Swim with Manatees: Eco-Friendly Adventure

Embark on an eco-friendly adventure with our Deluxe Manatee Swim Tour in Florida’s Nature Coast. Swim with gentle manatees and explore stunning wildlife refuges and preserves.

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Crystal River Watersports - The address is our marina/dive shop and here you will get ready for your boat tour and manatee swim.
What's Included
  • Local guide
  • Bottled water
  • Tour escort/host
  • Driver/guide
  • Use of snorkeling equipment
  • Live commentary on board
  • Local taxes
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Souvenir photos (available to purchase)
Additional Information

Join us in the unique location where swimming with wild manatees is legally allowed—and experience it the right way. Crystal River Watersports provides a guided, eco-friendly adventure that focuses on education, sustainability, and respect for wildlife. We keep group sizes small and have certified in-water guides trained in manatee etiquette, ensuring a…

Location
3940 N Tallahassee Rd
North Tallahassee Road
Guests should drive to the Marina which is located one street directly BEHIND the Days Inn. (Not the Gift Shop which is located next to the Days Inn.) The Marina is a pink and yellow building with a gravel parking lot on Tallahassee Rd.
Cancellation Policy

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

Customer Ratings
4.9
(243 Ratings)
5 stars
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1 star
Michael_e
May 6, 2025
Amazing Crew made for unforgettable Experience - Everything was phenomenal from the greeting by the office staff until I left. Capt Jim and Guide Kat were great. They provided an educational yet fun trip. There was extra effort to bypass other groups and continue looking in multiple locations for manatees. We ended up seeing 5 or 6 in the water including a mom and nursing calf. A rescue/released manatee with a tag came to us and Kat took us away from it to let it be. They provided as ecologically friendly tour as possible for the manatees and their environment. “I’ll be back!”
Review provided by Viator
Gary
Apr 17, 2025
A must do if you’re in Florida! - We did the manatee snorkel tour with Captain Juan and Ralph. This operation is outstanding, small tour groups, not that huge cattle boats out there trying to find manatee. We had a blast and saw lots of manatee and have great pictures and memories. Cpt Juan was that standing, we are so much about manatees, the history come in the area. Absolutely amazing trip you must do.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Paul2310wyatt
Apr 13, 2025
Manatees Swim…. - Leah and the captain brilliant. Leah helped my wife all throughout the swim, as she can get panicky in water, She was snorkelling like a mermaid by the end. Main thing was we saw manatees, even if the water was not totally clear. Great experience for us and the granddaughter.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Cherinak2023
Mar 23, 2025
Highly recommend CRWS!! - It was a great time and a wonderful experience. Captain Sandy and Yvette were great, very knowledgeable, and so friendly. They made the trip great! We got to see plenty of manatees and Yvette got some really good pictures and videos. Make sure you bring warm clothes and extra towels for the ride back. With the wind, it gets pretty chilly.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dmillerop
Mar 22, 2025
Great Manatee encounter - This was a very fun, but very chilly adventure with Cpt. Sandy and Dakota. We saw several manatees and learned a lot about them. We also saw a lot of birds and Sandy was pretty helpful in this. I would recommend this tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
630gillc
Feb 19, 2025
Brilliant day! - Will not forget this day, one of the best moments in my life. I was very nervous but Leah looked after me so well. Manatees are big gentle cheeky animals. Definitely one crossed off my bucket list. Would I recommend it? You bet ya I would!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Laurien495
Jan 5, 2025
Highly recommend - We saw so many manatees and Yvette who was our guide and the rest of the staff did a wonderful job. We swam with dozens of manatees within reach.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Seaside04678505069
Mar 28, 2024
Great experience - Sandy and Mark were awesome! - We had a great time - manatees were not cooperating at first, but then we found some thanks to Sandy's and Mark's sharp eyesight! Highly recommend this your if you are interested in manatees!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Journey40143648213
Mar 18, 2025
BE AWARE! - Be aware! The tour company never mentioned low visibility conditions. As a customer, we didn't worry about visibility when the business name is Crystal River Watersports, their website photos show pristine blue waters, and there had not been any rain or hurricanes that would have created low visibility. We are scuba divers (I also worked with a business taking customers out diving in the Gulf), and we understand that no one controls nature, still, any honest business has the responsibility to let customers know when visibility conditions are less than ideal. Long story short, staff was great! Manatee viewing was terrible. We had a maximum of 3 feet of cloudy visibility. The staff had to tell us when the manatee was swimming close by, otherwise we would miss it. We paid our bill and tipped $20 each crew member. We learned our lesson and will check visibility and recommend everyone else to do the same.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tanddwelsh
Mar 20, 2024
You can buy better but you can't pay more! - You can buy better but you can't pay more! Skip the VIP tour...we paid over $700 and got about 30 minutes of snorkeling in cloudy water. They would point to manatees over there....none were up close and personal. At the conclusion, they were going to charge us over $40 for photos....I complained that wasn't correct for the VIP tour. So they emailed us 90 photos....70 were from someone else's tours....people we had never met. Our 20 were mostly green indistinguishable blurs. Big disappointment to my granddaughters and waste of time and money.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $100
up to 6 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).