What a great time!
Everyone involved in this business is as friendly as can be. From the woman running the ticket booth on shore to the three member crew, they were accommodating, friendly, and professional. Despite not breaking from their "pirate shtick," they were extremely safety oriented.
Most people getting on the boat will not even recognize their safety measures. However, I worked on boats for years, and I noticed all their little bits of attention to detail in that regard. That made me feel confident that my family, including two little children, were not in for any unpleasant surprises.
Of course, it wasn't just a well run cruise, but it was a hell of a lot of fun. If it had just been the adults, it still would have been a nice harbor cruise. The captain had a great wealth of knowledge about local history and pirate history. As a native of Cape Ann, I can confirm that his local history knowledge was flawless. I'm no pirate historian, so I can't attest to that -- but the stories were fun just the same.
Now, add in the kids, and we're talking about 2 hours of sheer joy. My 2 1/2 year old daughter and the other kids on the boat were enthralled with the crew, who paid attention to all of them - accommodating the confident, and drawing the shy ones out of their shells. The captain let all of the kids sit at the helm, steering the ship, wearing pirate gear that they keep on board for fun photo ops for the kids. At the end of the trip, they bring around a little "treasure chest" with souvenirs for the kids.
This is an all-around great activity for adults, kids, or the whole family. read more