Party of 8, BYOB, had the whole boat to Pusey es for a Sunset Cruise. The skies turned dark and the water was choppy. The Captain and First Mate Jen made it a GREAT EXPERIENCE! We were able to see a sunset through the storm and we had a great time! Would definitely go again! read more

Riverside Tours - Sunset through the rain drops - Boat Tours Near Me - Palmetto, Florida

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We thoroughly enjoyed our morning riverboat cruise today. The cruise left at 10 and returned promptly at 12. The cruise was narrated by a lovely lady. The tour was very informative and entertaining. Captain Ted was great-laid back and friendly. The boat was clean and wel l cared for. We would definitely go out with them again! read more

The tour was kicked off by the guide announcing it wasn't Disney and that they knew that girls were girls and boys were boys. This was a company outing - we have associates who are members of the LGTBQ community - if it had been up to me I'd have abandoned the boat tour completely. The comments made by the guide throughout the tour were both ignorant and unprofessional. I highly recommend you avoid giving this place any business. read more

This was absolutely the most amazing tour I've ever been on. The captain Tom, the first mate Jennifer, the music, the dancing, the lights and the VIEWS. I will 100% be back, the best money I've ever spent via boat!!! read more

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For the last day of my son's spring break, I found this things to do on Groupon on a spur of the moment to take a boat tour outside of Orlando!! We didn't expect it to be sooo amazing & fun!! Captain Tom and Ann are both sooo nice, friendly, cool and knowledgeable about giving us bit of history of Palmetto and I hope I'm right that it's rivers are one of the cleanest in the country!!! Not only that, but also the neighboring cities of Bradenton, De Soto, St. Petersburg!! Our group is verily lively & entertaining and we did see some pelicans and of course the Manatee, but she's just very shy and hide very quickly from us!! We love to do this again and Captain Tom suggests to do the sunset tour this time!! read more

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Took the tour today and was very impressed with Captain Tom and his tour narrator. Very informative and a real enjoyable trip. Worth every cent. M. Harrington Westminster Manor read more

Had an amazing time for my birthday! It was cold and rainy, but I still felt comfortable on the boat because it's enclosed. Great tour guide and we were allowed to sit in the Captain's seat! read more

Riverside Tours - Boat Tours Near Me - Palmetto, Florida

We had an incredible time kayaking in the mangroves! Our guide was very knowledgeable and taught us a lot about the area and the wildlife!

I had the more picturesque evening with Riverside Tours along the lower Manatee River and the mouth of Tampa Bay. Captain Tom and his Crew were professional and very knowledgeable. The cruise included history, wildlife and the most beautiful sunset I have experienced. I would recommend this cruise to everyone and will be booking again with friends and family. read more

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Currently onboard with my family and thoroughly enjoying thanks to Captain Tom and our Tour Guide, Ann! read more

Great tour of the manatee river with a historical talk on the back ground of the area.

Great place for locals and visitors. The boat is clean and comfortable and the staff is excellent. Book online for easy reservations. read more

Riverside Tours - A warm August day. - Boat Tours Near Me - Palmetto, Florida

We attended a wedding in Palmetto Fla. The Riverside boat tours was hired to shuttle people to and from the Hotel on the other side of the river to the venue. You would think it was a great idea, the problem was, THE CAPTAIN WAS DRUNK!!! The man put ever everyone one of my family and friends in DANGER!! While crossing the river he hit something and had to back up. Then when TRYING, emphasize Trying, he could not get anywhere close to the dock, missing it completely, then he got it sideways and had to pull away and then retry. When confronted he could not even put 2 words together in a sentence then we noticed the beer next to the steering wheel. STAY ALIVE, DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY read more

We did the sunset cruise. Capt. Chuck and his mate were cordial enough but...not a word spoken regarding specific highlights about the area as we cruise towards the sunset. Great music if you were of Spanish decent. I actually thought we were in South American instead of on the Braden River. Noisy clampers and passengers that enjoyed their alcohol to much as the crew watched and let them basically take over the boat. We will NOT be back and would NOT recommend Riverside Cruise. read more

Great tour. Captain Tom did a great job navigating us all around the river and lower Tampa Bay. Ann was wonderful as our narrator. She's very knowledgeable about the history of the area; and the geography as well. We thoroughly enjoyed our cruise with these wonderful people. Thank you for a fun-filled trip on the Manatee River. You will NOT be disappointed! read more

We took a tour this morning of the lower Manatee River. The boat was spotlessly clean and spacious. The tour guide was very informative and entertaining, adding some local bits of interest. The cruise was exactly two hours long. They are doing their part for clean water by stopping to pick up any floating trash. This cruise is good for all ages, safe and informative. We'll definitely be back to enjoy the views from the water side again. read more

You have three choices for a cruise: an early morning (10:00am) when it is cooler, a 1:00pm which comes with an overview of local history, point of interest, etc. Then there is the 7:15pm "sunset" cruise (I thought it was 7:30...so I was ten minutes late when I thought I was five minutes early). We took the 7:15 sunset cruise. We truly had a wonderful time. The boat itself: Extremely clean, well maintained, and uber comfortable. Captain Tom and the missus (I can't recall her name) were a delight. They chose a great faction of music to go with the splendorous milieu. We also had a little fun when we were given these plastic "hand-clappers" to hoot it up a bit along the Bradenton River Walk and then by the Pier 22 restaurant. A good, relaxing time. Not too long and not too short. Well worth the cost to cap of a good day at the beach, shopping, etc... And it's BYOB! Which means.....you can BYOB! You aren't a slave to exorbitant prices for drinks that I am sure we've seen on drink/dinner cruises where one beer could have paid for day surgery or new carpeting for your living room. We popped open our coolers, threw a few back, mingled with the other guests, and had a great time. I highly recommend. Tip the captain at the end of the cruise. Gas, insurance, and maintenance cost $$ and since the tour cost is quite low, then the two of them deserve it. PS - I was able to witness a "green flash" which I didn't know existed. It's a solar phenomena that sometimes occurs at sunset. Whoodda thunk? read more

Tom will pack you in like a sardine in his boat and his only concern is how many he can book, he is not concerned about your experience. Our trip on 9/11/16 with a group of 6 from Chicago was over booked so much that people started walking off the boat. Then Tom I will not call him a caption had a melt down. He started screaming at the paying passengers that it was are fault he was LOOSING MONEY! This guys a jerk, do yourself a favor and do something else with your evening!!!!!! read more

We were astonished when the 'Captain' tossed us off his sunset tour last night. Angry, rude and belligerent are the only words that I would use to call, 'Captain Tom'. Actually there are a few choice words I could choose, but I'll opt not to. After encouraging attendees to bring their own coolers and food baskets, he, much to everyone's surprise, he started yelling at his passengers that because we didn't 'scrunch up' to accommodate late arrivers he was going to cancel the trip. He then berated his passengers by saying what did we care most of you are using Groupon. I have chosen to only leave reviews when I experienced a positive experience in the past. I decided to make an exception in this case. In this case, this fella just doesn't belong in the service industry. Several of his passengers were there to celebrate a birthday. Others had driven from over 2 hours away. We were there to treat out of town guests. None of us left as happy customers. I would recommend this business to no one. The only reason that I left one star is because I cannot figure out how to leave a negative one. read more

My niece and I had a very nice tour today. Lots of interesting information and we viewed dolphins, manatees, interesting and varied birds. We learned how to make a living reef, walk a long way into the lower bay of Tampa on the many sandbars, and where to find a nude beach. The trip was timely and fairly comfortable. This trip was a compensation for a trip a few weeks ago that was a misfire. It was to have been an educational trip but wound up being a sunset cruise because of upcoming bad weather. The trip was ok till the sunset but my guest and I didn't care for the "party" part. The substitute however was perfect. read more

Pleasant peaceful tour of Manatee River. Been wanting to do this since I moved here and really enjoyed the views and history No dolphins but lots of jumping fish. Great seeing the Skyline Bridge from the water, as don't really get a great view when you're driving over it. Definitely recommend you take this tour. I took 1:00 Down River tour. There were 11 people on the tour with Capt Chance and BeBe, most I think were snowbirds. Not me! Enjoy. read more

Fun cruise. Had a great time. 3 stars for it being 1 hour forty minutes instead of the promised 2 hours.

Angry captain Tom canceled the cruise because he couldn't make room for late arriving passengers. Our party of 6 adults left the boat when he began yelling at the passengers and as we got on the dock, he screamed into the microphone " You all are costing me money! I am canceling!" And then told the remaining 35 passengers to get off his boat. CHOOSE A DIFFERENT TOUR! read more

Went on a "down river" day trip 2 hours (1:00~3:00), didn't realize it was also a water taxi. When got on we where told that we would be making 2 stops we where welcome to get off and get back on later. There were 11 people not from this large (loud group of around 15) When they got on boat they where friendly even offering food with to everyone. After we dropped them off Susan gave some info re: the area and the river. She also had info re: FL birds and fish. Had soft music on, after the "pick up" the music got loud (the capt. made it loud since the back speakers weren't working and the party wanted louder) In looking at the time we were not going to back until closer to 4:00 we had plans after this ride. We asked Susan re: the stop at the other location in sensing our anger they dropped the non party people off first. When the party noticed what was going on several of them got angry. We where told if we wanted to go to the next stop just stay on. One of the party goers even mentioned we should be happy) since we paid for a 2 hour cruise and we received 3 hours . We gave 1 star since I thought Susan was very knowledgeable. read more

Angry Captain Tom yelling in the microphone "you people are costing me money." Who does that at a place of business? Our full price family of 6 decided to leave during his scolding. The Captain really lost his cool...told everyone after we left to get off his boat. CHOOSE A DIFFERENT CRUISE COMPANY read more

Captain Tom was fantastic! He helped give Our youth group an unforgettable experience, him and his wife are very courteous and respectful. They answered all of our question completely making the reservation process a pleasure. They navigated the waterways and open waters with tremendous caution and with the ease of professionals, no sea sickness for any of the 44 passangers in our party. The conference was "forming Gods army on the high seas" the youth at our church had fun and learned new things all at the same time. We were able to bring our own drinks and food so there was no extra cost unlike most other tours or crusies. Again a special thanks to Captain Tom and his wife for all their help and encouraging words. I'm sure we will be seeing yous again in the near future. May God continue to bless you and your family and your delightful business. ~La Iglesia Apostolica Profectica International~ read more