Potomac Paddlesports Kayak School

Took some whitewater kayaking classes a few years ago, really enjoyed it.

Ashley was one of my teachers - not sure if she's still there but she was my favorite.

I started whitewater kayaking with them over 10 years ago. Did they do a good job? Let's just say it quickly became my favorite activity! Eventually, I even started teaching for them, as well as other schools / clubs. Their practice sessions are great, helping beginners both build their confidence, and find people to eventually go paddle with on their own.

This review is for the store, not the outing part of the business.

I've been here about 3 times, and find them to be a weird mix of helpful and douchey. They have a business model and expectations, and if you don't fit into it, they don't work well with that. For example, I showed up and wanted to a buy a new kayak. They spent the whole time telling me to take their classes and then buy one of the boats from the class afterwards.

Another visit, tried to buy some PFDs for my kids. Context- We paddle mostly flatwater with a little bit of class 1 or 2s. The guy gave me good info on what they had, but also was a bit condescending with comments like "you don't want to use..."

Also, the store is a mix of new and used stuff (a lot of it used) but nothing is marked. Half of it doesn't have prices marked.

Finally, everything costs a lot more than what you could buy it for online.

We did the Discover the Potomac tour last weekend, and it was amazing! My wife and I are in our 40s and are new to kayaking, and our kids are 9 and 12 so we were a little nervous about what to expect. The tour was very peaceful and stress free, but also invigorating enough to feel good about getting some exercise.

Our instructors were Maggie and Miguel, and both were fantastic. They provided plenty of interesting insights and even helped tow our 9-year-old when she became exhausted towards the end. Really loved them, and the tour as well.

Can't say enough good things about this company. We went ahead and purchased a package for five trips, and hope to see Maggie and Miguel again!

Just Do It!!! I took the Discover the Potomac tour. It is designed for beginners, which I am, and it was superb. Everything about the program is designed to put you at ease while teaching you how to kayak on flatwater. First and foremost, it was a ton of fun, and the instructors, Agata and Sidney, were terrific. I can't wait for my next trip with Potamac Paddlesports. And FYI, I am 71.

Discover The Potomac was a terrific way to get introduced to kayaking and also learn about the Potomac. The 4 hour class is the right length with about 3 hours actual on the water time. It was a perfect day and our instructor Mark was patient and knowledgeable. The view from water level is very different than you get just a few feet away on the tow path. Our trip followed a loop of 2 miles going upstream on the canal, followed by a trip downstream on the river and finishing with a short paddle out on Muddy Branch Creek. I have lived in DC area for decades and until now had not seen the Potomac River up close. I highly recommend this trip.

Love this place. They taught me everything about getting in a moving river. Th Potomac river is the best place to learn and they have the best instructors and an amazing lesson plan that is quite affordable.
Anyone that loves outdoor sports like biking and skiing just has to try whitewater Kayaking.
Tell James there that max says hi. He has a British accent and is a great great teacher.

These guys are awesome!! This brand new store in Potomac is just what the area needed. Great selection of running and kayak gear as well as kayaks for sale. The store is fantastic looking and I know they will be around for years to come.

They also provide outfitting tours and kayak school. Check them out!!

We did Discover the Potomac a few weeks ago. It was such a great experience! My wife and I are in our 30s and have never kayaked before, so this trip was the perfect pace - very easy and stress free - but we definitely felt the burn the next day :-) The instructor was the nicest and did a great job of keeping the group together and providing instruction and help when needed. We'll definitely book with them again for one of the other tours.

Took a flat-water river tour with PPS 3 years ago, was a "monuments tour". In talking with the guide and some other people in the group that day, began looking into recreational kayaking and began spending some time on the river, alone, trying to figure it out...

The following season, realizing there was a lot more technical learning involved, I took lessons with PPS, and haven't looked back.

The last 2 years with PPS, I've taken multiple lessons, practice sessions and gone on group outings, on several different parts of the Potomac. Without exception the instructors and guides at PPS have been spot on with their knowledge of the sport, the river, the gear, and all have an amazingly accurate way of teaching and demonstrating the subtlest of techniques, perspectives, a kayakers mind set, how to read the river, how to stay safe and how to keep learning.