We went on the Lower Dells jet boat adventure. This was our favorite part of our trip to The Dells!…read more The price for tickets is $37 per adult. But if you purchase them online you can get $6 off each adult ticket. The price is the same for the lower and upper dells tours. The lower dells tour seems to depart more frequently. The upper dells tour is a little longer. Parking was plentiful for the Lower Dells. There's bench while waiting for the next tour. Be prepared to be soaked. They don't sell ponchos. You will be drenched from the power stops. The spin outs are fun but not as wet. Literally every seat will be wet. No life jackets for adults but children are seated towards the center of rows and do get life jackets. Our tour guide Nate was great. He was very knowledgeable about the scenery. The rock formations are very pretty. Your tour guide gets very close to the rocks. One guy in the front row reached out and was able to touch it. It's a great activity to get a break from the heat. But you should have a change of clothes ready, a towel, a swimsuit on, or be prepared to go back to your hotel for a shower afterwards. It was well worth the ~$30 for the tour. We liked it so much we considered going on the upper dells tour the next day but the timing didn't work out since those tours are more limited.

Our visit to the Wisconsin Dells area began with a journey along the River Walk. To our left was…read morethe scenic Wisconsin River and towering above to our right was the tourist-trap laden Broadway. In between, the River Walk features stories of the citizens of the Dells from the past and present. The stories displayed along the walk perfectly lay out what the Dells are - A narrative of 'loving and protecting' the nature while operating an area that exists solely on the exploitation of said nature. This is where we meet our Upper Dells Boat Tour. The Dells Boat Tours leave from a handful of flights of stairs down from the River Walk to a dock on the river. An elevator from street level is available to access the docks as well. I brought our youngest down the stairs in my arms while my wife brought our other children down in the elevator. Arriving at the front of the dock I was refused a seat as my whole party had not arrived yet. I explained my wife was on route in the elevator and would be joining momentarily, this was met by the greeter with a "We know what we are doing." My wife explained when she made her way down that voyage on a boat was first come first serve and apparently the ability to sit served as a queueing mechanism. Sure! The boat ride itself? Comfortable enough. Old boat, river tour. You know what you are getting. The boat had access to two stops (Witch's Gulch, Stand Rock) for some interaction and up close views of the natural wonders formed in the area. At face value there, the whole tour was pretty good. Nice sites. About two hours of activity. To me though, the tour, and all of the Dells collapses underneath the weight of its own hypocrisy. The guide and captain both carried forward the "We know what we are doing" and "Loving and protecting nature" attitudes introduced at the beginning of this experience, while also contradicting themselves throughout. The tour references George H. Crandall, speaking lightly to his idea that 'No man can own the Dells' and his quest to purchase and preserve as much of the land as possible to promote stewardship over private exploitation. You are then dropped off at a raised platform hammered over the Witch's Gulch area to walk to a concession stand and souvenir shop built onto a paved area. Early on in the tour the guide points out and celebrates a carving into the rocks by Leroy Gates, an early entrepreneur operating Dells Boat Tours, advertising himself and his tours. Later in the tour at Stand Rock, security cameras and warning signs surround some exposed sandstone where curious tourists have etched initials over time. Also carved into that sandstone? Another concession stand where you can purchase a beer or a $55 sweatshirt. Now, I'm not encouraging carving into the rock but these messages feel mixed. Stand Rock also presented a bizarre presentation of a dog jumping over a 5.5 foot chasm up 46 feet in the air, to recreate a famous photograph taken by local H. H. Bennett in 1886. Bennett is celebrated for his early photography work documenting the Dells area and discovering many of the natural wonders. This beauty is yours because others before you loved it - and we honor them by hanging signs everywhere, selling slushies, and installing this safety net between rocks in case something happens when the dog jumps? One of the more disappointing tid-bits passed on by our guide was of the local Ho-Chunk people being formerly known as the Winnebago, which was a name they did not choose for themselves and was ultimately viewed as a slur. The Ho-Chunk had to fight for many years to have their name Federally recognized. This story was told in sort of a jokey fashion, with the English translation of Winnebago landing like a punch line. It was also mentioned later in the tour that one of the Dells Boat Tour vessels includes Winnebago in the name. Near the end of the tour we are pointed toward the Kilbourn Dam which is presented as a historic and wonderful achievement. The Dam split the Wisconsin River and raised the water level of the new 'Upper Dells', which concealed many of the natural structures H. H. Bennett had previously documented. He was a fierce critic of the Dam, and died the year it was built. I am not saying we shouldn't encourage preservation and take the opportunity in our lifetimes to preserve nature for future generations to enjoy. I have loved every visit to a National and State Park and we are teaching our children to do the same. What I would prefer, is that we pick a lane here. You either rally against defacing nature, or you pump tourists up and down a river to your concession stands every 1/2 hour. You know when you meet someone who isn't genuinely presenting as themselves and it makes the whole encounter feel weird? That is essentially the feeling I left the Dells and the Dells Boat Tour with. We declined leaving with a souvenir photo.

Well worth the money. Everyone, from the concessions workers to the guy driving the duck were…read morewonderful. The driver, a University of Wisconsin student, made it a lot of fun.

Tour guide was very funny. The scenic tour was a little pricey but very fun! It was a good…read moreexperience but definitely it something you need to do more than once.

had a group of 14, alex and britney were literally so fun so awesome so amazing love them so much…read more i hope y'all intend to keep them because they're soooo amazing and truly did make the experience better. britney is iconic and alex is actually so hilarious with how he engaged with the big group. love them both!! tipped them great and I hope to see them again next year if we come again. :) pls show this to them so they know the yelp review was left.

We pre purchased tickets. As we were traveling we weren't sure we would make it on time. I called…read moreand I was told we couldn't cancel. Then we get a call asking if we could come early as we were the only ones to book the 4:30 tour. As we were still traveling we could not do that, and I offered to let them cancel. I was told no and to show up for our tour. We did, and were informed we wouldn't be going as we were the only ones that booked. They wasted our time and finally refunded me without apology. We traveled specifically to Wisconsin Dells for this tour. Had they told us on the phone when they called we could have booked with another company, but by the time they finally refunded me 5 minutes before the tour everywhere else had already left for their final tour.

I'm soaked, my glasses are dripping, and I couldn't be happier! This jet tour was as exciting as it…read morewas informative! Our tour guide, Ben, was comical and cheesy in the best way. Between describing the Dells' breathtaking rock formations and history, he safely and splashily zoomed us around the Wisconsin river! What a blast! This tour was far more thrilling than expected!

If you're going to do this experience, I definitely recommend doing it on a beautifully hot summer…read moreday like we did! We had a great adventure on the water and got soaking wet. That said the warmth that day meant this wasn't uncomfortable. The music choices were great and the tourism information imparted by our tour guide was a great perk! Our young child was seated between us for safety which was good. This was really fun. Thanks Captain Jake!

Our tour guide Josh was a hoot. I think that makes a really big difference. He's been working there…read morefor 35 years!! Can you imagine. He says the owner is a single 88 yo woman who has been offered a lot of money so investors can come in and build a resort on the property. It's already surrounded by resorts and trees are falling because the ground is eroding. It's sad. it's so beautiful down in there. Our horses names were Matt and Major. Josh works with the same two horses every time her works. They both stand in the same place each shift and also know when shift is over at the end of the day. Josh got everyone on the wagon to get involved and engaged on the ride. We had some great laughs and took some great pictures. If you're ever up that way it's well worth the stop to take the tour. Josh also said they are always hiring. It seems hard to find people who want to be tour guides up there in the canyons. He said he makes pretty good money. Ask for Josh and his team Matt and Major. You won't be disappointed.

Out of everything I did in Wisconsin, this was my favorite thing and it was actually a last minute…read moreaddition to the itinerary. I did 0 plans to do this. I love cave tours - which is what I was looking for - and came across this tour. This was very different than anything I ever done before which is why I ultimately chose it. And I made a good choice. I did not book ahead of time. I just showed up and they were able to take me. The whole thing lasted about 40 minutes. I wish it was longer. The pulled horses will take you through the canyon while the tour guides talks about the area, the canyons. It takes you through winding rock formations and narrow alleys. It is really beautiful and it doesn't matter how hot it is, it feels so good on the tour due to all the shade. It was very hot on the day I went but it felt great! We also got to see on Deer on the tour! It was a lot of fun and I did buy a t-shirt because I liked it so much. I would definitely recommend to check out at least once!

I would highly recommend Lake Wisconsin Cruises. We did a private charter this past Saturday for my…read moreBachelorette party and it was amazing. Everyone had a great time, plenty of room, we could bring snacks, there are bathrooms on board, and the staff was wonderful. We are already trying to plan a day to try one of the other cruises they offer. Can't wait to do it again!

What a great crew and you cannot beat the amazing views! It was a cloudy day and it was still…read moreawesome! Highly recommend!

This place is really cool and fun if you like trains and it is scenic to I also saw a deerread more

We had such a wonderful ride on the train today!!…read more The train follows the original 1850s rail bed, through beautiful Wisconsin forest land. If one wants an interior view of local flora & fauna, this is low energy, fantastic way to explore it! Children & adults (esp those who are children at heart!) will thrill at riding the small scale train. We loved watching the engine be turned around on the hand-operated round table. Our favorite part of the visit was the personal attention we received from Conductor Greg! We visited on a late summer Thursday afternoon when the rail was not as busy, and he treated us to a personalized narrated tour of the history of the railway as well as the fauna, flora, & major attractions of the area. Thank you so much, Greg!! All told, this & the Wisconsin Dells Boat Tours were the highlights of our trip! From a nature-loving local's perspective, some other great places to visit: Devil's Lake, Pewit's Nest, Parfrey's Glen, & the Chapel Gorge trail. If one is interested in Native American culture, there are mounds found at Man Mound Park & Kingsley Bend at Devil's Lake.

The whole crew over here at Dells Watersports were amazing. We were out there with our crew of 11…read morewe rented a pontoon boat and two jet skis and they were very accommodating to helping my mom get down to the water because she has a little bit of walking issues. They got us on our boat and on our way to have a great time out on Lake Dalton if we ever are in the Dells again, we'll definitely come back!

Poor customer service! We had paid for a 3 hour rental today (9am to noon)...they sent a chase boat…read moreout at 11:30 to find us, stating we are overdue. We took the Jetski back promptly, despite having further plans for the last 30 minutes. When we returned we asked the front desk for a refund for the 30 minutes we were charged for, but did not receive. They refused adamantly and continued to argue and speak to us very rudely. By the end, we simply gave up and told them good luck continuing whatever scam you're running. These people have no concern for their clientele or repeat business. With the competitors on the lake, I'd certainly try some other place before this one again.

I've been to the Dells many years and never knew this area existed. Better yet, it's only a few…read moremiles from the campground we usually stay at. We all rented a kayak here and enjoyed the peace and quiet while floating down the water. Can't remember exactly how much we paid for a rental, but seemed pretty affordable for a few hours. I'd definitely come back.

This was super easy and fun for my first kayak experience. I really enjoyed my day. Staff was…read morefriendly and helpful in helping me figure things out

Had so much fun on the ghost walk! Our guide gave us such a informative spooky and great historical…read moretour! No jump scares and I was glad because my kids are chickens.

From the owner: Haunted history in the Wisconsin Dells. Real ghost stories, real paranormal experiences, real…read morespooky fun!