the gondola was dressed with some pleasant flowers and looked beautiful - we were excited! Ken was there ready and waiting for us. But when my husband and mom went in to pay and fill out the waiver, Ken said that the price was now $500 for 30 min...$500 for a 30 min gondola ride?! When asked why the price had changed, Ken's reply was that they had done "price revision"' in the last few days and that this was the rate that they now charge for "something like this".

I can appreciate that this is a small business that has been affected by the pandemic, but to take advantage of a couple on their wedding day is completely barbaric and unprofessional. If Ken had called us back before to tell us of this supposed price change, it would have been different. But he did not, and what's more, had already confirmed the price with us 1 week prior. Ken eventually "brought the price down" to $300 (still ridiculous), and we ended going on the gondola to get our photos for all of 20 min. Hopefully we can crop his smug face out of our wedding photos so that we can salvage them.

We informed the Mill and the Event staff of this event so that he never takes advantage of another couple again. Terrible experience and terrible owner - stay well away unless you want to be robbed blind!

**EDIT: Another member of the team (Cassie) followed up a few days later to apologize and kindly offer to give us an almost full refund. She was very patient and understanding of the situation, and it is for her professionalism and kindness alone that I modify my original review from 1 star to 2. I hope that the owner appreciates his team in the future because they are a lot more...

Jacob was an excellent guide and gondolier yesterday afternoon for leisurely raft travel - leisurely for us; Jacob worked propelling us against the deceiving current in one direction, and against the warm breeze in the other. He did this expertly, all the while sharing detailed and rich stories about this gorgeous setting.

The natural history of the area is fascinating, and learning about this from the water is beautiful. Jacob is very knowledgeable and shared excellent information and stories about Elora's ancient past with us. The river is home to considerable wildlife, ancient rock formations and fossils, and cliff-hanging trees in a peaceful balance. Look closely, and Jacob pointed out the coral beds and giant clam fossils among the geological time stamps captured in limestone when what is currently now Ontario was submerged.

Approaching the dam, we felt the coolness of the water cascade, and glimpsed a group of young teenagers testing their mettle on the bridge: games of physical challenge, with a few climbing to the top of the bridge girders to jump off on a hot day into the cool water below.

A peaceful, unplugged step back in time on so many levels.

We recommend this stop positively. Our daughter & son-in-law will be visiting Elora / Fergus in a few weeks for a long weekend at Elora Mills and have reserved a raft ride also. We're happy they'll have the chance for this peaceful and fascinating time on the river, too.

We combined this outing with other stops in the area yesterday, including a lovely dinner on the terrace at The BrewHouse on the...

Very disappointing! We experienced a very unpleasant situation on my daughter's wedding day. She had spoken with the proprietor on more than one occasion and thought she had a verbal agreement for price and the amount of time for use of the "gondola" ($55.00 for 2 people for 20-25 minutes). When going to pay on their wedding day - the proprietor was going to charge them $500.00 for less than .5 hr use. When asked to explain this cost difference, his response was that they had reviewed their prices in the past few days and were going to discuss the changes on their wedding day! Talk about taking advantage!! We did manage to bring it down to $300 - still outrageous! The proprietor said the cost was $55 per person with a minimum of three people - (there were 2 people) if you do the math they were still overcharged!

Addendum: A member of the Elora Raft Rides staff reached out to my daughter and reimbursed them to the original agreed upon quote. For that I am appreciative. However, I still question why it had to happen at all. If you do decide to book with them, make sure you have a written and...