Dangerous Operation, Dishonest Response - Families Beware…read more
We've owned and operated boats for years and have scalloped this area many times. Our experience with Twin Rivers Marina on July 28, 2026 was, without exaggeration, the worst and most concerning we've had on the water.
We rented a 22' pontoon for a family scalloping trip with our two young children. The "safety briefing" was basically a walk‑around focused on damages and fees. There was no clear explanation of boundaries or no‑go zones beyond a quick mention of Salt River and Shell Island. No one said we couldn't go toward Homosassa, which is exactly where the scalloping grounds are. No one told us our small children were legally required to wear lifejackets while underway. We had to bring our own for them.
Once we left the dock, it became clear the boat was not seaworthy by any reasonable standard. The depth finder, fuel gauge, Garmin/GPS and VHF radio were all malfunctioning or unreliable. In this shallow, rock‑filled area, that isn't an inconvenience, it's a safety hazard. When we reported that the Garmin wasn't working, the response was essentially, "I didn't say it would work." Later, they tried to use those same unreliable coordinates to accuse us of being "out of bounds."
We were told they monitored Channel 68; the first boat's radio didn't work at all. On the second boat they hailed us, we answered immediately, and they never responded. We spent large chunks of the day stranded with kids on board, trying to get help from a company that advertises safety and support but couldn't even maintain a basic radio watch.
Eventually they sent a replacement boat. They later claimed our coordinates had them headed toward Cedar Key/Shell Island. That's simply not true. We were left after the power plant in the familiar Homosassa scalloping area, not in Salt River and not near Shell Island. When they finally arrived, they found us exactly where we said we were, using the same coordinates we had been giving them. Their own written agreement mentions "No Salt River" and some guidance around Shell Island; it says nothing about Homosassa being off limits.
Later, on the second boat, we apparently hit something and they said the propeller was damaged. Even if some responsibility for that impact is ours, it happened after an entire day shaped by their faulty equipment, poor communication and vague route instructions. The captain who handled the situation was rude, sarcastic and used profanity toward us in front of our children. That alone tells you a lot about their "family friendly" marketing.
The return to the marina was the final insult. Instead of a sensible, direct route, they took us on a long loop that went close to 15 miles out before turning back in, turning a straightforward return into a 2.5‑hour ordeal and burning a lot of extra fuel. They blamed low tide. We've run this area for years; this route felt more like a joyride and a way to pad fuel time than the only safe option.
When we got back, the billing story appeared. The receipt totaled $955.95: rental, fuel for our boat, a prop charge, a late fee, fuel for their service boat and fuel for a second rental boat ("Flying Dutchman"). On the credit card side, they broke this into multiple transactions that do not cleanly match the single receipt. They billed us for fuel on their own service boat and a second rental we never agreed to rent separately, plus a late fee driven largely by their own broken equipment and self‑inflicted delays. Their paperwork references pre‑departure prop photos, yet no prop photo was ever attached to the invoice to actually document the damage.
And then came the most disturbing part: their public response. In their reply to our review they implied that both the operator and another adult on board were consuming alcohol while the boat was being operated and that this is why their manager took over. That is false. She took over after we questioned why the second boat was crawling and raised concerns about the prop and performance. With two young kids on board and a captain already acting unprofessionally, we agreed to let her drive to get back safely. To turn that into a public accusation of intoxication is not only dishonest, it's reckless. It's an attempt to smear a customer rather than address their own safety failures, and it sends a chilling message to families: if you speak up about unsafe conditions, this business will attack your character in public.
What makes this even more troubling is that our experience is not unique. Multiple other reviews over several years describe the same pattern: broken depth finders, broken fuel gauges, GPS issues, poor performance, unprofessional behavior and customers warning others about safety. We cannot all be "lying" or "confused."
If you care about your family's safety, your wallet, time, or piece of mind, think very carefully about trusting this business.
