My parents were reminiscing about when they were middle school aged and came here for field trips…read more I was surprised to find out that Silver Springs State Park and the glass bottom boat tours have been around for that long! It was about a 1.5 hour ride from Orlando. Woke up real early on a Saturday (on honestly one of the coldest days of the year) to arrive at the park around 8am. I highly suggest purchasing glass bottom boat tour tickets online about a week in advance atleast since time slots fill up! We purchased the 1.5 hour tour on the boats. Our tour guide was incredible and shared so much knowledge and facts about the wildlife and park. I got to see tons of manatees! Plus getting to see gators, turtles, birds, and even monkeys! The glass bottom gives such a cool perspective on viewing the wildlife and plants underwater. Aside from the tour, we walked several trails to enjoy the great outdoors. Also, we had coffee in the morning when we first got here and lunch after the tour. The food was pretty good and filling. At the gift shop I made sure to leave with a magnet and Christmas ornament to remember such a great day here.

What a breathtaking location! From the parking lot, it doesn't look like much. They are redoing the…read moreentrance sign, and from the outside, it seems like the place might be pretty rundown. However, once you walk through, you are quickly transported. The entrance to the park is only two dollars per person, and honestly, in my opinion, they could charge just a little bit more. The glass-bottom boat tours run faster than you might expect, so if you have the time (which we didn't during our visit), opt for the longer boat ride; it doesn't cost much more. They also have little shops to explore and plenty of outdoor seating so you can take in the beautiful surroundings. If you're a water lover, make sure to plan ahead and reserve a crystal-clear kayak or paddleboard to enjoy the water--it'll be worth every penny. The only hiccup in our plan was that we booked everything on the day of our visit, so we ended up with a shorter tour on the glass-bottom boats and got locked into the last kayaking time slot. The woman at the reservation desk for the kayaks was not very pleasant. She told us that despite showing a 5 o'clock slot, they were no longer taking reservations. I showed her the option on my phone, but she still refused to let us sign waivers. Luckily, we found the manager in charge of the rental hut, who advised that we could still make our reservation online. I showed him on my phone, and although we'd have to pay full price and probably have less than an hour, that was perfectly fine with us since we were in the last slot. The lake was practically empty, so we had the entire waterway to ourselves--so beautiful and peaceful. Honestly, it felt like we were in another country, surrounded by nature. If you don't have the chance to kayak, there's also a walking path where you can see monkeys left behind from one of the movies that was filmed on location. We walked part of the path, and it was just as beautiful. Any chance my kids and I get to be outside in nature, we gravitate towards it, putting away our phones to enjoy everything around us. What a great way to spend your day and your vacation!

This is a truly wonderful place with beautiful decor. It has come such a long way! I absolutely…read morelove coming here to enjoy the peace and nature. Plus, Andrew who works there is always respectful and so helpful with loading me in and out safely.

I've paddled the Emerald Cut a few times now. Initially I didn't like the idea of paying to launch…read moremy own paddleboard. However, it's only $10 now that I have my own life jacket (saving me additional cost of $5 to use one of theirs, as required). Well worth the low cost for some soul-enriching, communing with nature. I have never made a reservation. I normally arrive around 10:30, most recently on a Friday. Parked for free on Baptist Camp Rd. Just a bit of a walk from there with my inflated paddleboard, but I don't mind the extra exercise. You can unload your stuff closer, if preferable. There are port-a-potties available. You can count on there being a line in the check-in office. Various recreation supplies are available there for purchase. The process moves reasonably enough. A reservation will guarantee your entrance, however, and possibly aide quicker personal info collection. I always plan to do the Emerald Cut in roughly 3 hours round-trip, allowing myself several stops to enjoy the surroundings. You do run into (quite literally at times) novice paddlers along the way, which can be a bit tricky, yet not a real nuisance for me. In general, there's friendliness along the waterway. Slighty rowdy, party vibes in some spots, but also opportunities for solace and zen in various nooks. Encountering wildlife, fragrant elderberry, and other captivating flora along this stretch is always gratifying. It's a popular recreation destination for good reason.

Such a wicked spot. Enjoy the spring and rent paddle boards…read moreor just relax in a cabana or on the adirondack chairs along the water side. They have a full bar and a food truck, we got fish nuggets which was yummy with a cold beer.. After a nice bike ride along the trail we rode in for a quick stop but we will be back!

This place is a gem! We love to kayak the waterways here. This time we worked up an appetite! Since…read morewe never saw gators, I ordered gator tacos at the tasty food vendor on site. My daughter enjoyed her Philly cheesesteak quesadilla! We took it back to our seat at the bar. We enjoyed great selections and the view! Service was elite level, always making sure we enjoyed our time. We will come back again someday!

We had a great time waterskiing and wakeboarding on Lake Roy with the skilled Captain Dave's…read moreinstruction.

Such a fun 3hr pontoon boat tour! Dave is super friendly and knowledgeable about the area. He took…read moreus to a few of the local spots and recommended some super tasty treats and drinks! We will definitely do this tour again when we're in town.

My daughter, her best friend and I did the water tubing with Allen's Aquatic Adventures. Allen was…read moresuper friendly and personable on our trip! We did the two-hour option and we could have definitely kept going. Allen even took time out to teach the girls about waterboarding. The girls had a really fun time and said they would definitely do it again!

Capt Allen never disappoints! We've been out with him a couple of times. We had a great sunset…read morecruise and the dolphins did some serious dolphin-ing, playing right behind our boat in the wake. What a fun evening! Bring jackets as it gets a little chilly out on the water this time of year. (Waiting for my friends to send me the awesome dolphin photos they took)

From Tampa, it took an hour and 30 minutes to get to the river. We first wanted to take a swim in…read morethe swimming area so we went there first before it got really crazy. The area is a bit small and there isn't really a lot of sun spots for you to chill at. It is cool to experience once but I think if you tube, you still will be able to get a swim in because parts of the river are pretty deep. After the swim area, we headed to the tubing section. It is a 15 minute drive from the main park entrance. The fee was 54 for two people that had an annual pass. Highly recommend bringing a small cooler with snacks and drinks and an extra tube for it. It took us about 2 hours to float back to our car and the river is very calm and relaxing. I've floated a river in San Antonio but wasn't as nice as Rainbow springs. Very clean and the water is sooo clear. Overall, really enjoyed our day visit to this state park!

Do not go tubing. The experience was dangerous and life threatening. You go in sign a wavier that…read morebasically "signs your life away" and that the park is not responsible for your safety if anything happens like all waivers do these days. I went with my group and it was a horrifying experience. The tubes are only adult sized and if you bring little kids your kids will not fit. I got stuck multiple times along the shallow vegetation, luckily had a swimmer help me on my side. The workers said it would only be 2 hrs. I ended up getting heat exhaustion due to being out stuck tubing in the river out in the sun for 4-5 hours. Fell asleep basically out in the sun and I got sunburned to a crisp, I did apply sunscreen and still burned. The heat and exhaustion to being exposed for far too long got me to pass out. All of the people in my group had burns as well, even if you applied a tremendous amount of sunscreen. Someone could get seriously hurt or even killed by participating in this activity. I ran into some wildlife along the way such as alligators. Yes it is normal in Florida but the lack of safety is my main concern. No lifeguards or people stationed anywhere along the river to actually Help you if you are going to be drowning. Heck, the whistle attached to my own life jacket that was offered at the beginning was actually broken when I actively tried to use it. These people probably don't get paid enough to be concerned about our actual safety. If you do end up wanting to go down the river try going kayaking along the trail instead. It is much faster and you won't get stuck since you can the paddle to go forward. Even then its better to be safe than sorry, do not go on this experience.

True professionals. The captain and coach got me up on a wakeskate first pull. My son got…read morepointers on how to get controlled air wakeboarding. Then we both wakesurfed and the captain put us in the pocket so we could throw the rope and surf. Thumbs up to the Global surf crew. The equipment was top notch. 4 wakeboards,a wakeskate and 4 wakesurf boards on the boat to make sure we had what we needed to be successful. The Moomba was a powerhouse too!

From the owner: Global Boarding has been creating the Water Sports scene for over 17 years on Long Island, NY…read more Established in 2001 & originally based in Sag Harbor we now have 4 locations. We are a "5 Star" Water Sports company with over 75 years of combined coaching & professional careers. Teaching all levels, from beginner to pro. Our Crew are USCG Licensed Captains with professional backgrounds in Wakeboarding, Waterskiing, Wakesurfing, Wakeskating, Surfing & are still having a blast! Global Boarding Water Sports We offer Water Sports Sessions, Lunch and Dinner Charters and our super fun Kids Camp. So come join us and immerse yourself in a "Day of Adventure. Anna Maria Island is the latest venture for Global Boarding Water Sports. Team Global are excited to bring our flavor of the Hamptons to Florida and enjoy the dynamic atmosphere of AMI. We are very passionate and love our work! "It's a Lifestyle"

This past week was my second time using this company and I'll always be a return customer. Captain…read moreWill was super knowledgeable of the area and an open book about his experience as well as made us feel comfortable in his hands out on the water. Thanks so much

They were great both times that we used them. We were hoping to learn how to wake board, but that…read moredidn't happen unfortunately. We never were able to stand up (since learned with someone who was a good teacher). He will do whatever watersports you want, we did tubing and wake boarding. But if you want to learn how to do these, I'd go somewhere else.