From the moment we arrived, we knew this was going to be a good day. We were greeted warmly and fitted with our wetsuits and snorkels right away. After a safety briefing, we headed out to the boat where our Captain and first mate, Tori educated us about manatee while scouting for them. The water is 72* year-round. Beautiful sunny day and cool water. Nice!! We saw many manatee. They are huge! I mean HUGE!! We saw mamas and babies, pregnant mamas, and, cows and bulls doing what looked like WWE wrestling. How you say? Sexy time! 10/10 recommend! No pictures. Unlike most touristy places, they don't take photos. ‍ read more

Captain Steve was great, very informative, very upbeat. Glad we took the tour as we had a great view of Crystal River, even though what we saw of a manatee could have easily been a shark. Just saw a dark body underwater and knew it was a manatee because of the antenna attached. read more

Incredible interactive experience with the manatees! All my dreams and expectations were exceeded on the 5 hour excursion led by Captain Bill and First Mate Caleb. Both were friendly and informative, answering any question and providing local information (yes, Elvis filmed "Follow Your Dream" at this local, you can check out the newspaper article in the motel office). The houseboat provided food and drinks and a small "porta-potty". Captain Bill took us to multiple dive sites allowing us every opportunity to swim close with the manatees- and yes, there were many, many resting, swimming all around us. It is Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge and should be treated as such. Meaning, it was a "passive experience". Do not grab, scratch, hug or annoy these creatures. They will approach you, sometime brushing against me, they are inquisitive. All said, loved it and would definitely return. Thanks to the entire staff at Captain Mike's for creating memories that will last a lifetime. read more

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Boats have heat and changing rooms!!! There are plenty of manatee tours to choose from... but Capt Mike's is located in the Best Western with boats docked at marina behind hotel. Attentive staff to wetsuit you up, locate manatees and get you warmed up when done. Bring your swim suit and a towel... they handle everything else. Thank you for a great experience. read more

Excellent day! Captain Tom and our swimming guide Morgan were amazing hosts for our family of 5 (kids age 7, 11, 13). The manatees are spectacular to experience, they're so curious and they swam right up to us as we passively observed. Morgan took my young 7 year old under her wing. All in all it was a completely amazing day and I'm so glad we did it! read more

Water is clear, manatees everywhere! Check out pics. You definitely will see a lot of them. read more

Swimming with the Manatees - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

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We had a great time on a private trip with Captain Andrew and Ross as our in-water guide. We learned so much about manatees and their presence in the springs and had an amazing experience with them in the water. Would definitely recommend a private charter, if you have a group of 5-6, on the first trip of the day. Our morning was so peaceful and nice, and I can see how it may feel crowded later in the day. read more

Such a fun day! We rented a pontoon boat and rented some snorkel gear and went out on Crystal River. We swam and saw Manatees when we were riding through. I definitely will be back and next time will be sure to bring my dog. So he can enjoy the ride as well. Pets are allowed. Our buddy paid for everything so I can't really quote on that part. But either way it's definitely a helpful, friendly place and just enjoying this beautiful state and the beautiful waters is such a true blessing. read more

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Simply can't say enough about this place. Everyone was so kind and accommodating. The reservation process was easy when we booked a 5 hr platinum tour for our family of 4. We got Captain Bill and while everyone there seemed awesome, we couldn't have asked for a better guide. He was completely safety conscious (important as we had our two kids along) without being annoying or overbearing. Within the first hour of our excursion, he found a mama manatee with her calf! We stayed in the super clear shallow waters of the Crystal River with this calf for close to two hours (the mama was never far away but was enjoying a much needed/deserved break I think). Truly a magical morning. I wouldn't look any further if considering a tour of this kind (request Bill if you can). Hands down one of the best and most memorable travel experiences our family has had. read more

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We went towards the end of the season and were nervous when we first got there that we wouldn't see any BUT Captain Mike's crew drove us around until we found the prime spot with 6 manatees! The water was so clear, the wet suits kept us warm, and Captain Mikes crew was amazing! Highly recommend to anyone! We went with a group of people ranging from 40-13 and everyone had a blast! Definitely bring a go pro to capture awesome underwater pictures! read more

We went in JAN 2019 on a Saturday during the Manatee Festival. Everything with Captain's Mike was very good. Unfortunately, it was so crowded where all the manatees were hanging out for the day. We were continually kicked by other people and kayakers. Many parents were standing holding their children, then moving around causing water clarity to be awful. Captain Tom only took us to this one location due to reports this was the best place at this time of day. The tour company did their best, but our timing was not ideal and I recommend going during the week vice a weekend. I was so thankful for the generous support Captain Mike's provides to active duty military members. read more

Swimming with the Manatees - Crowded - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

It's located inside a hotel. Restrooms are very nice in the hotel. You're able to park anywhere in the hotel property. Before boarding the boat, you will watch a video. They have a changing room in the boat along with hot chocolate. We got to see many manatees close up and got to interact with them. I love the tour and experience. 10/10 I would recommend! read more

Great start to our day with the silver tour! Right away we were with the manatees near the keyhole! We ventured out near Jurassic Spring for another encounter in crystal clear water! Captain Tom did a great job keeping an eye out for the manatees and for us!!! Thoroughly loved it!!! read more

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We had a great time with captain eves? And guide Rosie. Though not in a prime season they were still able to find plenty of manatees to swim with and make all parts of the trip enjoyable. Priced below most competitors but we never felt devalued or rushed. Overall great experience. read more

It was a wonderful experience swimming with the manatee! Even though it wasn't season we saw a mom, dad, juvenile and baby! Really awesome! The staff is very friendly and made it a fun experience. The boat was clean, as was the scuba suits. Only downside was it was a big group and we were all cluttered around the manatee. read more

Yesterday was awesome! We started with a breakfast of champions at Sonic! Yes we ate burgers at 7:00am, oh and cheese sticks (hey we are on vacay) lol. Then off to Crystal River to swim with the Manatees!! We chose Captain Mike's Manatee Tours because it was our first time visiting Crystal River, and because active duty Military and Law Enforcement are free!! While it was definitely an experience we learned that the view is much better from the boat and not as COLD! Overall an awesome experience! read more

Swimming with the Manatees - Geared up and ready to go! - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Amazing team and Captain is awesome! The best vacation this year, will be back. Also best deal on the coast. Thank you!!! read more

Swimming with the Manatees - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

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This was so much fun! We were there in March and it was still pretty chilly outside but the wet suits helped a LOT! We saw many, many Manatees. They are magical! Balked at first at the $65 fee but it was worth it. The ONLY sad thing was that my underwater camera (that I had taken some really great close shots) with floated off my arm and outside the boundary rope a few feet before I realized it, The guide said even he was forbidden to go after it. . So maybe somebody on a Gulf Shore will find it washed up on a beach and get some really cool pictures of Manatees. read more

Provided everything you needed. Got to swim with the manatees for over an hour. Great experience. Then we went to eat at the margarita breeze restaurant next door afterwards...looks dumpy but had great food. Definitely would recommend to others to check out The manatee experience!! read more

An absolute bucket list item, these people really no how to take care of the customer. Highly recommend them, the two Mikes made the day worth the booking with them. Very professional and knowledgeable. read more

We did not book a tour with Captain Mike's, we rented a 10 passenger pontoon boat. We are giving 4 stars because the boat was great, no complaints, but the customer service process and checking in felt very chaotic and rushed. The staff were very nice and efficient, it's just that they seemed overwhelmed and too busy to really spend time with each customer. Kind of felt like a super busy restaurant at the peak of dinner hour, where the serving staff at running at max capacity. On a good note, we called rather late to make reservations for the next day, and even though they were closing, they called us back from home to take our cc and book the rental. Still recommend them! read more

My girlfriend and I booked a 5 hour private tour. We had an OUTSTANDING experience! We enjoyed every minute of this experience and it far exceeded our expectations. I think throughout the day we saw AND SWAM with about a dozen manatees. We even experienced a cow with her calf as well as a mating herd. This experience was totally due to our guide "Yves." He was extremely knowledgeable, energetic, funny, and determined to safely get you to the manatees. He expressed a high level of concern for the well being and safety of the Kings Bay/Crystal River manatees. This was one of the best tour guides I have ever encountered. He made our experience the most memorable. He went out of his way several times for us. He took pictures with my phone while we were in the water. Also, I was uncomfortable at first in the water and he talked me into becoming calm, relaxed, and comfortable. When there was a little down time he also explained other wildlife and we saw dolphins, turtles, and birds. 10 minutes before our scheduled end time we saw 2 manatees and he invited us in the water again to swim with them...which he did not have to do. Although, for me the most important part that he did was keep us away from the larger groups of people on other tours. We literally were able to enjoy the manatees face to face as solely an intimate encounter between us (my girlfriend and I) and the manatees. Yves is who you want to take you out to swim with the manatees and we definitely want to do it again. I don't think we would have been able to have this unbelievable experience with manatees anywhere in the world unless it was with Yves as our guide right here in Crystal River, Florida. HIGHLY RECOMMEND Captain Mikes Swimming with the Manatees and "Yves" as the guide. read more

Everything was pretty average for this swim with the manatees tour. First, on a positive note, the in water guide (Caleb) was excellent. However, the Captain (Tom) was "TERRIBLE." For an older gentlemen, who should know better within the service industry, if you can not say something nice, then keep your mouth shut. Especially when interacting with a 6 year old who is excited about the native wildlife. Making a dry joke at the expense of a child was appalling. I would not recommend this to a family with children who may want to interact with this particular person. Thus, by default, as you don't know who the Captain may be, I would not recommend this tour group. We went out on the 1000 boat on 21 November 2018. read more

Took the whole family for a mini vacation and rented a boat for the day from the dive center. The staff was friendly and cheerful. They care about their customers and go the extra mile to make sure your trip is as enjoyable as possible. Great people, great view, relaxing trip, it doesn't get any better than this! Fabulous place! read more

We stayed in The Port Hotel & Marina about a week ago. The property overall is beautiful. However, took the trip through Capt. Mike's Crystal River Tours and it was a disaster. The personnel was rude and unknowledgeable. When we approached the owner - Capt. Mike with regards to our disappointment, he was absolutely careless and simply replied to us "so what". When I started making a deal about their attitude, Capt. Mike told the manager in front of us to get us out of there. They just ruined our trip that we decided not even to finish it. I can't believe that they are still running the business with such approach and such horrible personnel! read more