Congress Avenue Bat Bridge: Kayak Tour Experience

Witness the incredible sight of 1.5 million bats emerging from the Congress Avenue Bridge on a thrilling kayak tour. Learn about their role in the ecosystem and enjoy a 2-hour adventure.

Duration: 2 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Congress Avenue Bridge Bat Watching - You will see the world’s largest urban bat colony that peaks at around 2 million bats during the peak of the season. The bats take off around sunset and always head towards the eastern part of downtown.
  • Austin - You will see a number of buildings on the Austin Skyline including the Hotel Van Zandt, The Austonian Tower, and a multitude of residential and commercial buildings.
What's Included
  • Paddle lesson and safety instructions
  • Professional guide
  • Life jacket
What's Not Included
  • Food and drinks
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information

Witness the emergence of the world’s largest urban bat colony from beneath the Congress Avenue Bridge! This incredible colony, consisting of 1.5 million Mexican free-tailed bats, offers a spectacular visual and auditory experience. Meet with a professional guide at the designated location to paddle and observe this natural wonder, while learning about…

Location
206 1/2 E Riverside Dr
East Riverside Drive
Meet in the parking lot at 200 E Riverside Dr!
Cancellation Policy

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

Customer Ratings
4.6
(246 Ratings)
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1 star
X8645kzjoelleb
Nov 2, 2025
Sunset, skyline, and bats! - Sam was a great guide for my early evening tour! Everything was set up and ready upon arrival so we got into the water quickly and started making our way to the bridge. Fun stories and bat facts along the way! Really appreciated the small time adjustment (meeting 15 minutes earlier) to be more in tune with the bats schedule that week! Easy tour to be solo on, I love a single kayak and that’s what Sam had ready for us!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Christina_h
Oct 24, 2025
bat crazy! - such a unique experience! nico and the other tour guides were great and made the experience memorable for us.
Review provided by Viator
Taberm2025
Oct 17, 2025
Bats bats and bats - Austin was an awesome tour guide and very helpful. Amazing tour too. Great view of the bats and the Austin skyline. Got helpful recommendations for the rest of our trip too.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
244gussies
Oct 8, 2025
Bats 🦇 - Sam was our tour guide and he was very informative. It was an awesome experience seeing all the bats from a kayak on the lake. What a spectacular view! 100% recommend this tour!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kelley_r
Oct 8, 2025
It’s a very informative... - It’s a very informative and beautiful experience. The guide was very knowledgeable, helpful and funny
Review provided by Viator
Gussie_s
Oct 8, 2025
Bat kayak tour - It is very fun and relaxing. My first time kayaking and I loved it. We saw lots of bats! Very amazing view. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Viator
Lisaeddie
Sep 23, 2025
Do not miss this unique experience! - Excellent adventure seeing the bats in Austin. Our guide Henry was excellent. He was funny, helpful and most important patient with us since we are novice Kayakers. We learned a lot about Austin in this unique experience. The bats flying overhead was an experience of a lifetime and the skyline was beautiful at sunset. Highly recommend.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Connienf6798rz
Oct 29, 2025
Worth the money. - Easy booking the trip with good directions to location. Quick communication with emailed questions. They took care of everything. Explained the excursion and how it would go and it gave what was promised. The night skyline was bonus on the way back.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mary_g
Oct 27, 2025
Shop around for a kayak tour - I can appreciate this organization is run by young men. However, the life vests were not adequate for use on the lake. They were tattered and filthy. The kayaks could have been cleaner. When the person in charge spoke about the bats if you were anywhere outside of 15 feet you couldn’t hear him due to all of the other noise. A Microphone would’ve been nice. Out of five stars, I would be remiss if I gave it anything about a three minus. If we were to return, we’d walk on the bridge rather than spend the money to tour again.
Review provided by Viator
Liz
Oct 27, 2025
Beginners @ Bat Bridge - We had a hard time hearing the guide. We thought we were going to get an inflatable kayak, but didn’t. We had never kayaked before & got no advice for beginners. We did get up close to the bridge and got a great view of bats exiting the bridge for the night.
Review provided by Viator
From $50
up to 12 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).