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Orlando Manatee Encounters: Blue Spring State Park Tour
4.9
327 Ratings
Orange City
Embark on a thrilling adventure at Blue Spring State Park in Orlando, where you can witness the majestic Manatees in their natural habitat. Join our guided kayak tour and learn about the diverse flora and fauna of this wild area. Perfect for a family outing!
Embark on a thrilling adventure at Blue Spring State Park in Orlando, where you can witness the majestic Manatees in their natural habitat. Join our guided kayak tour and learn about the diverse flora and fauna of this wild area. Perfect for a family outing!
Duration:
2 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Blue Spring State Park: French Landing Boat Ramp - We will paddle into the park and up to the manatee refuge. The manatee leave the refuge in search of food and swim all around us and under us. We also take time to paddle to snake creek to watch manatee graze, birds fishing, and search out wildlife.
- Blue Spring State Park: French Landing Boat Ramp - We will paddle into the park and up to the manatee refuge. The manatee leave the refuge in search of food and swim all around us and under us. We also take time to paddle to snake creek to watch manatee graze, birds fishing, and search out wildlife.
What's Included
- Local guide
- Bottled water
- Professional guide
- Landing and/or facility fees
- Local guide
- Bottled water
- Professional guide
- Landing and/or facility fees
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Gratuities
Additional Information
Embark on a voyage to Blue Spring State Park, the wintry abode for one of the biggest herds of Manatee in Florida. Marvel at the sight of hundreds of these ‘marine giants’ leisurely enjoying the spring. From the comfort of your kayak, examine these fascinating animals while your Florida Master Naturalist acquaints you with the diverse plant and animal…
Embark on a voyage to Blue Spring State Park, the wintry abode for one of the biggest herds of Manatee in Florida. Marvel at the sight of hundreds of these ‘marine giants’ leisurely enjoying the spring. From the comfort of your kayak, examine these fascinating animals while your Florida Master Naturalist acquaints you with the diverse plant and animal life that populate this wilderness. An excellent journey for all family members!
- There is no minimum age however all participants must know how to swim
- It is recommended that you bring a swimsuit, towel, waterproof camera and wear clothes that can get wet and possibly dirty
- To ensure a proper size kayak is available, please provide your individual heights and weights at the time of booking
- There is no restroom at the meeting location. There is a public restroom at Valentine Park (1511 W French Ave, Orange City, FL 32763) about a mile before you arrive the meeting location that we recommend you use before your tour.
Location
Blue Spring State Park: French Landing Boat Ramp
West French Avenue
Go to the very end of French Ave, 1 mile past the State Park. DO NOT ENTER THE STATE PARK!
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.9
(327 Ratings)
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Michelez2683
Dec 16, 2024
Excellent trip!!! - What a great adventure!! The weather wasn't always on our side, but Jeff, our guide, was excellent and made the trip well worth it. We saw manatees, gators, and loads of different birds.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Voyager28112363238
Nov 21, 2024
Best Manatee Enounter!!! - We had a wonderful time on our kayaking tour!!! Me and my dad had a great time with our tour guide Jeff! Thanks Jeff so much for making our tour guide so personal. Our close encounter with the manatee’s and being able to see gators in the wild is something we will always remember! We highly recommend this tour!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Spain_rocks
Jul 21, 2024
Wonderful experience - We saw so many manatees on our tour! It was super enjoyable and our guide was well informed, super pleasant and fun. Make sure to wear a hat and sunscreen. It’s super hot - and the sun is unrelenting. I wore lightweight hiking pants and large brimmed hat. Glad I did! Took my 16 year old son - and it was a nice break from city of Orlando.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gregory_s
Jul 1, 2024
Great trip - Our guide Lucas was awesome! Had a great time. Really took care of my daughters and me. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Viator
Ben_e
Jun 30, 2024
Fantastic tour - The gentleman leading the tour k ow what he was on about and very friendly. Luckily he only had two of us on the tour and we could go at our own pace. We saw a few Manatees come to the surface for a breath and playing a bit of Marko Polo with us.
Would highly recommend
Review provided by Viator
Cheetahexplores
Apr 12, 2024
Great experience! - Our guide Sue took us to the nicest places in Blue Spring State Park. It was a relaxing kayak tour with lots of wildlife (yes! manatees!).
We really had a wonderful time!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Journey12585212740
Apr 5, 2024
Absolutely wonderful - We hat a great time yesterday. It was a sunny day, we saw a lot of alligators and birds and also some manatees. The area is astonishing and absolutely beautiful, peaceful. Ou guide was great. She was fun and knew a lot about everything. We searched in many spots for the manatees. She took nice pictures of me and my sons and gave us great advice where go to eat afterwards. In the evening before the tour I received a WhatsApp message with the exact location and hours.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
O9863iqcourtneyp
Nov 20, 2024
BEWARE THEY WILL CANCEL ON YOU AND LEAVE YOU STRANDED!!!!!! - I urge you to find another company to guide you. We filled out our waivers and had an uber drop myself and my 3 friends off where the directions said. We got there a little earlier than we were supposed to. We waited and waited and no one showed up, so we called Greg to see what was going on and it was then he informed us that he had cancelled on us yet he DID NOT LET US KNOW. He swore he sent notices of canceling yet we received none, not even a phone call to follow up. He left us stranded a mile away from anyone or anywhere. So we walked up to the state park where the park ranger informed us they have been HAVING A LOT OF ISSUES WITH THIS company ABANDONING people out there and canceling without notice. A family the weekend before had also been stranded according to the park ranger. It was handled very unprofessionally by Greg who couldn't even follow up with an actual confirmation of the cancelation. We are from out of state and like the ranger said this company has an obligation to not be stranding people out there like he did and yet there we were. I would suggest finding any other company but this one to use. From the sounds of it they are getting very close to not being able to operate out of the area due to their failure to properly operate their company or communicating with the parks and guests. 0 OUT OF 10
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jody_s
Jul 10, 2024
Avoid Viator at all costs...learn from me - What a disappointment Viator is. When a call was made to verify our reservation I told them I had covid. They said not to worry and I wouldn't be charged. After I felt better I randomly checked my debit card and...yes...they (Viator) debited my account for the whole amount. Their site specifically states there is no charge if reservations are cancelled. I have made several calls to the main office and was told I would have a refund. After a week there was no refund so After many calls and explanations by me they refused to reimburse me. Furthermore they did not have permission to use my card...especially since I never gave it to them. Anyone out there have any suggestions?
Review provided by Viator
Katherineb463
Apr 13, 2024
No-show - Didn’t show up. Drove one hour to the meeting point. Called multiple times. Eventually called me to say “we cancelled for the week due to a family emergency” but I never got any notification. Even rented a car to get to this remote location.
Another quite said the same thing happened the day before- another guest got abandoned.
He did refund my payment. But I lost 2 hours travel time and cost of transportation.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
