Phenomenal scuba courses! DAYO scuba provides a variety of courses from open water diving for…read morebeginners and those looking for a refresher, as well as more advanced courses such as cave diving, technical diving, etc. They are conveniently located in Winter Park. The business is easy to find. Website is super user friendly and organized. The shop has everything you could need for purchase or rental. My fiancé and I were **super** beginners and the instructors were patient, thorough, and extremely helpful during our course. They instilled confidence within us throughout the weekend. Their instructors are highly trained and very very friendly and helpful!! We loved the DAYO staff! They are honestly like family. We look forwarding to booking scuba trips with them. You can't go wrong with this company, no matter what your scuba needs are! Highly recommend! Shoutout to our instructor Tim.. also Mr. Ken and Jim! Amazing people!

Denise and Buzz have a great shop for all your SCUBA needs. All the instructors are avid divers and…read morelove sharing their passion for the water. We booked a SCUBA class for my son in law to get him certified for our family trips coming up. Maybe we can jump on their Bonaire trip next spring!

It is an absolute pleasure to do business with them! I've been diving since 2006 and they are the…read moremost honest operator I've dealt with in Orange and Seminole counties. The owner, Kevin, is amiable fellow who values the diving experience and takes much care to ensure the same for his students and customers. Plus, if you like dogs, he has two little welsh corgis that are friendly... I think he pays them under the table;-)

i've been dealing with Kevin for many years and I've never had anything but a pleasant experience,…read morevery knowledgeable and patient.

If you want to be the first on the water in the morning to see the manatees before the crowds of…read moreother people get out there, this is the place to come. We set out before sunrise and were ready to go once the sun hit the water in the morning. Our guide was the perfect mix of hands off and hands off. He showed us how to attract the manatees and interact/passively observe them, and created a shared group experience that you could partake in, but also let us wander about in our own and have intimate one on one time with the manatees, which I didn't see happening with the other groups that came out into the water later, they seemed more uptight and controlling of their groups. This was the highlight of our Florida trip and I'm so grateful we picked the best company to go with. They supplied snacks and drinks on the boat and a changing room after getting out of the water. The wet suits and snorkel gear they supplied was very quality and felt new. The main store we met at had lots of manatee goodies and snorkel and scuba gear. It was very cute and were pleasantly greeted by the boat captain when we came in in the morning. It felt like a big happy family of a crew and we had the greatest time out there. I will never forget having a manatee come hug me and try and eat my hair. We had a total love fest with each other for a solid 2 minutes, and the manatees were very interactive and curious and playful in general which made for a great experience. We were in silver springs that day and we saw so many manatees. This crew knows where to go and makes for the best experience. It's flexible to spend as much time as you'd like in the water and get out whenever you've felt you've fulfilled yourself and then enjoy sitting on the boat and watching the manatees go by on the beautiful morning.

This was our second time using Birds to swim with Manatees and we will choose them every time now…read more Had an amazing experience with Captain Misty and Guide Gina. Highly recommend the 6am tour as you get viewing time before it gets really busy. I really appreciate Birds Underwater as they do a great job educating you about the manatees and how to passively observe. Made the manatees more comfortable and as a result we got to have some amazing interactions with them.

What a wonderful evening! We did the sunset cruise to celebrate my 50th birthday, and it was one of…read morethe highlights of our girls weekend in Mount Dora. The captain and crew were welcoming, friendly, and knowledgeable, making the experience both relaxing and enjoyable. The boat was comfortable, the scenery was beautiful, and watching the sun set over Lake Dora was absolutely breathtaking. We loved learning a little about the area while simply sitting back and taking it all in. If you're visiting Mount Dora or celebrating a special occasion, I highly recommend adding this cruise to your itinerary. It's peaceful, beautiful, and a perfect way to end the day. We made wonderful memories and would absolutely do it again!

We had a really fun time on this water cruise today! Our captain Felix was really fun and…read moreknowledgeable about the lakes and areas in Mount Dora! He took us through the most beautiful canal, Dora Canal, it was once of a lifetime adventure! We went to The Fish Camp for lunch and it was delicious! I would highly recommend taking this little three hour cruise with this company!

Haley was awesome and so was Captain Lee! They went above and beyond to make our tour amazing! We…read moresaw lots of dolphins!

Loved the experience - we went on a whim. Weather tried to be temperamental which impacted the…read moreexperiences fully but stand up company and our all worth it!

All of it. We had Nat and Emerson lead the way. She answered questions to a young boy and everyone…read more She was fun and informative. Emerson too!!

I don't know where to start…read more This was the absolute best day. We started at the River Ventures Dive Center at 6:30AM, where we were offered coffee, tea, hot cocoa and snacks, and spent the next bit with an educational video and a wetsuit fitting. From there, we took a bus to the dock, in the most gorgeous sunrise light. let by our Guide Nat. Captain Emerson met us at the covered, heated pontoon, and our group set off through the water, for the protected manatee zone. The water was FULL of our sweet sea potatoes... in fact, it was difficult to even get off the boat because our new friends swam right up to the ladder. Nat had given excellent instructions. We immediately leaned into our pool noodles and gently followed her lead through the water. It took just moments before manatees were all around us. We stayed calm and quiet, and they either continued snoozing, or swam up to investigate us. Nat was on point with the camera, and with showing us things like the tarpon and sheepshead fish, and she was also shared little details about the manatees as we floated. Of course, with nature, there are no guarantees, and I really had no idea what to expect, but I was absolutely delighted by the interactions we had. The cold snap absolutely played into our favor, and I am so glad we showed up with our adventurous spirit. When we returned to the boat, there were more snacks, as well as hot cocoa, coffee, tea, and a variety of drinks in the cooler (water, beer, wine, soda, and white claws). We were so grateful for the boat covering and heater as we made our way back to the dock, and we had great chats with Nat, Emerson, and the other group on our tour. Was it cold? Sure. But the water felt great at 72ºF, and our wetsuits did a wonderful job of protecting us and keeping us buoyant. Our experience was incredible, from booking, to engaging with the staff with any questions we had, to the actual tour itself. The photos and videos were absolutely phenomenal, as well, and we were happy to purchase the package, as well as some gifts from the souvenir shop. We will be back for more manatee viewing, or to try one of their other tours. Thank you so much for the best day!

One of the best things about the trip was Captain Sean. He was a great guide. He was filled with so…read moremuch information and so many fun facts. He had a great sense of humor. He also knew where to find all the manatees. Also our photographer Serena was great. The photos she took were unbelievable. Well worth the money spent. Which was not a lot considering the amazing pictures we got. It's going to capture our memories at snorkeling with manatees forever. It was on our bucket list of things to do and I totally am amazed by the experience. It wouldn't have been the same without the captain in the photographer. It was just the perfect day.

Awesome adventure they took our time with us and the tour guides really take such special care of…read morethese precious manatees. We loved it!!

What an AWESOME day! Crystal River Kayak Company & Dive Center made for such a great experience!…read moreThe staff were friendly and informative, equipment was clean & well maintained, and check-in/out was simple and quick! We rented paddle-boards for 3 hours to go visit Three Sister Springs at the Crystal River Wildlife Refuge, and it did NOT disappoint! You cannot swim at Three Sister Springs unless you arrive by watercraft as the refuge is protected, so going on an adventure via paddle-board was a nice relaxing way to explore the area. We saw multiple manatees and even got to swim with them when they came in the refuge (SUCH A COOL EXPERIENCE)! The coolest thing about the manatees was how much trust they put in the people visiting their home. There was a mom and calf swimming right up to people, and I thought how cool it was that she put that much trust into her surroundings as to show off her baby. I highly recommend checking out this company next time you're visiting the area!

MANATEES ARE MAGICAL! We saw well over 30+ manatees on our late January kayaking outing. We rented…read morea 2-seater top kayak (comes w paddles and life vests). And from the staff to the dock hands, to the quality of the vessel and cleanliness of the shop: 10/10. A guide handed us a laminated map (nice touch) and told us where to head for manatee sightings. And even pointed us to a cove that homes a lot of turtles and alligators. We saw it all! They have volunteers overseeing the 3 sisters springs, to help monitor the safety of the manatees (and scold ignorant people lol). Great time! If you're unsure, let me assure you.. just book.

Had a great time paddleboarding with Otter Paddle Orlando! It was a fun way to spend some time…read moreoutside and explore the area from the water. - Richelle was fantastic and made us feel welcome right away - Everything we needed for paddleboarding was ready to go - Really laid-back experience and easy to get the hang of - Perfect activity for getting out on the water and doing something different We had a blast and would definitely recommend them if you're looking for a paddleboarding experience around Orlando.

Such a great experience. The morning was perfect and she took amazing pictures / videos of us. I'm…read moreso happy with this experience. Thanks Rachelle!

I had gotten accepted to a Master's program (studying coral reefs) that was dependent on being dive…read morecertified, owning my own gear, and getting my scientific dive certification after doing my advanced class. I did my advanced class with ADI at a time when I still didn't know much about diving. I went in the shop and basically said, "here's a list of dive gear I need for my program, I will be diving scientifically, what kind of gear do I need?" The owner (DJ) was extremely helpful! He took the time to walk me through the shop (more than once) and show me each of the models of regulators, BC's, computers, etc. and talk me through the features of each. He never tried to sell me the most expensive thing, but instead gave me the knowledge I needed to pick the gear that would work for me, and last. They also gave me a nice deal for buying gear + taking a class, which saved me a lot of money - thank you! It's now two years later, my gear has held up to the test of ~200 dives and +10000 minutes underwater. I didn't buy the top of the line gear either. Thank you so much for your help DJ! If I look into replacing any equipment, I would check here first. He also gave me some sweet new orange and red flexo for the hosing on my gear - I get compliments on this constantly, and it hasn't frayed one bit in 2 years of heavy use! They also let me and my dive buddy refresh our skills before our advanced class, and test out our gear in the pool. It was great for boosting confidence before our dive weekend. Family owned and operated, great Merritt Island business. Haven't tried out any of the excursion trips but they do offer them.

My wife and I stopped into American Diver's International today to inquire about dive certification…read moreclasses. Jeff patiently took a lot of time to go over the training package they offer, help me pick out a mask and some other gear, and answer all of my questions. I will definitely be coming back to take the diving classes. From what I've gathered so far, like any hobby, the world of diving is full of options, opinions, and opportunities to learn. If the instruction for classes is as thorough as the overview I received on my first visit into the store, I'm highly confident that the team at America Diver's International will give me the best information possible to get me set up for success.