Took a trip for a friends gathering and was pleasantly surprised about how fun and seamless it was…read more We all loaded up on the boat, did a small safety discussion, and we were off. You got one free canned cocktail when we took off and then the rest of the bar was pretty fairly priced ($11 wine, $7 beer, few cocktail options). The boat has a bathroom on board and sides/panels on colder days or bad weather days (though still being a coat if it's really cold). Bartender was awesome, so quick and made shooters in no time. You can bring your own food and they had a TV to watch sports on!

Whitlow's is so fun and great value for your time. The boat itself is shaded and provides a light…read morebathroom and a bar. We celebrated a friend's birthday on Whitlow's and the service, music selection, and experience overall was great. The staff is professional and well trained.

Denny is amazing. We had so much fun. Learned historic facts but also current events. Highly…read morerecommend Denny and his food suggestions. -Nora and Doug

My wife and I took a private sunset cruise with Embark DC from 5:00-7:00 pm, starting in Georgetown…read moreand ending at The Wharf. It was absolutely amazing! Our captain, Denny, could not have been better -- he was friendly, knowledgeable, and made the entire experience so enjoyable. We saw beautiful sights along the Potomac, learned some interesting history, and had an unforgettable evening. Highly recommend Embark DC for anyone looking for a special way to experience Washington from the water!

Great experience with lots of views and stops to hop off and look around and visit. The tour was…read moreabout 2 hours for 40$. It's a bit confusing at the dock so make sure you get on the right boat unlike us who mistakenly got on the wrong boat and missed our tours of historic places . The ride was still beautiful. We stopped at three different locations before returning back to base. Drinks are optional for purchase down in main floor of boat along with restrooms and indoor seating.

I really enjoyed the City Cruise water taxi. The trip was very smooth-- on time, and easy to find…read more The views of the river were really relaxing, and I felt comfortable the whole time! You can sit either indoor or outdoor on the Boat. If you are indoor, remember to wear a mask. There is also a bathroom on the boat, as well as a snack counter. This is a fun experience for out-of-towners, but also something that took me quite a while to try as a local! Definitely a great experience to take a day trip to Mt. Vernon this way, which is what I did. Pros: Easy to find: The boat is bright yellow and says "water taxi" in black letters on it. It is impossible to miss it, I would think! Very helpful for the directionally challenged! I boarded at the Wharf, but I know that there are numerous stops. Quick Onboarding: Getting on-board was a very quick process. It is advised by the company that you arrive 15 minutes early, and I can see why, because the water taxi quickly boarded folks and took off punctually. I was able to book the trip online, and received a QR code, which I showed to a man with a scanner who was boarding people on the boat. Sooth trip: Overall, the trip was very calm and smooth. We made good speed, but nothing super fast, as there were many paddle boarders and kayakers on the water. I am sure that the bumpiness or smoothness of the ride is largely out of anyone's control, and more dependent on the weather, but my ride sure was relaxing! Fun facts, but not too many!: As you make your way on the water, the speaker shares a few fun facts about buildings that you pass, and some history on the land you see. I thought that the amount of information provided was good-- enough for me to learn something new, but not annoying or nonstop. Space: The water taxi that I boarded, which left around 8:30, was crowded but not overwhelmingly so. I actually found a spot near the bottom entrance of the boat, which was a pretty unique place to sit, and extremely comfy! No one else was really too close to me aside from the friend I traveled with, so I felt I had good space! Transport to fun places!: I took the water taxi from the DC Wharf, to Mt. Vernon-- the trip was about 80 minutes each way, and made stops all along the way. I could have also gotten off in Old Town, Alexandria, for example! This is a unique way of visiting these spots for a reasonable price. For what it's worth, Mt. Vernon was awesome too! Cons: - The confirmation emails that I received after booking online were a bit confusing, just in how they were organized and worded. As I read the email, it seemed that it was listing my initial departure time incorrectly. Eventually I figured out what the email intended to say, and was able to access my QR code, but I did have a little initial confusion there.

It has been awhile since I boarded their charter boat but it's still memorable. The food, decor…read moreand cruise was first class. The captain is the first minority woman to hold that honor in the DMV. This is a family owned business that is a gem to our area! Book your next party for an unforgettable experience.

Captain cancelled my party which had already been rescheduled once. Theoretically for no reason at…read moreall. At first she said weather, then that she didn't have staff. There's policy all over the website about if the costumer cancels but she expects to still keep people's money even if the party never happens because SHE cancelled which is ridiculous and corrupt.

I've done City Cruises a few times now and can honestly say it's always such a beautiful…read moreexperience. D'mani has also assisted me with several bookings and events and has been a great point of contact every time. The cruise itself is calm, organized, and the service is always good. It's definitely an experience that DC needed and benefits from, whether you're looking for something different to do with friends, celebrating an occasion, or just want to enjoy the city from a different view. And honestly, nothing beats watching the sunset on the water or enjoying brunch while cruising through DC. Definitely an experience worth trying!

I took my wife here for our anniversary dinner, we flew from Las Vegas to come to this cruise…read morerestaurant, The Odyssey. Our experience was not very good because the servers seemed to ignore us while everyone else was being tended to, we felt a bit left out. I understand we are the only Asians at this restaurant so I don't know if they prefer to tend to people who look more "American" although my family and I are citizens. We felt like we were alienated from the entire dinner experience and will not be coming back to this restaurant. I guess we have to have lower expectations since we come from Las Vegas and we are used to having the best service. I don't recommend this restaurant at all for any event celebrations as they don't really make anything special of it. Such a waste as this cruise up and down the river was such a nice experience but all wasted by their terrible service.

Definitely a must! We rented the entire boat for my friend's birthday and had a blast. Two hours…read morewas just enough time to see all the quintessential DC landmarks (and even planes from DCA!) The crew was phenomenal and the water was actually pretty cool. I'm definitely booking this again.

Absolutely fantastic experience! Our crew had an amazing time - the boat/tubs are extremely clean,…read morethe route was fun, and the staff (Doug and Tay) were extremely kind and kept the party going. I can't recommend this experience enough.

This is definitely a unique fun way to visit the famous Mount Vernon. It's $50 per person and an…read moreoptional extra $10 for a breakfast buffet (eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, pastries, croissants, OJ/coffee/tea.) I recommend the breakfast option if you have a good appetite and it's a good deal. Mount Vernon has a food court and restaurant in their visitor center, but nothing special. The $50 includes the round trip ferry cruise, admission and mansion tour of Mount Vernon. The cruise leaves at 8:30a and takes 1.5 hours to reach Mount Vernon as it passes through the Potomac River. Throughout the ride, there is some commentary about some sites we pass by. You arrive at Mount Vernon at 10a and have to meet back at the port by 1:15p, leave by 1:30p and return back to DC by 3:00p. I thought it was a good amount of time to tour the mansion and explore Mount Vernon grounds, along with the visitor center that has a George Washington exhibit. Highly recommend the Spirit cruise!

I don't know what some people's beef was with this cruise line. it was an awesome way to visit…read moremount Vernon from dc. Taking a tour bus cost roughly $100, and this was only $45 regular price- I was able to get a promo code online which made it about $40. You have to pick up your paper tickets at the dock before you board around 815. Then you set sail around 830 and arrive at mount Vernon at approx 1000 am It's about a half mile up to the house from the docks, but there's stuff to see along the way. You can also catch a shuttle that runs every so often. You get about 3.5 hours on the grounds to explore. I've heard some people say this isnt enough time - I can kind of see where they are coming from. Mount Vernon is huge! But for me personally, I felt it was enough time to hit the high lights. They served food (I had a breakfast sandwich) and drinks (including alcohol) on the boat for a fee. My coffee and sandwich was under $5 which seemed very fair. The bottom two decks are enclosed and the top is open - view from the open top deck is worth it. you pass lots of sights like national harbor, fort Washington, Alexandria, etc I went more towards the off season so in summer I can see it being packed. In fall it was not so busy that you felt crowded but not so empty that it felt weird. The boat leaves from 600 water st. I highly recommend!

Dan set us up with safety precautions to ensure that we had an excellent day on the water. He was…read morekind, thorough and helpful in lining our boat back up correctly. Demetri helped us us get set up for the "last mile" of boat operation so that it was easy to learn before we set out. Thank you both for an amazing day with Goboat. I'd highly recommend visiting this business for a fun activity and hope to be back soon! Sameer

One Star -- Safety and Customer Service Should Come Before Blame…read more I genuinely wish I could give zero stars. What was supposed to be an enjoyable birthday outing became one of the worst customer-service experiences I've encountered. Our reservation was 7-9 p.m. GoBoat emphasized arriving by 6:40 to avoid losing rental time, so we arrived at 6:15 p.m. After approximately five unanswered calls and watching groups who arrived after us get boarded first, we finally departed around 7:12 p.m. Our boat wasn't even fully prepared--the top covering we purchased had to be installed after we reminded staff. Jamal provided basic operating and route instructions, which we followed. However, no joint pre-rental inspection of the boat, electric motor, or propeller was conducted with us, so its condition was never established to us before departure. At approximately 8:12 p.m., while following the instructed route, another passenger and I heard/felt something underneath the boat. It was nighttime with low visibility, the water was not transparent, and debris was present. Immediately afterward, everyone noticed the motor/propeller making a noise it had not made previously. We immediately reported it rather than continuing the outing. Jocelyn placed the boat in neutral and steered toward the dock. Jamal and Miles were genuinely concerned and assisted us back safely, and I appreciate them. Unfortunately, management's response was entirely different. General Manager Steve immediately blamed us, stated we should be financially responsible under the waiver, and came across as rude, accusatory, and condescending. The owner, Roberto, also attributed the damage to us, discussing the expense of propeller repairs and stating they hadn't "even reached the surface" of what repairs could cost. Yet neither management response began with the most important questions: Is everyone okay? What happened? That bothered me more than anything. We followed GoBoat's instructions, promptly reported the problem, stopped operating the boat, and had never been shown the propeller's condition beforehand. Jamal also told us we weren't the first group this had happened to. I am not claiming the equipment was previously damaged--I simply disagree with immediately assigning fault without first investigating what happened. GoBoat ultimately decided not to charge us, but maintained that we caused the damage. By the time everything was discussed, it was approximately 8:43 p.m., making their offer to restart on another boat impractical due to our other obligations. We effectively received about one hour of a two-hour birthday outing. Roberto promised a gift card for our unused time, valid through October 31. As of this review, we still haven't received it. Frankly, the gift card is the least of my concerns because this experience has made me reluctant to operate another GoBoat. For a business putting customers on the water, SAFETY SHOULD BE PARAMOUNT. Management should first ensure everyone is safe, determine what happened, inspect the equipment, and then determine responsibility--not immediately blame customers and discuss how much they'll potentially owe. I appreciate Jamal and Miles for their assistance, but the delayed/unprepared departure, unanswered calls, lack of a joint pre-rental inspection, lost rental time, immediate presumption of fault, management's tone, and lack of initial concern for our safety made this an exceptionally disappointing experience. The mechanical issue could have simply been an unfortunate occurrence. Management's handling of it is what earned the one-star review. DON'T GOBOAT, GO ELSEWHERE!

It has been well over 30 years since I've been on the Spirit of Washington. I was told they're…read moreunder new management. I could tell (in a good way) from the new menu and the way the cruise went. We did the lunch cruise on a Sunday. I was with a party of 10, celebrating my mom's 60th birthday. Our server, Dwayne was really good. He was attentive, patient and very engaging. The food was pretty good. The DJ played a variety of music for us to dance to. It was a pleasant experience for all, even the 5 year old and 2 teens enjoyed themselves. Would definitely return for dinner and brunch.

BLUF: decent food and nice sunset view from the top deck, but service and ambience was lacking…read more Went with a pretty big group for a special dinner cruise this was one that was where you meet and greet with celebrities from TV. So you pay extra for that. I've been on about six cruises with this line, and the one completed I have this time for the same one I have every time. The service is at best mediocre. For example: - two of us ordered sodas, and after everyone else got their drinks we started half hours. We were told that happened the carbonation wasn't working on our deck so that during had to come up from the deck above ours. I waited another 10 minutes and the wages came by and said how about I give you something that doesn't have carbonation in it? It's pretty sad that you have a cruise and you can't serve a soda - if you get up and leave your drink for even half a second they swoop in to clean up the glasses. The drinks aren't cheap and if you just bought one and put it down to go talk to somebody to come back and it's gone it's quite annoying. - nobody on the staff and seem to know anything about the special thing that was going on. It didn't know when it would start where we should go or anything about it. If you're running a special event the people pay a premium for your staff should at least know the who what when where and how - when the special session with the TV guest stars started the sound system wasn't working very well at all and even though they have microphones you can hear anything they had to say because the speakers above us weren't on - they left the bar open during the question and answer session with the TV cast and so we have a Non-Stop din of people in the back of the room that made it even harder to hear - they did not do a very good job of keeping the food on the buffet stocked. The salad, which was the first thing you get to in the line, was empty when I got to it and still had not been filled by the time I reached the end of the line Not quite service, but something related is how incredibly loud it is when you are eating. You have hundreds of people in that enclosed space eating your plates clicking you have service staff walking around. So that's loud enough. But then you have a DJI who's supposed to be playing music and insists on talking all the time and no one I mean no one could understand what the heck he was saying because it was so loud and their PA system is so terrible. We all sat there saying we wish he would just shut up and play music Ask for the food everyone said it was good. Not great, but tasty and good. There were no complaints about the food at all. So if you go on one of these cruises and really want to enjoy yourself get your own drinks at the bar and not from a waiter or waitress, then eat your food and go up to the top deck as soon as you can and enjoy the breeze and the view.

How many times can you say, "I rented a private yacht for the night?" Not very often when you're…read morein my income bracket. But thanks to my job and my role in planning meetings and events, I got to finally check renting a yacht off my list. Setting up the event was easy. A phone call, talking through options and placing a deposit secured the boat. It wasn't inexpensive, but it also wasn't bad since food and drinks are included for our 25 guests. For food, there are several options to choose from. You can do appetizer stations, have appetizers passed while people are enjoying cocktails, or you can skip apps and just do dinner. For dinner we opted for a sit down meal, but they also offer a buffet. For the plated meal, you get to choose two proteins, a starch and a vegetable. I chose a filet, mahi mahi, potatoes and carrots. The meal also comes with a spinach salad and bread. They kept the drinks flowing throughout, and for dessert we selected the chocolate cake. The boat is nice, the staff super, and cruising around is awesome! Sadly, the food is the low point. For appetizers we had a mix of things, including seared beef, spanakopita, samosas, chicken satay and bruschetta. The appetizers were pretty good but the bruschetta was served on stale crackers. I always thought the point of bruschetta was the bread. Also disappointing was the filet and mahi mahi. The filet was ordered medium to accommodate different tastes...middle of the road, I figured. Every filet was well done and the sauce tasted only of mustard. The fish was like shoe leather...so overdone. I ended up eating the salads and sides. I know it's difficult to cook on a boat, but what about cooking the filet whole and then carving it? Or just get someone who knows how to cook. If I were to do this again, I'd skip the food altogether, or maybe just do appetizers (I can buy the bread for them). People still had fun, even with the bad food. Just being on the water makes everything better.

3.5 Stars! My friend…read moreand I were running a little behind, but were able to get there in plenty of time and did not have to take a running jump to get on the boat. (woo hoo!) We were aiming for a Cherry Blossom tour, but the trees weren't on our side this time. The cruise itself was fine, as it took us around. I didn't really notice anything of note, except the Washington Monument in the distance. (This could just be my ignorance as well.) There was a deceptive display of coffee urns and mugs, but there was not coffee. That was disappointing. The bottom deck had several chairs in rows, and upstairs there are a few tables. You can also go outside on either end of the vessel. If you are on the bottom in the back, it's really loud, as that's where the motor is. Upstairs has cushioned seats and the engine isn't as noisy up there. In the front, there is some seating as well and it can also be loud if it's windy. We didn't buy anything from the snack station as we had just eaten, but I saw that they had a decent snack selection.