We had Judd as our First Mate and Jesse as our Captain and they were both great. Judd had informative narrations as we took our 3 hour plus journey along the river to North Island. We learned very interesting tidbits about Georgetown, Crabs, Shrimp, the Civil War, Yawkey family, and Baruch Family. We saw 4 bald eagles and 2 alligators plus other birds like egrets and herons. We arrived an hour after departing Georgetown at North Island where you can see an abundance of oyster shells, whelk, and other shells. There is only a 3/4 mile section of beach that you are allowed to explore. There is driftwood and lots of fallen trees. The water is very brackish and not a place you would go in for a dip (or pee) so plan accordingly. You are given a little over an hour to explore and then you head back passing the Georgetown Lighthouse. Judd had some interesting things to say here too. Then you head back going by South Island and the marshes and learn about the rice Plantations that made some people very wealthy. It's interesting to learn how they flooded and drained the fields. We also learned about the Government cut for the intracoastal waterway as we headed back into town. All in all it was a nice excursion. A tad long in the uncomfortable seats but still a fine experience. Thank you to Judd for all the history and information and for Jesse finding us wildlife along the way. read more

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Seats are cheap plastic lawn chairs bolted to the floor. Staff is rude. They overbook there trips and left people sitting on the coolers they have to sell drinks. There were absolutely no shells on island. Multiple boats go to this same island daily so I doubt there are ever any shells there. Would not recommend. read more

The first time we took this tour we LOVED it, it was amazing and we had a wonderful time. The second time we went Linda was the tour guide and she was incredibly rude. It was so bad I don't think we will ever be back. read more

Title: Disappointing Experience with Rover Tours' Shelling and Lighthouse Cruise Review: I recently had a rather disheartening experience with Rover Tours during their Shelling and Lighthouse Cruise, and I must say, it left me feeling quite dissatisfied. This was actually my third attempt to take part in this excursion, but sadly, it turned out to be another letdown. My primary grievance with Rover Tours was their excessive sensitivity to even the slightest threat of rain. On each occasion, they promptly canceled the cruise at the mere mention of a little precipitation. While I understand the importance of safety and taking weather conditions into account, their overzealous approach seemed excessive and greatly affected the enjoyment of our vacation day. The fact that they canceled the cruise multiple times without providing alternative options or rescheduling possibilities was incredibly frustrating. As someone who had been looking forward to this activity, the repeated cancellations were not only an inconvenience but also a major disappointment. It felt as though Rover Tours' commitment to customer satisfaction was overshadowed by their aversion to any potential inconvenience. When planning a vacation, it's important to have reliable and dependable tour operators who can adapt to unforeseen circumstances without compromising the entire experience. Unfortunately, Rover Tours fell short in this aspect. The lack of flexibility and accommodation demonstrated by the company left a negative impression, tarnishing what could have been a memorable outing. I would caution prospective customers considering Rover Tours' Shelling and Lighthouse Cruise to be prepared for potential cancellations and the subsequent impact on their vacation plans. While the allure of the tour may be appealing, the risk of having your excursion canceled due to minor weather concerns is something to consider. In conclusion, my experience with Rover Tours' Shelling and Lighthouse Cruise was marred by their excessive cancellation policy and their failure to provide suitable alternatives. It's regrettable that their lack of flexibility and understanding ended up disrupting our vacation day. I hope that future customers will have a more enjoyable experience, or perhaps Rover Tours can learn from feedback like this to improve their operations. Two stars only because they do quickly reimburse you when they cancel. Update- since the owner decided to verbally attack me on here in the most unprofessional way I'm taking this from a low 2 star review to a dismal 1 star review. read more

OH MY GOSH! I RECOMMEND SO MUCH! I had the best time of my life! But it was super nice! They were also nice. They beach part was super fun also! My cousin and I found super big shells! read more

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We booked our excursion for March 26 2023 on Feb 6 2023. We arrived as advised in the attached e-mail. Several other people waiting at the Broad St location as well. With no sign of a boat I decided to check website and discovered the location had changed. Luckily we had barely enough time to get to the new location. We ran into a family headed toward Broad St location and told them or they would have missed the boat. I don't know when this change of location took place, but wish we had been notified in a follow up email. It was very stressful getting to the new location on time. With all that said, once on the boat we had a great trip. The guide and captain were great. We saw lots of Eagles and got quite a few shells. read more

Rover Tours - Boating Near Me - Georgetown, South Carolina

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I've patiently waited for several years to take this trip to see the Lighthouse and go shelling. It was a great experience! Judd was very informative and knew so much about the history of the entire area. The weather was perfect and we couldn't have enjoyed ourselves more! read more

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This company does not deserve the one star I had to give to leave this review!! I booked a shelling trip for August 14, 2023. Received a text message on the evening of August 13 stating that the trip was canceled due to a vessel issue and I would receive a refund. Well, after 6 weeks and multiple calls with no answer and a full voicemail, I have yet to receive my refund. I will be contacting the better business bureau and my credit card company to dispute the charges. Do yourself a favor and do not book with this company. Rover Tours, you should be ashamed of yourselves!! read more

I would not rate this company even a 1 star. I made a reservation on 8/2/2023 for a tour while on my vacation at Myrtle Beach on 8/12/23 and my credit card was charged. On 8/11/23 I received a text stating the tour had been cancelled due to vessel issues and that a refund would be issued. It has been three weeks and my refund still has not been issued. I have called their phone and a message states that they are closed due to vessel issues. I replied to their text that stated a refund would be issued and no response. Please don't ever send this company any money. read more

We found out about this touring company from a facebook recommendation. We booked a few days out and really looked forward to this excursion. We hadn't expected to recieve so much history from the amazing crew! We learned so much and really enjoyed the boat ride to and from the island just as much as we did the shelling on the island! We chose to go right to the jetty as we disembarked from the boat first to shell hunt and found lots of shells, got to see a starfish, jelly fish, blue crabs and lots of oyster shells too! We recommend wearing water shoes so you can walk through the water, bringing a back pack for shells as well as packing sunscreen and bug spray as there are flies on the island that LOVE tourists, and packing water/snacks/a light lunch. Bring a smile and just enjoy yourself! This is one great company to tour with! Georgetown is a cute town as well, so enjoy your time there too! read more

Rover Tours - Boating Near Me - Georgetown, South Carolina

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As I waited to board the boat this lady beside me was so excited due to having to reschedule 3 times. She was like a lil girl getting a new puppy! So now we are loaded and the tour guide whose name was Paige he began to speak and said if we saw wildlife to say where it was so ppl could take photos.fast forward on our way back he saw a couple of bald eagles that we all loved to see. the captain stopped the boat so she could get some really awesome pictures. To see her smile on her face put a smile on mine! Kiddos! Any way he told us facts about the area told us different places you could go see as well. So we get to the island and it was full of sea shells. Walk to the long row of rocks and u will find a lot! I only wish we had more time on the island. My mom and myself take time to look and treasure the shells. All in all it's worth the trip !! read more

Rover Tours - Boating Near Me - Georgetown, South Carolina

What an amazing way to spend a few hours! You can buy tickets online for $35 pp for adults but I believe I saw a coupon on the official tourism website for South Carolina. Either way, it's worth every penny. The boat departs at 1:00 and 5:00 each afternoon for 3.5-4 hour tours. On arrival, my fiancé and I checked into a little kiosk on Front Street right in front of the Riverwalk and next to the 5 Rivers Restaurant. We walked down to the dock area and were greeted by the kindest and most friendly Captain and Tour Guide. The boat itself seats around 30 people in these heavy duty plastic patio type seats that are bolted to the boat. They seat two adult or three children comfortably. The boat is covered for shade and in case of any rain that may pass over. You are free to bring snacks and beverages (including beer!) in small coolers. They provide ice cold bottled water for $1 each. On the hour long ride out to the island our Tour Guide gave us the background on several water front properties and occurrences in the area over the past 200 or so years. All the stories he told were very interesting. He also wheeled out a cart filled with all the items you may find on shore. Shells, drift wood, whale bones, etc... Once on shore you are free to roam the shore line in search of treasures. When my fiancé and I went ashore we found 3 main types of shells in a variety of colors. It is an amazingly beautiful place to explore and take pictures of. Once back on the boat the Tour Guide mentioned the shells weren't that great for whatever reason and that he and the Captain felt bad about it. To make up for it, children (or any adults) were able to steer the ship as the Captain explained the basics. Our Tour Guide also spent a lot of time taking to the children and giving them small items like pirate flag lanyards. The Tour Guide truly made the experience even better than it would have been on it's own. On our ride out to the island we saw a variety of birds, including the Bald Eagle. We also saw around 7 dolphins. On the ride back we saw more birds and the cost guard doing a practice drill for search and rescue with a boat and helicopter. I can't recommend this tour enough as it truly offered a priceless experience overall. read more

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Sadly I am not able to give my recent experience with Rover Tours Shelling trip more than one star. I had heard so many wonderful things about this trip and was looking forward to bringing guest from out of state on it. On the day of our tour there was heavy rain all morning and high sea warnings until late in the evening. When we arrived the skies were growing dark, but the tour representative said we were still going out to the island. Once all passengers had boarded, the tour representative told the captain to get going before "that arrived ". She was pointing to a very dark omonious sky. We hadn't even left port when it started to drizzle. The first mate began our guided tour sharing what I assume were many interesting facts about the harbor, sea life and our surroundings. Unfortunately we could not understand a thing he said. His microphone was a mess. When a passenger asked him to fix it all he did was blow into it and continue to talk. Not good. The seas became very rough and it began to pour. We were getting soaked and the wind was blowing. The captain continued on. We were the only boat on the water during our entire trip. I wonder if the coast guard knew we were out there. The first mate gave us plastic ponchos and said,"It's sunny over there." Pointing out to the seas. After 45 minutes of rain, wind, and being splashed by high waves, I questioned the captain about Rover tours weather policy and asked how we were to shell in the rain. I suggested we turn back. Six other passengers agreed. The first mate told other passengers that I had safety concerns and that we would be turning around. He made me the bad guy. After heading toward shore for about 10 minutes a few passengers realized we were heading back and became disappointed. SO believe it or not the captain turned us back around and headed to the island. The weather was getting worse, but the captain continued on for another 25 minutes. He let untrained people make important decisions about how and when to sail. It was apparent that safety and a good shelling experience was not his priority. Perhaps money was? Finally after 2 hours of this nonsense the captain pulled on his big boy pants and told us that it was too windy for him to sail to the other side of the island. We all knew that 45 minutes into the trip. Again does Rover tours put safety first? Why did it take so long from him to turn us around? Why did we sail when the representative saw a dark dangerous sky? Why did he let passengers make important sailing decisions? Should we have even gone out if there were high sea warming? Rover tour is a bunch of amateurs. Find another tour to take. The only reason I gave them one star was because they left on time, were pleasant to deal with and did give all passengers a complete refund. It's the least they could do. Teresa d. read more

We went out with Captain Dave and First Mate Tom. Great insight into the local history and sites. Friendly is an understatement. Lucia at the kiosk is adorable and Tom and Dave keep in going. Touristy, yes. Genuine, you better believe it. These guys clearly enjoy what they do and it shows. Be prepared for the other tourists. There will most certainly be lazy, obnoxious people who are late returning, talk while Tom is speaking and generally don't listen. Nothing you can do about them. Shelling is hit or miss. We got a perfect welk shell. Look for the other cool finds up near the dunes. We found hermit, fiddler and blue crab... raccoon tracks... just don't venture into the vegetation - something about wild boars. read more

Wow!! What a day. I was expecting a great day of shelling on a barrier island, but we got way more than that. Captain Robert and our guide Judd, were both great. An hour boat ride out is highlighted with amazing scenery and a great history lesson of the area from Judd. And when we arrived at North Island the fun escalated. Gorgeous scenery on this protected sanctuary. Found some whelks, clam, and oyster shells. All were beautiful. AND, we were treated on the return ride with multiple up close dolphin spotting and even saw a bald eagle. I highly recommend this tour. We WILL be back!! read more

We had Dave as our captain and Judd as our mate. We learned so much about the history of the area from the revolutionary war to present time. The boat ride was wonderful and relaxing. The island is so private and unspoiled by development. I highly recommend this tour over the others out there. read more

Very disappointed because I never got to go on the tour that I booked for 12/11/21 . The first set back was that I booked two tickets and the site posted that I would get $10.00 when I bought two tickets. That didn't happen. Second disappointment was that since the site asked me to be at the boat at 7:30 A.M. and that for me to be there at the assigned time meant that I had to travel on Friday and rent a hotel room for the night. Which I did. The town of Georgetown is a beautiful little to visit and we looked forward to taking out boat tour. I was not aware that Winyah Bay Mercantile was linked to Rover Tours. I will say that Winyah Bay Mercantile did attempt to call me during our dinner meal. Not recognizing the business or number I ignored the call and they they left me no message. I was disappointed to learn that after traveling to Georgetown and renting a hotel room that Winyah Bay Mercantile, a company I know nothing about, would text me informing me that the tour had been cancelled. I attempted to call them and I got no answer nor any explanation as to why they cancelled. I did a bit of online checking and learned that the Winyah Bay Mercantile company is listed as a permanently closed business. I looked at the tour site and there is no place on the Rover Tour site that mentions any association with Rover Tours. Finding that bit of information sent up a lot of red flags for me. Saturday was a beautiful day for boating and I do not understand why this trip was cancelled. I know that low tide would be the preferred time for visiting the island but they had access to tide schedule long before I scheduled our tour. There was no explanation provided in the cancellation text that they sent me. Without that I can only assume that there were to few reservations to justify the trip for them. If that's the case Rover Tours clearly is not concerned with affects that their decisions place on their customers. I did get a full refund therefore it ended better then I anticipated. I wish the company the best but I will not be booking with them again read more

Saturday's (4/19/2019) excursion was a nightmare. We were completely soaked within the first 30 minutes. Unsafe boating conditions were present. The 70-minute ride to the island turned into a two-hour nightmare in 4-5 foot swells. We were not permitted to stay the promised 1 hour on the island. The captain was more interested in taking photos than keeping the vessel on point. Had we capsized, PFDs were not accessible to the packed boat. We were extremely happy to disembark 5 long hours after boarding. I will not recommend this trip to anyone. read more

We had a really good time. The guide and captain were friendly. The guide was a man with encyclopedic knowledge of the region and was a skilled raconteur. The ride out to the beach is pretty and I was kept captivated by the storytelling of this fascinating body of water and environs. The beach and shelling is spectacular. Ive never seen so many great quality shells. Only thing is you want to stay longer than the 75 min. you get on the shoreline. Its really a great trip and for us it was well worth the 80 min drive from Cherry Grove N. Myrtle Beach. Bring sunscreen, bag for shells, hat and water shoes ;) read more

They advertise a four hour tour it's only four hours because they drive so slow. The boat never made it above 1/3 throttle taking 1 1/2 hours to drive the 10 miles to the shelling island. The trip would have been way more enjoyable at a faster pace on the water giving more time on the island. The price is also pretty high for what you're getting. I won't be back. read more

The tour earns 5 stars! I only gave them 4 because they charged $28.00 for a 2 year old -no justification to charge that much for our grandchildren. The history of the area is interesting and the wildlife, shells and dolphins are all present. You cam pickup driftwood and shells once you arrive on North Island and visit the oldest lighthouse in SC. Interesting half day in a charming seaside town of Georgetown. We'll return after a storm to collect more 'treasure'. read more

It was so worth the money!! Everyone was so nice. Ben went around asking if he could take pictures for people. He was really friendly and knowledgeable. And john was the captain. I found some really neat shells...whelks and a pen shell. Another kid found two man of war shells. We even saw Dolphins up close! We have done a lot of different things on vacation here but I must say this was the coolest. I would use Rover tours again if we came back. Ben even stuck around if people wanted to ask him more questions. read more

100% RECOMMEND IT! My wife and I took the Shelling & Lighthouse Tour... We had a great time. Georgetown history, shelling, lighthouse, sight-seeing, Dolphins... an excellent tour. We'll definetly be coming back with the kids. Capt'n Dave & First-Mate Elizabeth did an excellent job. read more

We booked this shelling tour and it was better than we expected. We left right on time and the tour guide was very bubbly and social. The tour guide did seem rusty on his facts, but that's not the end of the world. I was disappointed to find that although it was reported masks were required, none of the staff even wore masks. I understand that being on a boat you are technically outside, but don't advertise it if you aren't gonna enforce it. The seats were very close to one another and masks would've provided some comfort to my family. read more

We took the Rover River Shelling Tour, Georgetown SC, on October 3, 2021 and had so much fun! We have been on the tour a few years ago and whenever our friends and relatives came to MB we also went on Capt. Rod's tour so we had a comparison. Rover River Tour was so much better and informative, crew is great!! So how many times you could go on the tour there is ALWAYS something different to see! Highly recommend this tour!! read more

Fun trip, but not enough seats for all passengers, and the boat Captain was very rude! Skip it.

Took a trip last week. Amazing ride. We saw sturgeon, the lighthouse, and had a wonderful time shelling. Was hoping for a Bald eagle, and even dolphins, but didn't get to see them. Staff was extremely professional and knowledgeable. My husband had a lot of questions / comments for our first mate and he handled it all with ease. Would do the trip again in a heartbeat. Only drawback was we did not get too close to the lighthouse and since I was sitting on the other side of the boat, did not get the best pictures. Should be able to go by it from both directions so both sides of boat get a good view. And for anyone not paying attention, this is a long trip - take snacks and drinks with you. They do have water for sale at a reasonable price, but that is all... read more

This was an awesome day spent with a very friendly and knowledgeable staff. We had a fabulous time and highly recommend

We normally would say this tour was 5 stars as we've gone three times over the years. The person at check in was friendly and the nature guide very informative. We took the first tour of the day so you'd think everyone would be in a good mood. We were sitting next to the captain and couldn't hear the narrative. My kids are finally old enough for us to listen and learn and we couldn't hear a thing. I asked the captain if there was any way to turn up the microphone as he had been changing the volume before the trip. He told me he has heard that request maybe 4 times over the years and he could hear just fine. I told him since I was young with good hearing if I couldn't hear maybe others couldn't either. The women next to me told him they also couldn't hear. He told them there was a brand new speaker over their head. It was pointed away and blended in with the ceiling. They mentioned it was angled away and he said " well turn it". I think he realized later he was very short with us and said a few times he was sorry we couldn't hear. He also seemed very rushed to get back for the next tour. He didn't try to stop for dolphins which was a usual occurrence along with letting younger kids "drive " the boat. We'll try a different company next time. This was not a cheap excursion for a family of four and simple kindness would have gone a long way. read more

Great fun, lots of information about the area. Being on the beach was amazing. Enjoyed the crew and support staff. Definetly an activity you want to do when you are in the area read more

I really wanted to like this tour. We (a family of 6, ages 16 to 57) read TripAdvisor reviews and even Yelp reviews that said that this was a must-not-miss tour while on a Myrtle Beach vacation. We were pretty disappointed with our experience and felt misled by the reviews. The history lessons about South Carolina and the Confederacy were interesting, however there was a lack of wildlife... Not sure if this was due to the time of year we went (early June) or due to other reasons. I admit however that at the end of our tour, we were able to see a pod of dolphins. However this was spotted by a guest and not the guides (who were busy talking to each other). We also saw a few crabs. The shelling experience was pretty lame to be honest. We were told to wade deep to find the bigger shells (the pictures posted on reviews led us to believe that the big whelks would be fairly easy to find here). We were pretty disappointed, as both my husband and I waded deep for the majority of our shelling time and found no larger shells. I actually found much better shells (with patience of course) in terms of quality and variety on the more trafficked Myrtle Beach. Of note, guests aboard another tour boat through a different company (who were alotted more time on the beach) seemed to find some of the bigger shells. Most of the people who found these were carrying tools (rakes, baskets, etc.) Their boat was bigger than ours, and thus carried more people. Therefore, the small part of beach we were allowed to trek was very crowded with tourists and very over-saturated. This other group did arrive before us, so they could have picked up all the bigger shells first. In addition, our boat was completely full with 40 passengers and we were forced to sit by the bathroom; due to all of its use, it smelled very very bad. I had to get up and stand closer to the front of the boat because I almost threw up several times from how bad the smell was. I personally was not impressed by the lighthouse. All in all it just seemed like a lot of time and money invested on a tour to an overcrowded beach and not very much wildlife. Maybe if guests came during a different time of year, after a big storm (more shells), or during periods of time with less tourists, it would be worth it. read more

This boat tour is great! You learn a lot about Georgtown history and about many different shells. You get to go "shelling" which pretty much means go hunting for shells. The island that you go to is called North Island, which has many dead trees and moss in cool formations. The only reason I am giving this 4 stars is because the lady who answers calls and operates the kiosk is very rude and impatient. Overall, great experience. read more

Great tour and we really enjoyed it..Definitely worth the time and money. Plus we saw dolphins..And we collected a lot of shells.

Excellent time spent on The Carolina Rover! amazing wildlife, shelling, a beautiful and natural island. Take the family for a day of adventure, history, fun and beauty. The staff and crew are knowledgeable, professional and tons of fun!! You can't beat the price for this adventure. read more

My family & I had a great time on North Island shelling. The captain was very laid back and friendly. The guide was very knowledgeable about the history of the area and about the wildlife as well. Our party consisted of 2 hard to impress teenagers and both said this was the highlight of our trip. They found a bunch of large shells to remember this vacation. read more

Really nice tour. We saw a lot of wildlife and found some nice shells. Only thing I regret is not wearing sunblock, Great tour Diana F. 04/11/17 read more

We had a beautiful time! I Said to myself this trip is so expensive , but as we went into the trip I found out that this is worth every penny we saw dolphins ,we saw the beautiful north island ,the beautiful lighthouse so this is a trip that everyone should take when they come to Georgetown . Our tour guide or the captain first mate was very knowledgable of the history of the lighthouse . Your trip will not be complete without this tour! read more

Rover Tours - Family time - Boating Near Me - Georgetown, South Carolina

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If you have one daytrip to make on your trip to the area make this it! Our guides Paige and Roger were very knowledgeable on local history and we were able to collect many many shells once on the island. Spotting many dolphins and pelicans made the trip complete! read more

Great tour! The crew is very informative and give an excellent description of the local history as you go to the shell island. They tell you how to find each type of shell. The island is beautiful and a great way to spend an hour wading and searching for shells. The tour lasts about 3 hours, which for the price is a real bargain. The lighthouse you sail close too is awesome to see. We will go again next time we are in the Myrtle Beach area. read more

Great experience. 3 hour tour of shell island and sail by Georgetown light house. The crew is very informative about both the local and natural history. We were lucky enough to see several dolphins, pelicans, and even a bald eagle. The shelling is nice to wade around searching for big hard to find shells too. Great experience. read more