Private Manatee Swim for up to 6 with In-Water Divemaster/Photographer
Overview
Inclusions
- Use of Full 5mm wet-suits (for extra warmth), Mask & Snorkels
- Coffee, Hot Chocolate, bottle water
- Towel Service
- US Coast Guard certified captain and Professionally Insured in water guide!
- Boat Coats for cold mornings!
What to expect
Crystal River offers the best location to see and interact with the Florida manatee, a subspecies of the West Indian manatee, also known as gentle giants. Unlike other areas of Florida, the federal government allows for "passive observation" in the water between manatees and people in Kings Bay. This allows face-to-face interaction with manatees. We provide pre-tour education on passive observation and how to get the best experience during the tour. We also offer a hotel package including accommodations and breakfast with your Florida manatee tour.
Swimming with the manatees and exploring the greater Kings Bay estuary and springs is extremely popular. Manatee tour experiences are best done by snorkeling while wearing wet suits, making the interaction as silent as possible. This way the manatees are more inclined to approach and get close. We maintain new suits and snorkel gear, all included in our manatee tours, as well as full-service facilities for changing. Your in-water guide will be taking videos and pictures of your manatee experience, which will be available for purchase at the dive shop. All our tour boats are fully enclosed in the winter time to protect our customers.
Stop At:
• Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge, 1502 SE Kings Bay Dr, Crystal River, FL 34429-4661
• Plantation Adventure Center, 9301 W Fort Island Trl, Crystal River, FL 34429-5376
Additional information
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Wet suits available in children's size 6 up to 3XL
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Ticket delivery
Cancellation
My husband and I and our daughters (ages 12 and 8) just did this with Captain John Spann and Eric. They were wonderful. We swam with 4-5 manatee. My girls were nervous and my 12 year old was going to back out but John who is a NAUI Instructor Trainer and US Coast Guard Master Captain made them fe...
My husband and I and our daughters (ages 12 and 8) just did this with Captain John Spann and Eric. They were wonderful. We swam with 4-5 manatee. My girls were nervous and my 12 year old was going to back out but John who is a NAUI Instructor Trainer and US Coast Guard Master Captain made them feel safe and took them under his wing and let them hold onto his arms pretty much the whole time and they had a blast!!! They also had warm towels and free hot chocolate and coffee. And Captain John took video and pics of everyone the whole time that turned out waaaaaaaaaaaay better and clearer than our underwater iphones. Tons of pics and videos and they all come on a jump drive in the shape of a manatee for $40! Definitely worth it because this is the most amazing thing we have ever gotten to do and now we have all the memories forever. We will definitely want to book with them again because they are really professional and went the extra mile to make it special for their guests.Great experience, got very cool videos. Captain John and Ross were great guides. Recommend booking for January rather than April, but they still showed us a great time
Great experience, got very cool videos. Captain John and Ross were great guides. Recommend booking for January rather than April, but they still showed us a great timeThis experience was so Amazing!! Captain Ross and Ryan were excellent with the littles!! I have previously gone with another tour company, and Adventure Center blew them out of the water 100/10!!!!!
This experience was so Amazing!! Captain Ross and Ryan were excellent with the littles!! I have previously gone with another tour company, and Adventure Center blew them out of the water 100/10!!!!!My family and I had a blast! Captain Laura and Chris were great! Laura was especially good with my 4 year old boy and 5 year old girl. She treated them like family. You could tell that they cared if you had a good time. Loved the things we learned on our trip. Videos from Laura's GoPro were very ...
My family and I had a blast! Captain Laura and Chris were great! Laura was especially good with my 4 year old boy and 5 year old girl. She treated them like family. You could tell that they cared if you had a good time. Loved the things we learned on our trip. Videos from Laura's GoPro were very cool, I ended up buying the photos. We saw 3 manatees and one was a mom and baby, it was too cute. I knew booking this that we were off season so I was not expecting to see a lot of manatees. I also really loved that we did a private tour vs shared. It was well worth it. The gift shop had some cute things too.We were very fortunate to get two of the best guides on our private early morning tour. Captain Mark and Laura were incredible and gave us the experience of a lifetime. We were able to spend time with a momma and baby in crystal clear water, as they rolled around and foraged. It was surreal and w...
We were very fortunate to get two of the best guides on our private early morning tour. Captain Mark and Laura were incredible and gave us the experience of a lifetime. We were able to spend time with a momma and baby in crystal clear water, as they rolled around and foraged. It was surreal and we are grateful to see such incredible creatures. The equipment was impeccably clean, as was the boat! All was efficient and exceedingly well run. An outfit to be reckoned with and we will most definitely do this again. Highly recommended!Captain John makes sure you get an up-close encounter with manatees! And the springs are beautiful! I highly recommend this experience, you will not regret it! Can’t wait to do it again!
Captain John makes sure you get an up-close encounter with manatees! And the springs are beautiful! I highly recommend this experience, you will not regret it! Can’t wait to do it again!