Gotta do it - “Wild” Al is a great guide with generations of family experience. He knows all the flora and fauna, has great stories, and even recommended some places to eat around town. Thoroughly enjoyed this trip.

Beautiful, relaxing trip through the swamp - Note that this review is for the "Private Small Boat Swamp Tour" and not the Kayak Tour. This is our first time into a swamp and we really enjoyed it. Josh, our guide, was very knowledgeable of the area and its history and navigated us through some really gorgeous areas. In Winter there aren't as many alligators, but we saw a few resting in the sun. If I were to go again, I would go at sunrise or sunset for even more dramatic photos. Also note that the meeting site, also where the tour starts, is a little tricky to get to if you don't have a car as it's on the side of a road about 30 minutes from central New Orleans. We took ride shares, which worked out fine, but budget a little more time to get out there.

Beautiful Swamp and Incredible Guide! - New Orleans is great - So unique - food, history, neighborhoods....The Kayak Swamp Tour was the best! I came in very concerned about potential problems, mostly falling into the water and the presence of alligators. The guide made a huge impact. AJ was reassuring and gave me a confident, calm approach that got me started on a truly magical experience and afternoon. He explained how we would get out of the water with his help, which was fantastic for my nervousness. AJ told us stories of his experiences, about the area and our route, the animals and their behavior to expect. He was fantastic about spotting animals too--we saw six alligators, an up-close barred owl, and many birds. He knew the area and the wildlife well, and had experience with navigating a group when there were larger gators around (although our gators were smaller). AJ went above and beyond to be accommodating and make the experience special for our group. We are very grateful to him for making our trip to New Orleans so adventurous and fun!

fabulous sunset! - This small group tour was amazing! Gerald, our guide, knows everything there is to know about the swaps, the wildlife, and he is a great storyteller! I had a wonderfull time and i would recomment the afternoon tour (from 4 pm). The sunset and the peace and quiet on the water was fabulous!

Swifties in the Swamp - Terry was a helpful and informative guide who told us stories of the swamp, gave us info on the flora and fauna, and taught us to scan for wildlife ourselves. We saw a few alligators, a couple of bard owls, and some other native birds. We kayaked about two hours on quiet water. That was enough to make us aware of muscles we don’t ordinarily use, but not so long that we really struggled to finish. The experience was definitely worth the slightly sore muscles!

Fun adventure with a flare - A great idea and adventure. We did see a baby a couple 3-4 alligators. Do wish we would have seen a bigger one but that likely could have ended badly ;). The tour guide definitely had his own flare and perception on things. Which was welcomed at times but also felt a bit much at times. We had 6 in our group and that was as a great size. Enjoyed the fun and relaxed feeling of the entire tour.

Beautiful, fun kayak tour! - My friends and I had a terrific time with guide Gerald on our Manchac swamp kayak tour. Gerald is friendly, fun, and an expert wildlife biologist, giving us interesting information about the plants, birds, animals and ecology of the swamp. I highly recommend this tour of a beautiful, unspoiled swamp.

Great guide - If it was not for our excellent tour guide the tour would of been a flop. It was on the chilly side so not much to see. Saw one little gator, being from Florida gators are common.

Enjoyable but not exciting - We enjoyed the kayaking, but apparently the season for alligators was already over because we didn’t see any, except right as we pulled up to the shore at the end there was a baby alligator taking a nap. Our guide would pull us over every now and then to give some trivia about the canal etc. I found it odd that when we got done the guide had people help him load all the kayaks into the trailer, which was no small feat and took quite awhile. After paying for the tour putting people to work afterward just seemed cheap to me. It seems to me the tour company needs a few more employees just for this type of thing. There was nothing exciting on this tour but it was enjoyable. Being your sunblock, sunglasses, hats, and water. You’ll be in direct sunlight most of the tour.

Worst Experience Ever with an Inappropriate Guide - I went on the Manchac Magic kayak tour and while the swamp was nice, this was hands down my worst tour guide experience ever. The tour guide's behavior was offensive and unacceptable. I do not know the guide's name as he never introduced himself, but I think it might have been Al. Listed below is the unacceptable behavior in order of most offensive. On the ride home he was drinking a beer while driving (I have photographic evidence) Twice on the drive home he used the R word He commented on the bodies of 2 young women on the tour in their 20s, it was sexual harassment and they were not comfortable with it He also commented on the body of a pregnant woman on the tour When pulling up to the launch area upon seeing that 2 tour participants were in their late 50's/early 60s he commented for everyone in the van to hear that "this old dude is going to slow us down." It was offensive, rude, and unprofessional to say such things out loud He had perpetual road rage on the drive home and kept shouting offensive things out loud for all the van to hear such as "go home to Alabama and f*&k your sister" He made several sexist comments I learned nothing on the tour and was uncomfortable the entire time from start to finish both on and off the water He gave no instruction or safety briefing before launching us into the water He gave me a broken paddle, while I fortunately noticed and exchange I tried to address these issues privately with the tour company via email, but received no response. Therefore, I am posting this review.