We absolutely love Jug Creek for its fresh local seafood, beach atmosphere, and exceptional staff…read more It is always worth the hour-long drive to visit your restaurant for lunch or dinner. We also appreciate the live music you offer, but we wanted to share some feedback regarding the specific entertainment. Among our group, we often joke about "remembering your ABCs"--Anyone But Clive. While we enjoy the outdoorsy island vibe of Jug Creek, Clive's style of 1970s geriatric lounge music and frequent vocal shifts from falsetto to deeper tones feel a bit out of place for the setting. We wanted to share this perspective as loyal customers who want to see Jug Creek continue to thrive. We love everything else about the destination and look forward to our next visit.

Perfect dive bar for an hour to pull up on your boat and enjoy a beer overlooking the serene…read moreintercoastal waterway and thats as far as it goes. Drove down a small road with older canal homes lining the right side. Continued to the dead end that had the Jug Creek Marina and tiki style bar which was filled with customers. Parking was tricky but found a spot near the front and spaces were snug for wide trucks. We were recommended to this place through an aquaintance that was raving about it. Now that I'm here, I think I was the brunt end of a joke. Hung out for ten minutes trying to figure out how to order food. Saw two bartenders inside the tiki bar serving beer from a metal tub full of ice. No greeting and still confused and still did not see a server. Went to a door behind the tiki bar and peeked into a kitchen and finally found a server who advised us to find an open table and order from the bar. I only saw three tables with baskets of food in front of them. Seemed like a place for locals only and frowned on tourists - not positive though. I made a failed attempt to simply grab a beer from the bartender from the ice chest. The guy standing next to me did not have his beer yet and just chuckled like it was normal. Noticed the "No Smoking in the Bathroom" sign posted to the wall next to the bathroom door. It was just strange why this would even be something people would do. We traveled 35 minutes to find this off the beaten path bar and felt defeated and left thirsty and hungry. The water view was amazing but the service was horrible. The experience felt like a bar you would find deep in the back woods of the Louisiana Bayou. Drove to another 30 minutes to a waterfront bar on the Fort Myers beach for a late lunch and had a great experience.

Pineland Marina is a full service Marina offering a two car boat ramp. When you launch at Pineland…read moreyou are convenient to numerous islands such as Cayo Costa, Useppa, Upper Captiva and Boca Grande. The Marina also offers fishing charters and ferry services. Cost is $15 to launch your boat and or park. My only complaint would be that the ramp gets backed up during season on the weekends.

We went to the marina to purchase a ferry ticket to an island on Sunday Nov 21st. The man at the…read morecounter was so rude! All I wanted was a ticket to the ferry and I wasn't sure of the island name as we were referred there by our hotel. He rattled off a few island names and told me to go to the boat dock next door and when I said there was no one there he said oh well he didn't know what they were doing then.. visiting from another state I really found the man's actions disappointing. I would recommend everyone go somewhere else to get a ferry ticket anywhere. He was a real jerk.

We stayed here at the marina for an evening with our boat. We arrived after 5 and parked without…read moreassistance in our assigned spot. The water was calm and we were right by Cass Key restaurant. The marina location was out of the way but worth the drive on the water. The restaurant had great food and live music. The bathroom and showers were clean. Laundry facilities were available too at a reasonable price. I took a walk in the morning and the area was very nice. I didn't give it 5 stars because.... In the morning we waited to leave as as waited for a Dockmaster but no one arrived. We went on our way and called later to pay our bill.

We recently stopped here for fuel. I was impressed with the dock master's efficiency and knowledge…read moreof the area. Marine gas rates here were higher than competitors'.

Tarpon Lodge & Restaurant is our date night location. So much charm! Indoor / outdoor dining in a…read morebuilding dating back to 1926, screen door out to the beautiful grounds, amazing food and wine menus and finally the SUNSETS! The menu focuses on locally sourced ingredients, served with Pine Island flare. The service staff is knowledgeable, attentive without being intrusive and always smiling. They really make you feel welcome and part of the family. Plenty of on-site, free parking. Make sure to plan your visit to walk the grounds and take in a sunset. Regardless of where you are in the cape or surrounding area, Tarpon Lodge restaurant is worth the drive. Cheers!

First trip to the Tarpon Lodge for dinner. We we surprised by how beautiful the location was,…read morelocated on the water at the tail end of Matlacha. The dining room was lovely with comfortable chairs, white tablecloths and great views of the water. Service was outstanding from our waitress to the waitstaff, everyone was pleasant and helpful. Food: apps were good, crab and corn chowder was tasty (a bit strong on the sherry) but a cup was the perfect size. Shrimp cocktail looked great and got rave reviews at the table. Mains, hits and a miss, Filet was outstanding as was the Airline chicken and triple tail filet special ($49!). Miss, skirt steak was undercooked and tough. Ask for it med. We passed on desert. Highlight of the evening was walking the lodge grounds and watching the sunset.

Caveat Emptor - Extremely Disappointing Experience with Tropic Star (Pine Island, FL)…read moreIf you're considering booking a "private nature tour" with Tropic Star, I strongly suggest you think twice. On March 23rd, my group paid $350 for what was clearly marketed as a private, multi-hour nature tour experience: lunch at Cabbage Key followed by a relaxing nature cruise with stop at Cayo Costa, wildlife viewing, dolphins, and a scenic return to the dock around 2-2:30 PM. What we got instead felt like a complete bait-and-switch. The ride to Cabbage Key was rushed, and after lunch, we were picked up at 1:00 PM only to be sped straight back to the dock at full throttle--arriving before 1:30 PM. No nature tour. No stops. No wildlife. No relaxation. Just a high-speed return trip where we were bracing ourselves on coolers and folding chairs instead of enjoying anything remotely close to what was promised. Prior to leaving the dock, my friend heard Captain Steve had multiple other groups scheduled and needed to rush back. So much for a "private" experience. It was clear our trip was cut short to accommodate their overbooking and miscommunication from staff. Customer service was just as frustrating. After multiple attempts to get a response from Vincent, the owner, we finally received a generic apology with "We have a great reputation and it's rare that I get confronted with any negativity and I sincerely apologize. We have not been able to run our big boats since Hurricane Ian 3 years ago. We're doing our best to accommodate some passengers with our smaller boats" and a vague offer for "free passage next time." When I asked for clarification--no response. I then requested a full refund to resolve the issue privately and avoid posting a review... and completely ignored. At this point, it's not just about a bad tour--it's about misleading advertising, poor communication, and zero accountability. Save your money and your time. There are plenty of reputable operators in the area who actually deliver what they promise.

What a great crew, what a great experience. The vote was comfortable and easily accessible. Finding…read morethe place was a little bit of a challenge. However, when you make the reservation they do fill you in on the GPS coordinates, and tell you that they are not necessarily correct. I would definitely do this again but I would spend all day at the beach I would not bother to go to the restaurant on the itinerary.

We always rent from Monroe Canal Marina because their service is fantastic every time. Our recent…read moretwo‑day rental of the Hurricane Deckboat 22' on May 24, 2026 was smooth, timely, and the boat was in great shape. Friendly staff, easy process -- highly recommend!

We rented a boat for the day. She ran like a top. They provided maps and GPS. Great location for…read morefishing or a boat day. We saw dolphins and collected a few shells. This was our second rental and they are good people.

My brothers and I fish a lot. We wanted to book a charter to learn the fishing way, way offshore…read more We booked John for an offshore charter and could not have been happier. John is incredibly knowledgeable of the area and the fishing. As good a fisherman as my brothers and I are, our experience and knowledge paled compared to John. He is a true professional. He has excellent equipment and knows how to use it. He will tailor the trip to what you and your party want to do, and their capabilities. He is also very willing to teach you how to fish the area. He was very free with advice on how to fish and what to do. The other thing about John is that he is a gentleman and a conservationist. He knows that the well being of the area is very dependent on the health of the ocean and the fishery. He plays by the rules. He cares. I highly recommend if you want a charter-anything from a 1/2 day of easy inshore fishing-or a full day rugged offshore trip, book with John. You will be very pleased.

This was an incredible experience. I would recommend Diamond Fishing Charter to anyone looking for…read morea fantastic off shore fishing adventure in south western Florida. We left from the Four Winds Pine Island Marina. The boat was clean, fast, and comfortable for the trip out to deeper waters. We had un unlimited supply of water and access to a cooler. But the best part of the deal is the Captain. John Diamond, owner/operator and third generation native. He knows his stuff. I had never fished off shore and he had me catching fish within minutes. My fiancé has fished with more crowded commercial tourist charters before and he had the best experience of his life! He was able to land two huge Goliath Grouper (which after numerous pics we returned to the sea) and loved it. Between us we caught 20 yellow tail snapper and a couple of Almaco Jacks. The captain cleaned, skinned, and filleted our catch and bagged them up for us. We will so be back. Best 6 hours of our VaCa!

Spent the day with Captain Robin on a boat tour where we asked to see dolphins and manatees. We…read morewere not disappointed! We found a pod of dolphins pretty quickly and had them following us for quite awhile. The manatee cove was empty, except for some jumping fish, so he took us out to a sandbar to look for sand dollars. While at the sandbar he spotted a manatee so we boarded the boat to get a closer look. All in all a great day on the water! I would highly recommend Captain Robin.

We rented a boat during a recent visit to North Captiva. Boats and Fun made the process easy and…read moreprovided great support via instructions and a laminated map book of the area. Captain Andrew who assisted us throughout the process recommended several stops and places to check out, which made our day even better. He also told us about dolphin alley and how to potentially get them to play in our wake, which resulted in 10+ minutes of dolphins playing in the wake of our boat. One of the coolest things I've ever experienced! The boat looked like it was brand new and it ran great. Definitely a recommended option during a stay in Captiva.