This was our first experience doing a shelling tour and chose Sand Dollar Shelling because of…read morefamily members who have taken tours with them. We are so happy that we went with this company because they deliver above and beyond the expectations. Our tour guides were Joey and Taylor Nadotti who were very knowledgeable about the area and what to expect and look for while we were on the boat. I really enjoyed both of them and we will definitely be back to tour again and will definitely be requesting them for our tours. Taylor walked the islands with us and found us all kinds of unique shells, sand dollars, and conch's. Joey turned the boat around so that the dolphins would play in the wake. He also kept us all informed about any weather conditions that might have affected our trip and diverted us to another location while the storm passed by and then finished our excursion. We got to watch the sunset over the Gulf and then a beautiful ride back to the dock. If you're looking for something that is very exciting and informative, then you have to book with them. Our granddaughters fell in love with them both.

I chose this particular boat tour due to the rave reviews…read more First of all there was no stand or building where they are located, so we walked around the parking lot and shopping center until we could get in touch with the driver. Turns out you just have to look for their truck in the parking lot. That wasn't made clear at the time of booking. It was a fine boat ride, but felt more like a water taxi than a tour. We saw dolphins on the way to go shelling which was neat... but so did every other boat in the vicinity. We only had about 1.5 hours to go shelling which wasn't nearly enough time. Keewaydin Island was beautiful but we didn't have time to enjoy it. After our boat taxi ride was over we tipped the driver $30. Mind you this ride didn't include food, drinks (other than water) or snacks. A day later we got an automated email asking us for a tip (if we hadn't already). Mind you we did NOT take a private tour- it was two groups of 3 people. The email said: "If you have not tipped * Boat captains often rely on tips as a significant part of their income, particularly in the tourism industry where tipping is customary. A 20% gratuity or Minimum of $100 per Captain on Private tours is customary for this type of tour. If the captain was amazing feel free to tip more." Excuse me? We paid $370 for 2 adults and 1 child for a less than 3 hour excursion to Keewaydin Island. They were expecting an additional $50-$75 in tips? This was by far the most expensive boat "tour" we've been on, and we've done many- Italy, Mexico, Zimbabwe, Hawaii, California, Maine, and three others in Florida. I wrote the company an email bc they send out 2-3 emails afterwards asking you to leave a review... and if it's not 5 stars to email them directly. They never responded. Two sets of my in-laws were wanting to go on a tour in the coming weeks and we told them both not to waste their money on Sand Dollar Shelling. So now I'm telling you too.

I want to give a huge shoutout to Six Chuters Charter in Marco Island for making my birthday…read morefishing trip unforgettable! My wife booked a deep-sea fishing adventure for me, but as the day approached, the weather took a turn for the worse--cold and windy conditions. However, the team communicated with us ahead of time, offering the option to reschedule or go ahead with the trip. We decided to go for it, and I'm so glad we did! Captain Kevin met us at Rose Marina, and we set off full of anticipation. Unfortunately, the Gulf was too rough, so we had to turn around. Instead of giving up, Captain Kevin took us to some backcountry fishing spots to wait for the winds to settle. After a couple of hours, he offered us the choice to either call it a day and go back without any charge, or try again to head out to the Gulf. We decided to give it one more go--and this time, it paid off! Captain Kevin got us on a huge variety of fish, including Snapper, Mackerel, Ladyfish, Grouper, and even a Lionfish! We caught fish non-stop until our cooler was packed full, and we had an absolute blast doing it. What could have been a canceled trip turned into the perfect day, all thanks to Captain Kevin's persistence and dedication. As a bonus, Captain Kevin cleaned 72 oz. of fresh Snapper fillets, and we were able to feed our entire party of nine at Cocomo's! Thank you, Captain Kevin, for going above and beyond to ensure we had such an amazing time. We'll definitely be back for more!

We had a great time with Capitain Kyle he was super patient and once we got our live bait our…read morefamily was catching fish. We were able to keep 8 good sized ones and he was kind enough to filet them out and we took to CJs by the Bay and they made up an appetizer out of our catch. Would use again when we come back to Marco Island. Thanks Captain Kyle!

My friends and I declare that the Pirates of Marco Island is our FAVORITE outing...and we all live…read morehere! We had such an amazing time out on the boat for the sunset cruise. For $30 in season, this is a great deal for a 1.5 hour boat ride that leaves from Rose Marina. The boat had about 100 guests on it that night and still didn't feel too crowded. There aren't seats for everyone, but you really do just want to stand along the side of the boat for the best views as you cruise alone the Marco Island canals up to the Esplanade and then out to the Gulf for the sunset. The DJ and cruise director was outstanding, keeping us all dancing and having fun as soon as we stepped onto the boat. The bar serves beer, wine, and a few cocktails, as well as soda and water. The bar line was quite long and slow-moving as soon we boarded, but it opened up a bit halfway through the ride. And definitely bring cash (there's a $3 service charge for using credit cards). We all got off the boat and cannot wait to do this again!

Booked this on a whim and so glad we did! We did the sunset cruise with our 2 kids and we all had…read moreso much fun! They got our kids dancing and made sure everybody on the boat was having a good time. They serve beverages on board which was great! Our kids wanted to do it again the next night. Watching the sunset over the golf was amazing. One of the best things we did on our trip!!

Todd and Max were wonderful for our trip with my family. I really appreciated that he cancelled and…read morerebooked when weather was bad one weekend - which was a great call! It was an overall amazing experience. I appreciated their covid safety measures especially around my elderly grandmother. Would recommend!!!

Great sunset sail last Saturday night! Perfect for visiting family or with friends. Can't wait to…read morego again!

We had a lovely gondolier for 6 family members during Waterfire in Providence on August 29th. It…read morewas tricky finding the launch spot, especially because it was getting dark. But it was a relaxing ride. The staff gave us Italian cookies and glasses for the beverages we brought along. Blankets were available but it was a warm evening. Plenty of parking nearby. Lots of restaurants nearby to have dinner before the ride.

Our experiences on La Gondola rides have always been good, but the last two have been tremendous -…read morethe warmth of the gondolier and the assistants has been so very welcoming. We just feel like we are part of the family! So we send our deepest thanks to all of you!

I highly recommend it next time I visit the Naples Area water way it's worth it and great price for…read more2 1/1 hrs

We had the most amazing time with captain Stephen and co captain Sandy! He went out of his way to…read moremake sure we had the most amazing experience and drove us to the boat vendors to get ice cream on our way back. Highly highly recommend!! We will be back!

We moved to Naples a few years ago and have a small boat, but have not have much luck fishing. For…read moreour son's birthday, we researched and determined that a fishing charter with Captain Pat would be the best way to improve our catch. (He already has lots of interest in fishing). This is probably not Captain Pat's typical charter, but he adapted to the situation very well. (He has children of his own and understands that sometimes they listen differently to strangers / teachers than to parents.) The Gulf was rough that day, but he picked several spots in the backwaters. Our son (8) learned a lot. Our daughter (6) loved catching fish, too. A few notes. While the boat is not large, he is an excellent captain --handling any waves and wakes that we encountered along the way smoothly and gracefully. Very smoothly. He was on time, polite, professional, and flexible. Anytime that the kids needed another shrimp or another casting lesson, he was on it.

Great day fishing with Capt. Pat. He knows this area inside and out. He put me on some great…read morefishing and made the day a wonderful experience. Looking forward to the next trip!

5 Days. 9 Friends. 5 Crew Members. Nearly 5,000 lbs of Fish!…read more Just wrapped up the most epic fishing trip with American Hunter Fishing and WOW--what an unforgettable experience! From sunrise to sunrise (yes 24hrs most days), the Gulf showed off with perfect weather and nonstop action on the water. Huge thanks to the dream team: Captain Brycen - steady, strategic, and a legend at the helm First Mate Matt - always one step ahead Deckhands Nico & Wyatt - nonstop hustle, keeping us ready and reeling ‍ Chef Jeff - kept us fueled with food so good it deserves its own charter Almost 5,000 lbs of fish caught, countless laughs, and memories we'll be talking about for years. If you're thinking about booking a trip--this is the outfit & crew you want. #FishingTripOfALifetime #AmericanHunterFishing #AmericanPatriotFishing #DeepSeaDreams #HookedForLife #CharterKings #GulfAdventures #TightLines

Our party of 5 did a Tortugas trip the 1st week of April. Friday night and Saturda were pretty…read morerough seas with 2 of our party getting seasick. First stop was around 9pm after a 6 hour ride. Fishing was slow. Captain Bryson headed south for mutton snapper grounds. Around daybreak we had fishing chaos for a couple of hours. Big muttons, big porgy, some mangroves and vermilion. Bite stopped and captain moved multiple times looking for fish. We found plenty of American Reds which were out of season and forced some of the moves. Picked up a few keepers (mostly vermilion) at most of the spots but nothing significant until a late afternoon move to a ledge. More fishing chaos with huge porgy, red grouper, mutton snapper, big mangoes, with some yellowtail and vermilion mixed in. It was incredible well into the late evening. Fish stopped biting. Many ate a late dinner. The tide changed and fishing chaos resumed until early morning and we headed for Marco. We filled 3 coolers with big fish. Wish I could post pictures! It was my 5th trip on the Hunter. I live on Marco and can deal with the inconvenience of weather cancellations. The other 4 in my party had to deal with an inconvenient weather cancellation last fall wasting PTO and vacation. This is a bucket list opportunity for a lot of quality fish which are hard to come by inside of 80 miles from Marco Island. The captain and mates worked hard and were accommodating and energetic. Food was excellent. Never a reason to be hungry (unless you were seasick). I have noticed on my trips that hot afternoons produce little action. Sunrise, sunset and night fishing produced the most action and mitigated shark and barracuda pilfering which would be abundant on daytime wrecks. I used the boat rods which are designed to rest on the rail when you are fighting big fish. Snapped my favorite grouper rod on a prior trip. But you must bring your own terminal tackle (sinkers, swivels, hooks, etc,). Bring 4-10 ounce sinkers because of huge tide fluctuations. Plenty of different circle hooks depending on what the action requires eg. Yellowtail and vermilion vs big mutton, porgy, mangrove and grouper capable of straightening weaker hooks. I think the Tortugas trips are more predictable to produce fish than the Pulley Ridge trips. It's anchored over structure vs drifting. Fast current is hard to fish in 200 feet of water when anchored. It can be a nightmare in 800 feet of rough water while drifting and trying to maintain contact with the bottom. The Hunter is smaller than the Patriot with fewer amenities. The trade off is more space to fish with fewer fishermen resulting in fewer tangles. Tangles are truly frustrating when the bite is on and you are missing out on fishing chaos!