we had a wonderful trip our guide was Chris, he was very knowledgeable and pleasant. Great trip, I will highly recommend Chris to friends and relatives heading down to Tierra Verde.

We went on the Shell Island kayaking adventure for our anniversary, and it was the perfect way to spend the morning exploring, learning, and enjoying the sun. Alessia was an awesome and friendly tour guide who was full of fun facts about the flora and fauna we saw, and she took photos of us on the tour to document the experience. We saw lots of birds – including some rare encounters – crabs, and a snail, plus found tons of beautiful shells on the island when we stopped. We, unfortunately, didn’t see any dolphins or manatees though. Still an amazing anniversary date overall!

Tour was wonderful definitely will be back! Our tour guide (Alessia) was phenomenal and very helpful!!! She gave clear instructions which made the our kayak run smoothly.

Chris was awesome. The winds was crazy, My best part would have to be the mangroves. Chris was very knowledgeable and kept us safe

This was a great tour. we'll definitely do it again when we are back in this area! Cris was very attentive and explained a lot of interesting things! He made sure everyone had sunblock and plenty of water it was really hot! We had a lot of fun. Thank you, Cris!

The tour was so much fun, kayaking through the mangroves was amazing! Shoutout to Chris our guide who was so knowledgable about the animals, the preserve, the history and led an awesome tour, thanks Chris!

Carmen was an amazing tour guide and the most knowledgeable on the birds/wildlife! We had a great evening! Thank you again!

Very nice trip very educational and informative. Chris was awesome the whole time he was there to make sure our trip was perfect. Highly recommended.

I had a really wonderful time. Our guide Chris was excellent! Even though we didn't see any manatees or dolphins, it was an amazing experience. Chris made the trip so much more enjoyable with his laidback and upbeat attitude - and he was so informative too! I look forward to doing this again when I come back to Florida.

This was an amazing tour! Alessia was so nice, very knowledgeable! Would absolutely recommend! Thanks for the pictures!!

The tour was so fun! Being able to see in the water under the kayak was a great feature. Loved the birds that would swim under the kayaks and follow us. The tree tunnel & beach were both nice! Our guide, Less, was great!!

My mother and I had a wonderful tour through Shell Key. I’ve taken this tour several times and it never disappoints. Chris was a fantastic guide and very attentive to guests needs while sharing his expansive knowledge on the wildlife and preserve. The highlight of our ride was exploring the mangrove tunnels!

Alessia was our tour guide and did a great job explaining things we were seeing during our trip. The family are NOT kayakers, but we had a great time! It's great when the kids replace cell phones with oars!

It was such a magical experience. Obviously with any tour where you might spot animals there are no guarantees, but we were super lucky and saw dolphins twice! Besides that, we were able to watch birds hunting fish under water through the kayaks, which was so cool. We saw fish (including a stingray), several bird species, A GIANT SNAIL (found by our tour guide) and dolphins. Alessia was really friendly and knowledgeable. She was also patient with a less experienced kayaker in our group. I would recommend pairing up with someone if possible if you're new to kayaking or not as physically fit, because it is a decent workout. We didn't have too much time on Shell Island (approx 25-30 mins) as we took longer to kayak over, but it was enough to explore, find shells or go for a quick swim. It was a memorable experience, and very fun workout. I wouldn't go in expecting to see dolphins and getting disappointed potentially (because animals aren't predictable) Especially when the other animals were very cool to get so close to and the area is so beautiful, so it would've been great either way.

Our tour was amazing! Jenna very knowledgeable and accommodating. We saw some birds. It was a great trip. Thank you Jenna!

Amazing trip with Jenna. This has to be my favorite island in the US. It was a small group with tons of explanations by our guide about the wildlife we encountered along the way

Tatianna was sweet, knowledgeable, helpful, and fun! The small touches of no charge sunscreen, dry bags, and a bottle of water, are a HUGE addition to include in the tour. Although I didn't use anything other than a bottle of water, these little touches made a big impression on me, as other kyaking tours I have gone on, have charged steep fees for these small things. WTG! Shell Key Preserve is a lovely little hide-away, but we were disappointed to not see any manatees or dolphins, but understand that is out of the control of GUAGK. The swim on the Gulf Coast was spectacular! It certainly was an easy kayak there and back.

Raven the tour guide greeted us with a smile, made us feel very welcomed. An excellent tour guide! She was extremely knowledgeable about her surroundings explained nature, told stories and made the tour fun!

This experience overall was a memorable one!!! One adult and teenage kids here for mother's day. This was the absolute best time!! Our tour guide was informative and friendly!! The 2 hour duration was just enough.

Our guide Raven was simply the best!!! Overall the preserve is a great paddle with a lot to see. Our guide was amazing in explaining the local back-bay ecosystem, and pointed out all of the wildlife along the way. With the paddle out we were accompanied by a group of three local commorant birds that are regular visitors during tours. Raven lead us through a natural mangrove tunnel of trees and then we all circled around the sandbar to land on the beach where we had a nice break and were able to swim in the gulf for a bit. After the break, on the paddle back we saw an osprey dive catch a fish and witnessed the “doggy shake” they do when they fly away. Overall 11/10 and a lot to see on this tour. Other notes: private dock launch, ample parking, bathrooms are at the restaurant, there is a freshwater rinse off hose, and we got some cool stickers for the excursion.