ラフティング
rafutingu
White water rafting in Japanese is ラフティング (rafutingu).
The term is used broadly to cover the concept of white water rafting without needing to specify "white water" separately.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is a loanword from the English word "rafting," transliterated into Katakana.
How does it change in a sentence?
To use the noun as a verb in a sentence, add the verb する (to do) after it, forming ラフティングをする.
How do you pronounce it?
rafutingu
Did you know?
- While 'rafting' is the standard term, some Japanese outdoor enthusiasts may use the term 川下り (kawakudari), which translates to 'river descending', a term with much deeper historical roots in Japanese travel.
- Because ラフティング is a Katakana loanword, it is often used in Japanese advertising to give the activity a sense of 'foreign excitement' or an 'exotic' outdoor lifestyle.
- If you were to describe the rapids themselves using traditional Japanese, you might use the word 急流 (kyuryu), which literally means 'rapid current'.
Examples in context
- 明日友達とラフティングに行くんだ。すごく楽しみ！Tomorrow, I'm going white water rafting with my friends. I'm really excited!
- ラフティングをしたいです。rafutingu o shitai desu.I want to go white water rafting.
- 夏にラフティングをしました。natsu ni rafutingu o shimashita.I went white water rafting in summer.
- ラフティングはとてもスリルがあります。rafutingu wa totemo suriru ga arimasu.White water rafting is very thrilling.
Example conversation
Ren and Yui are discussing their summer vacation plans.
- 蓮 Ren今度の休み、ラフティングをしませんか？kondo no yasumi, rafutingu o shimasen ka?Would you like to go white water rafting this coming holiday?
- 結衣 Yuiいいですね！すごく楽しそうです。ii desu ne! sugoku tanoshisou desu.That sounds great! It looks like a lot of fun.
- 蓮 Ren結衣さんもきっと気に入ると思います。Yui-san mo kitto kiniiru to omoimasu.I think you will like it too, Yui.
- 結衣 Yuiぜひやりましょう！zehi yarimashou!Let's definitely do it!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry ラフティング, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
