Passionate, adventurous – the crazy German started packrafting in NZ some 12 years ago.
About us
Let me tell you a story...
What is Packrafting?
Every sport has its pioneers.
The people who see something before everyone else does. The people willing to take a risk on an idea that most others don’t quite understand.
Packrafting was no different.
Back in the early 2010s, every conversation about packrafting started with the same question:
“What’s a packraft?”
Skill Development
Build a strong foundation
Pioneering
Almost nobody had seen one. Every introduction involved explaining that yes, it was a proper boat, yes, it fitted into a backpack, and yes, people really were hiking into remote valleys before paddling their way back out.
Most people smiled politely and moved on.
A few people immediately got it.
Those people became the first generation of packrafters in New Zealand.
Those early years were exciting.
Arno and I first met while training as river guides together back in 2007. We shared a love of rivers, remote places and slightly ambitious adventures, so when he first showed me one of these funny little inflatable boats, I didn’t need much convincing.
I could see straight away that this wasn’t just another piece of outdoor gear. It was a completely new way of exploring.
From that point on, we built Packrafting New Zealand together.
Arno had the vision and took the leap of launching New Zealand’s first dedicated commercial packrafting company in 2012. I backed that vision with my time, money and experience, helping establish the operation, develop trips, guide clients and introduce this entirely new sport to Kiwi adventurers.
Those early years were exciting.
Explore the wild
Using a packraft to go places where other can't go
Building the Plane whilst learning to fly...
There was no blueprint. No established industry. No “this is how it’s done.”
We were making it up as we went, learning what worked, solving problems as they appeared and slowly introducing more and more people to the freedom that only packrafting offers.
Pushing the Envelope
The new Packrafting HQ
I spent years working around the world as a freelance expedition leader, leading austere expeditions through some of the world’s most remote landscapes and taking part in first descents in places like Ecuador and Nepal.
Those experiences shaped the way I thought about guiding, risk management, education and adventure.
When I eventually returned to Queenstown, I continued working with Packrafting New Zealand, but it became increasingly clear that I wanted to take things in a slightly different direction.
My own company, Miles Away Ltd, had already been operating since 2009, and my vision centred around education, progression, expedition skills and building a long-term pathway into the sport.
After many years exploring ways to work together, I eventually founded Packrafting Queenstown, while Arno continued focusing on the iconic Fiordland adventures that had become synonymous with Packrafting New Zealand.
For over a decade, the two businesses grew alongside one another, each contributing to the growth of packrafting in New Zealand in different ways.
Stewardship and Legacy
Then, in 2026, our stories came back together.
As Arno prepared to step away from the business he had helped pioneer, neither of us wanted to see one of New Zealand’s most important packrafting companies disappear.
So Packrafting Queenstown acquired Packrafting New Zealand.
Not to replace its history.
To protect it.
Today, we’re incredibly proud to carry that legacy forward.
The values that inspired those first trips back in 2012 remain exactly the same today: curiosity, exploration, professionalism, good people and a belief that some of the best adventures begin where the track ends.
The difference is that the sport has grown up.
What started with a handful of curious paddlers explaining these funny little boats to anyone who would listen has become one of New Zealand’s fastest-growing adventure sports.
Thousands of people have now discovered packrafting through the trips, courses and expeditions that grew from those early days.
We’re honoured to have been part of that journey from the beginning.
And we’re even more excited about where it goes next.
What an awesome world we live in
Every once in a while slow down and enjoy the moment
A solid team
A good guide can safely get you down a river.
A great team can change an entire sport.
It’s one thing to master your craft through years of guiding. It’s the love of the game that sees your foster the next generation and draw in an epic cadre of outdoor obsessed legends aroudn you
From the very beginning, we’ve believed that mastering your craft is only half the job. The other half is giving back—sharing knowledge, raising standards and helping the next generation become even better than you are.
That’s why we’re obsessed with building an exceptional team.
We’re looking for people who are curious in every sense of the word. Guides who ask questions. Who keep learning. Who disappear into the mountains on their days off because they genuinely love exploring, not because it’s part of the job.
Technical excellence is non-negotiable. But so is creativity.
Some of our guides are photographers. Others are filmmakers, writers, musicians, makers and expedition leaders. They’re the sort of people who spend as much time dreaming up the next adventure as they do planning it.
Packrafting has always been driven by passionate people willing to share what they’ve learned. Every generation stands on the shoulders of the one before it.
Our goal is simple: to bring together one of the strongest collections of packrafting talent anywhere in the world, then create an environment where everyone keeps pushing each other forward.
Because when you love the game, you don’t just become good at it.
You help shape what comes next.
Arno Marten
Former Owner
Arno Marten
Former Owner
Huw Miles
Expedition Director
Huw Miles
Expedition Director
Explorer. Vagabond. Founder. Expedition Director. Dad
Jeremy Platt
Senior River Guide, Instructor and Expedition Leader
Jeremy Platt
Senior River Guide, Instructor and Expedition Leader
Jeremy has been packrafting since Jesus was a kid. He’s traversed the length of NZ with a packraft, a home made carbon fibre scooter and a dream. Still pioneering first descents left right and centre. OG Packraft Guru