We had an amazing experience renting a double-decker pontoon with double slides for our group of 10! The online reservation process was simple and straightforward, and check-in was quick and hassle-free. The boat was perfect for our group and made for a fun day on the water. I highly recommend this company if you're looking for an easy rental experience and a great time. One helpful tip: bring your own trash bags to make cleanup quick and easy before returning the boat at the end of the day. We'll definitely use this company again! read more

We had such a fun time cruising around the bay. We left just before sunset and stayed out after dark. We mostly saw shells and little fish in the water and som osprey and pelicans sitting along the route. Our guide was great! Would definitely do it again. read more

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Rented a pontoon from here. They have an easy online reservation system. There is a decent amount of parking in their lot. The staff is nice and helpful generally. Prices were competitive based on shopping around. The boat was clean and well maintained My only gripe is for first timers they should have a bit more instruction. Two things. How far you can go, it wasn't clear but we didn't go too far so it was OK. Second, taking the boat out of "parking" is not easy. After watching us struggling with it, the staff member there helped us out by jumping on board and pulling out. He then told us to call him when we got back so we wouldn't have to park. We did and he hopped on the boat, docked it for us. That's the only gripe. Other than that a great experience. read more

Yesterday, we had a PERFECT pontoon day, set up by Jared and Brendan and Captained by my husband. Jared was efficient and super-friendly with the paperwork and helping us load our cooler into the boat. It was a bit windy so he suggested a sheltered spot we could motor to, so we could chill a bit before anchoring at Crab Island for the afternoon. Brandon gave Captain husband a quick how-to on boat operation and pulled us out of the slip then handed over to us. The boat was a brand new Bentley. It was clean, and everything worked perfectly. There are a lot of outfits to choose from and prices vary a lot. Gilligan's did not 'nickle-dime' us or try to upcharge. We got great value and recommend them most highly! read more

Gilligan's Watersports - Anchored at Crab Island - Boating Near Me - Destin, Florida

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Terrible Experience - Don't Waste Your Money My fiancé and I booked a 2-hour jet ski dolphin tour with Gilligan's Watersports (10:00 AM to 12:00 PM), and it was an absolute disappointment from start to finish. First, we didn't even get on the water until around 10:10. Then we spent the next 20 minutes slowly crawling through a no-wake zone. When we finally got to open water and thought the real ride would begin, our jet ski wouldn't go over 10 MPH. We sat stranded, trying to troubleshoot for 20 minutes while the tour time was still ticking away. Eventually, the guide had to swap skis with us--clearly something that could have been prevented with a simple equipment check. Rather than going back in to get a refund or reschedule, the guide just had us no-wake around Crab Island (again, incredibly slow), and we didn't see a single dolphin the entire time. At 11:30--half an hour before the tour was supposed to end--the guide called it and told us to head back in. All in all, we got maybe 20 minutes of actual riding and zero dolphins. This was a complete waste of time and money. If you're looking to rent jet skis or go on a dolphin tour, I strongly recommend looking anywhere but Gilligan's Watersports. read more

From the time we walked up and Kiera answered every question with knowledge and a smile we knew we had the right place Captain Travis and Jared were amazing on the boat. Parasailing was a blast and you felt so safe. read more

Best parasailing experience yet...Nate and Lee were awesome. If you have never been I recommend going here they did an awesome job. Will definitely be coming back. read more

Did the 2 hour dolphin boat tour. It was awesome, be prepared to haul ass 3/4 of the trip on your waverunner which is exactly what I was hoping for. Destin cant be beat! read more

Scheduled for 5PM Sunday evening but got there 12 minutes late & the boat had already left, as expected! Luckily they rescheduled me for the following morning at 9AM. Departed right on time. Nate & Tim took care of everyone on board. Making us feel safe, secure & had a good time! What a way to start the day! read more

Great experience parasailing with Lee and Dillion! My family had a great time and made wonderful memories!

We did the jet ski dolphin tour with Nate as our guide and he was awesome. So knowledgeable and easy going and made it a great experience. We then went parasailing with Travis and Nate and they had it down which made it a great time even doing something we were nervous to do!! We loved the picture package as well! read more

My son and I did the dolphin tour on the Waverunners and it was one of the best times I've ever had in Destin. 120.00 a piece to go in search of dolphins was a great value in my opinion. The guide was a nice college age kid and we got a period of time where we could enjoy the performance of the Waverunners. Will absolutely visit Gilligans next time in Destin. read more

Gilligan's Watersports - New Yamaha Waverunners - Boating Near Me - Destin, Florida

Jet skiing was Eli was a great guide and we had an amazing time. We had another excursion booked for parasailing but unfortunately had to cancel. We canceled our booking at exactly 23 hours before, but according to their policy we were 1 hour late and they would not refund our money. We were told this is the boss rules and he checks the times. So just be careful if you have to cancel for any reason you won't get your money back. ​ read more

I highly suggest the jet ski dolphin tour. Yes you can just rent the jet skis and try to find dolphins yourself but the guided tour will show you all the secrets spots and take you to places off Santa Rosa that you can see the bottom of the ocean. Someone jet ski flipped over,our guide jumped off his turned it back over helped two guys back on And rescued his slides. I wouldn't suggest if you get motion sick due to tour being 2 hours long. read more

Gilligan's Watersports - Boating Near Me - Destin, Florida

My husband and I went parasailing. Our hosts were Tim and Nate and they were both very pleasant and helpful. They made us feel safe and secured the entire time. Can't wait to parasail again. read more

We had SUCH a good time parasailing with Nate and Lee! The water was the most beautiful blue and we were each given lots of time up in the air!! We will definitely book with them again! read more

Great parasailing experience with Captain Travis and Jarod! So much fun and very peaceful! We even got to see home dolphins on the way back. Definitely recommend! read more

Gilligan's Watersports - Parasailing - Boating Near Me - Destin, Florida

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What a joke of a company. Brought my family 45 minutes out to this run down piece of shit shack to be told that our booking was cancelled due to a little wind. We were here 30 minutes prior to our reservation as required just to be turned away when we approached the fucking shack. The lazy ass bitch behind the counter told us that we would just get a refund rather than try and reschedule us like wtf? Would not recommend this place, there's definitely nicer places than this fucking joke of a place. read more

Gilligan's Watersports - shit shack - Boating Near Me - Destin, Florida

Easy transaction. We called the day prior looking for 2 boats (we had 16 people and boats can only fit up to 12). The pricing was better than some of the other places we went. We rented from 1-5. Boats were fine, clean. Only snafu was we took the boats out past Crab Island, apparently our far enough that they radioed one of the boats to tell us we went out too far. The didn't tell use ahead of time that there were limitations as to where we could go. read more

While the two people registering us were not very welcoming, our captain and Mike (I hope I've remembered his name correctly) were fabulous. So this is my review for our boat 'Crew'. They were Very welcoming, talkative, engaging, informative and helpful. This was my first time parasailing and I was a little nervous. Mike's calm and reassuring demeanor helped to relax me as we were about to be pulled up into the air. The rush was amazing. The views were spectacular. I would return again for this crew. read more

I went parasailing for my birthday on 07/30/2019 We had a free voucher with my Gibson Beach Rental for free parasailing for one person we purchased an additional flyer and photo memory card. I believe our crew was Troy and Travis. They were really cool and the made the whole process smooth and stress free. I was very nervous but I felt very safe pretty much the entire time. We were able to bring along my bag with towels and water. They give you the option to get dipped in the water or stay dry, we chose to get dipped and let me tell y'all... heart ATTACK central. We were dipped in some jellies but thankfully were weren't stung. Also they got great pictures on the card! Don't forget to smile guys. The whole ocean is so beautiful from up there it's like a swing in the sky, we saw lots of different kind of marine life. read more

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The captain and the instructor were so nice and talked us through the whole thing. The front desk lady was so nice as well. If you are in the area, I highly recommend! read more

Parasailing...At first the price made me nervous but it was worth every penny. Are Caption and his helper Connor were awesome. The earlier you go the better because it was pretty hot. Definitely recommend sun screen and lots of it. You have the option of being dipped in the water, i would definitely do it! Came in kinda fast but it was fun. experience was about an hour and a half. Left 10 mins after we were supposed to but understandable. read more

Gilligan's Watersports - Parasailing - Boating Near Me - Destin, Florida

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I went parasailing with a group of 7 a week go. Very friendly people and the parasailing was a ton of fun! My only complaint is that the parasailing pictures the men who took us out on the boat took were definitely not worth the $25 extra we had to pay for the SD card. I've been parasailing in other places and the images were much better quality there. read more

Gilligan's Watersports - The pictures we had to pay extra for were all very blurry and most were not zoomed in. - Boating Near Me - Destin, Florida

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Back and forth with this company. After missing half of our time on the boat. He wanted to charge us more if we lost the canopy. When he wouldn't even refund us for the half day he wouldn't let us go because of the "rain". It ever rained. Really frustrated with this company. read more

Parasailing was on my to-do list when vacationing in Destin. I was going to go solo even if anyone wasn't going with me. Fortunately when we went to the condo, a welcome kit was inside with a free voucher for parasailing. Since we had two condos, we had 2 free vouchers. There was a total of six of us who wanted to go parasailing. Regular price for parasailing is $60. We had to call and schedule a time and chose 2:00 pm. We got to the location at 1:30 pm to fill out lots and lots of paperwork. We paid $20 extra so we could get our photos taken and take a memory card home. So we waited until time to get on the boat. I really thought it was only going to be the six of us but it turned out that there were also 8 other people who was also excited to parasail with us. Our group was the last and the largest. The captain drove out to the Gulf of Mexico. He even allowed my niece to get her 10 minutes of fame being captain while they were prepping for our gears. Since we were last, we watched all the other people, who went in groups of two's, before us get flown in the air, enjoy the view, dipped in the water, and come back on the boat. The winds started blowing really hard so the captain asked our group of 6 was it okay if we were to go in three's because the wind is blowing too hard. We agreed, it was already an hour since we boarded. The experience was wonderful. I loved being in the air, feels so serene. I've already gone ziplining and skydiving before so parasailing is a breeze. I would definitely do it again. I got a really good tan just by going too. read more

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Fun time. Youre in the air for 8-10 minutes but it seems longer. Really peaceful and quiet up there! The driver and deck hand were really helpful and experienced, recommend for anyone! read more

My bride and daughter went parasailing just before the COVID-19 crisis. We had a free voucher from our Gibson Beach Rental. Both enjoyed the trip and the service provided by the boat driver. While nervous about it, they said that they made it very easy and comfortable and enjoyed the ride. They did not pay the extra for the photos. We'd recommend this as a fun outing while in the Destin area. read more

It was just ok, not really worth the price, even with a Groupon. There were about a dozen people the boat and once out in the gulf each person got about 5 minutes or so up in the parasail. I have to say that the boat crew was excellent. One of my kids friends that was along got VERY sick and couldn't go up. The crew immediately gave him water and we headed back to shore. They even called ahead, told the check in people what had happened and said we should talk to them when we got back. I wasn't really expecting anything since it was not the company's fault my kid got sick. But when I approached the desk first they looked at me like they had no clue who I was or why I was even talking to them. Then they finally said "well we discussed it and we can't do anything because Groupon has your money." I hadn't even mentioned a refund and their attitude was very off-putting. read more

Safe and friendly place to rent jet skis or go parasailing. Staff is understanding and accommodating. We went here a couple times during our vacation and enjoyed it. We always felt safe and had fun. read more

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We went parasailing for the first time ever. At first I wasn't impressed. The lady at the registration booth was a bit irritated at the fact that o decided to read the waiver as opposed to signing it and moving on. The gentleman sitting next to her took our order for a purchase as he was smoking a cigarette. The trip started right in time, while in the boat, everything changed. The captain remained pretty quiet but that was because he was paying attention to driving the boat which made me feel safe. The other guy on the just was super friendly, sorry I can't remember his name, but he was funny and informative. The whole experience on the boat was great, I was a bit scared up there but we had an amazing time. read more

Parasailing on my bucket list finally crossed off and accomplished! The boat cruise heading into the island was amazing, with the beautiful view and the refreshing breeze! On the boat ride there were around 15-20 people including us. Then by pair, every 2 people will soar up 500feet high into the air which made this experience that much more thrilling! Definitely a great memorable experience, especially with the help from the guys on the boat. They explained instructions thoroughly and made sure we were having a blast! They were also the camera man. Would do it again and again and again! read more

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Booked the entire boat for parasailing. Showed up 3 minutes late for 3:30 appt to be told we should've been there at 3 for our 3:30 appt. Called in advance and was told it's ok. Upon arriving was told we were too late and boat is gone. We were only people on the entire boat so take 3 min off our trip time or refund us. Instead, we were chastised by the staff. Do NOT support this company. read more

Went on the dolphin tour ride and our tour guide was incredible she was super patient with us.

Crappy Pontoon rental. Older gentleman that didn't care that we weren't happy that our pontoon was a POS. Nothing on it worked but the motor. No radio. No horn. Gas gauge broken. No depth finder. If you rent a pontoon there it's crap shoot as to what they give you. Maybe you will get one of the nicer ones. We did not. Being a pontoon owner....I have to say we were not satisfied. The young guys working were polite. Would not recommend. Ask questions before renting and getting in a boat. read more

Rented jet skis. Fair experience, I can't say the ladies running the check in counter could get hired at Chick-fil-A as many others have commented. They hold a credit card, like literally hold the physical card. I thought that was weird and what prevents them from sitting there taking pics of each card number to then use? They have waivers on tablets but hold on to a physical card. The jet skis are in bad shape very dented and patched over several times (mine had over 6000 hours.) They treat it like a rental car and you have to document all the damage. The guide/dockhand was nice. But we were led to a dead end bay totally infested with jellyfish. Overall it was okay for $100, but I probably wouldn't rent from them again. read more

Had amazing time on jet ski and parasailing one right after another, highly recommend checking them out if you are in town for a weekend!

We did the jet ski dolphin tour and had a great time even though we didn't see any dolphins. Nate was an excellent tour guide and did his best to find them, taking us to the gulf and the bay. We did see a giant sea turtle and a barracuda. I would highly recommend this tour. It was lots of fun. read more

We went parasailing while in Destin. Scheduling was easy, the staff was professional and the entire experience was fantastic. Our captain was funny and super organized and reassured our fears and answered all our questions on the excursion. read more

First experience parasailing and it was an amazing one from checking in to the boat crew everyone was friendly and helpful! The boat crew were super friendly and made the experience a great one even though we were a bit nervous! Nothing negative to say amazing time from start to finish! read more