Manatee Kayak Tour: Close Encounters in Florida

Experience a close encounter with gentle manatees on a small group kayak tour in Orlando. Swim with them in crystal clear springs and enjoy a personalized and safe adventure.

Duration: 2 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights

We paddle to Blue Spring State Park, the winter home for hundreds of manatees during the colder months, and some stay around all year. In the winter month we make close contact with these lovable and gentle creatures as they leave the refuge in search of food. In the summer month we paddle up to the spring head and enjoy the beauty of the crystal clear…

What's Included
  • Top-of-the-line kayak gear (kayak, paddle, PFD)
  • Professional medically trained certified kayak guide
  • Snacks
  • Commitment to make the tour exciting, challenging, and informative
Additional Information

Make close contact with these gentle and lovable creatures in one of the largest winter gathering sites for manatees in Florida. Observe manatees as they swim all around you with some of them curious enough to come close to your kayak. In the summer month we paddle up to the spring head where you have a chance to jump into the crystal clear spring to…

Location
2398 W French Ave
West French Avenue
Please follow the signs directing you to Blue Spring State Park. Instead of entering the park, continue on the dirt road for approximately 1 mile until you reach the boat ramp. This is where the guide will meet you.
Cancellation Policy

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

Customer Ratings
5.0
(132 Ratings)
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Sean
Jan 4, 2025
Great manatee tour with TJ - TJ was an excellent guide, both knowledgeable & entertaining and we had a great trip in a small group seeing around 40 or 50 manatees clearly attracted by TJ’s personality :-)
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jasmina_j
Jan 2, 2025
Our family had a great... - Our family had a great experience! Astrid is knowledgeable and fun guide, catering to the needs of the group.
Review provided by Viator
Megan_t
Jan 1, 2025
Perfect tour! - Start to finish this was an absolutely wonderful experience! Clear information on meeting location an our guide Jimi checking on us is to traffic. Jimi was a fun and passionate guide. You can tell he loves the wildlife and outdoors, an he passed his enthusiasm into us. My kids 9 and 4yo up to my 70yo parents loved this trip. So much wildlife and passive encounters with the manatees! We want to do it again when we come back to FL.
Review provided by Viator
Teammcg
Dec 30, 2024
Great experience! So many birds and the manatees performed for us! - We had a great day kayaking with Jim at Blue Springs State Park. We saw lots of birds, some giant gators and Jim was able to find us a lagoon area with about 30 manatees playing in the water. He called it recess for the manatees. He was very knowledgeable about the nature around us and cautious about us disturbing the wild around us. Highly recommend this tour for families wanting to do more than look at nature from the boardwalk.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kirk
Dec 29, 2024
Dad and my 11 and 13 yr old son all had a great time - Jimi was a great guide and very knowledgeable. The owner did recommend visiting park as well we did and it was very cool to see manatee inside the park and outside the park.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
O282htaudreyb
Dec 28, 2024
Really knowledgeable tour guide! Fantastic! - We did the manatee tour and our tour guide, TJ, was outstanding! He had a ton of knowledge about both the area and manatees themselves, and we got to learn a bunch of fun facts about manatees. He also knew a cool, more secluded spot where the manatees like to hang out. We first stopped in an area where the water is clear and you can see the manatees swimming under the water, and then we went to the more secluded spot and saw them playing and sticking their noses and tails out of the water with less clear water. He also showed us an alligator, turtle, and a few different types of birds along the way, telling us fun facts about those as well.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
John_l
Dec 19, 2024
St John River and Manatee / gator kayaking! - TJ our guide did a great job and we encountered manatees, birds, turtles and gators. Felt safe, equipment was in good shape (note open kayaks and NOT skirted sea kayaks), and though no waterproof bag was offered, it is probably not needed as very calm water. Note no bathroom or rinse facilities at launch site. Tj was very considerate and knowledgeable - he gets 10 stars !
Review provided by Viator
Matt
Dec 18, 2024
Great Manatee Experience - My wife and I booked this experience and we had great time. Small group of four and TJ the guide was super informative and worked hard to give us as much time as possible on the river. Not just about Manatees either!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Amy_l
Dec 16, 2024
Excellent Tour, excellent guide (with Astrid), and beautiful, sweet manatee! - Astrid was phenomenal! She taught us so much about manatee and other wildlife. The tour was incredible and we saw so many manatee!! They came right up to our kayaks. My kids, my husband, and myself had the absolute best time! Highly recommend!!!
Review provided by Viator
Colette_m
Dec 16, 2024
Awesome experience! - Astrid was a great guide, she had a lot of interesting facts about the manatees, alligators, and birds we encountered. A manatee came up to our kayak and rubbed along the kayak, and it was an awesome encounter. We would do this tour again if we were in the area. Absolutely fantastic!
Review provided by Viator
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up to 10 guests
2 Adult
January 2025
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