Manatee Adventure: Explore Crystal River & Homosassa Park

Experience the real Florida with a Crystal River Manatee Swim. Get up-close with gentle manatees and explore the beauty of Crystal River and Homosassa State Wildlife Park.

Duration: 8 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge - The boat will drive into the wildlife refuge where you will hope to see wild manatees on the river. You will be on the boat at least 90 mins.
  • Homosassa River - We will visit the State Park at Homosassa. You will walk around the State Park and see the animals and view the manatees in the underwater…
What's Included
  • Airboat Ride on Tuesday and Thursday tours
  • Admission into Homosassa State Park
  • Pickup and drop-off from designated meeting points
  • Driver/guide
  • Picnic Lunch
  • River cruise to look for the manatees
  • Use of snorkel equipment, mask, snorkel and fins
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Wetsuits must be hired - Mandatory $15 fee
  • Breakfast
  • Airboat Ride on Saturdays - tour is priced lower
  • Half Day does not include Homosassa State Park or Airboat Ride
Additional Information

Come and enjoy the real Florida! Get up-close with the gentle manatee and see the beauty of Crystal River as you explore the Homosassa State Wildlife Park.
The tour heads up to Crystal River where you can snorkel or swim in the rivers where wild manatees live. It’s an early morning departure, so bring breakfast snacks to eat during the journey….

Location
Charley's Steak House
Parkway Boulevard
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.6
(169 Ratings)
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C1675bpkimberlys
Feb 20, 2025
Swim with manatee - Swimming with the manatees was amazing!!! Loved everything about it!! The whole day was so much fun! Love the manatees, park was good, airboat ride was so fun& I even held a baby gator!!! Brad was a great guide! I would definitely recommend & would ( & probably will!!) do it again!!! Very convenient pick up as well- I was staying on Universal property so very convenient.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
882ellem
Feb 20, 2025
10/10 recommend - Brad is amazing!! Swimming with manatees was perfect this time of year and we saw plenty of wildlife. Even held a baby gater
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Q1510dvml
Feb 19, 2025
Manatees - Kevin was very insightful with Orlando's history. The experience of swimming with manatee was awesome but too short 25 mins wasn't enough. I wish we had less time at the museum and more time swimming.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
B9849ncsarahk
Feb 15, 2025
Manatee swim - The trip was great! We loved swimming near manatees and enjoyed the state park! We had a great driver, Mauricio, who got us there safely and efficiently!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
David_c
Feb 15, 2025
Fantastic experience! - This was an amazing excursion. The price included pick up and drop off from hotel, began with manatee swimming which was incredible and very lovely staff at bird underwater dive center. It was great to experience manatees in the wild and all the instructions were given to ensure the animals were safe and unbothered. We then went to a wildlife park which was beautiful, was given a delicious packed lunch and finished the day with an airboat ride seeing more wildlife and gators! The airboat was better than lots of the theme park rides! Excellent value for money, great driver and staff. Would highly recommend!
Review provided by Viator
Melissa_b
Feb 6, 2025
Great experience, worth it! - Early pickup was on time. Driver was helpful and friendly. Snorkel guide was very attentive, we swam around a momma and baby - it was cool. Lunch at the State Park was refreshing and filling. Walk around the Park was shaded - lots of animals to see. Airboat was exciting - gators of various sizes. Well worth the money and a great way to spend a day!
Review provided by Viator
Janeks4432mu
Jan 30, 2025
Don’t miss the manatees - We had an awesome day. We started with our snorkel with the manatees. The gentle giants were friendly and awesome to see in the water. Homosassa State Park was a great picnic spot and a quite a surprise with its beautiful setting and assortment of Florida wildlife including even more manatees. The airboat ride took us through a cypress forest with turtles, gators and an abundance of birds. All in all a wonderful day. A special thanks to our “aim to please” guide and driver Mauricio who picked us up on time, managed to keep us on time all day and got us safely to multiple destinations while coping with the Florida traffic.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jennifer_d
Jan 19, 2025
Fun day trip from Orlando - Everything was very organized. The manatee swim was fun. We enjoyed walking through the wildlife refuge. The airboat ride was exciting and my son loved seeing alligators along the bank of the river.
Review provided by Viator
375kelleys
Jan 18, 2025
Breaking out of the bubble - I spent two weeks in Orlando between Universal Resort and Disney. I knew I would need to break out of the theme park bubble and I was right. I booked both the manatee swim and the St. Augustine holiday lights trips - both very small groups which suits me great. Both trips were absolutely fantastic. Kevin was my driver both days and he was above and beyond wonderful. He was full of fun and interesting facts as we traveled and made sure we had rest stops (the group may or may not have had little naps too). The swim was so much fun. The guides made sure we were informed and comfortable. We saw, swam and were among a wide mix of manatees from babies to grandparents. We had a nice stop at a wildlife park and a fun and exhilarating trip on an air boat at the end of the day. Our air boat driver made sure we saw alligators of all sizes and the birds were plentiful. The St. Augustine trip was also fun! We had a fun rest stop at Buckee's (IYKYK), which we all loved, and had a nice break for dinner before meeting back up with Kevin to get our trolley. The trolley driver was a blast (she made us sing Christmas carols) and the tour was fun. St. Augustine was very crowded so not having to worry about driving or parking was a big bonus. Overall I would definitely recommend booking a trip with Gray Line. I was very pleased with everything from booking to execution. I found them by accident online and I am so glad I did.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
785pm
Jan 16, 2025
Manatees are bloody adorable! - The bus was really comfy and the driver (Mauricio) incredibly helpful. The manatees were spectacular and worth every cent! The additional food was tasty (when they get your allergies correct that is) and the airboat ride was great. 10/10 highly recommend.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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up to 10 guests
1 Adult
March 2025
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