St. Pete Dolphin Watching: Coastal Cruises Adventure
4.9
91 Ratings
St. Petersburg
Embark on a thrilling dolphin-watching and shelling adventure with Coastal Cruises in St. Pete. Explore pristine islands, swim, and discover the local way of life!
Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Pasadena Golf & Yacht Club - Our journey will begin and/or end passing by multi-million dollar waterfront homes. Our guests love taking in these massive estates owned by St. Pete’s local millionaires!
  • Gulfport - En Route to Sand Dollar or Shell Island, we will pass by St. Petersburg’s historic Gulfport community where many sailboats can be seen mooring off the coast of this waterfront town.
  • Pinellas Bayway - En route to island stop, we will pass under several bridges enjoying their architecture. In, particular, the Pinellas Bayway bridge was recently constructed and has an interesting cathedral like appearance when looking to either side while underneath it.
  • North Beach At Fort DeSoto Park - Once arrived at either Shell or Sand Dollar Island, guests will have up to an 1.5hrs to go ashore and swim, tan, or search for their favorite shell. For those less adventurous, there is plenty of shade on board to sit back, relax, and pick our crew’s brain on the area.
What's Included
  • Bar On Board
  • Restroom On Board
What's Not Included
  • Outside Alcohol Not Permitted
  • Lunch
Additional Information

Venture off the beaten path and set sail with Coastal Cruises for a delightful day of Dolphin Spotting and Seashell Collecting in St. Pete! Our trio-hour voyage initiates with a leisurely 45-minute tour, devoted solely to dolphin-spotting along St. Pete’s intercoastal waterways, boasting the backdrop of opulent waterfront residences as we journey towards some of Florida’s top-notch local seashell islands.

Upon anchoring at either Shell or Sand Dollar Island, patrons are endowed with a generous one and a half hours to step ashore and relish a typical ‘locals-style’ day by swimming or sightseeing at these untouched seashell hotspots!
People preferring a laid-back experience can lean back on our adequately shaded boat, engage in invigorating conversations with the crew about the local St. Pete vicinity, take pleasure in the magnificent coastline, or watch their preferred game show on our satellite TV!

When it’s time to leave the charming St. Pete shell islands, we’ll get another chance to pursue dolphins while cruising the 45-minute intercoastal stretch back to the marina.

Location
MarineMax St. Petersburg
Gulfport Boulevard South
Located at Slip 3 in Marine Max directly opposite the black gate. Approximately 5-10min from Treasure Island and St. Pete Beach
Cancellation Policy

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

Customer Ratings
4.9
(91 Ratings)
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H4864hfkarenk
May 23, 2024
St. Pete Coastal Cruises excellent trip - Captains Dalton and Bri were amazing! They were so friendly and engaging with everyone on board. We saw many dolphins in different places. I would recommend this cruise company and captains to everyone! Great job!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Friskel
May 9, 2024
Family fun with memories created. - We loved our cruise with Dalton and Brie. They were friendly, attentive, and extremely helpful with our small children. We loved the boat ride and the experience of Shell Key. Our kids also loved it and wanted to do it again.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Coastal757980
May 8, 2024
A must for water lovers - Definitely a five star cruise. Our captain Dalton and his first mate Bree did everything in their power to make our trip amazing! Very relaxing and three hours was the perfect amount of time. The boat was very comfortable. And although I don’t usually comment on a bathroom, the head🚽 on the boat was absolutely spotless! Quite impressive. I definitely will be going back.🐬🐚👍🏼
Review provided by Tripadvisor
I9775idjuliec
May 1, 2024
Amazing Dolphin cruise! - Highly recommend booking your Dolphin excursion with this company. Had an amazing time on my first trip to Florida. Got to see Dolphins and calves, and also visited the beautiful Shell Island Preserve. The boat is spacious, with both sunny and shaded seats available. Captain Bri and Toby were wonderful hosts and guides!! Bonus…cold beers and seltzers are available for purchase! A memory that will last a lifetime! Definitely check them out!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
James
Apr 26, 2024
A Great Time On The Water!!! - What a great time!!! Our crew, Toby & Bree, were excellent. Toby made sure we saw ample dolphins without being intrusive to their habitat, providing an informative narration out to Shell Key! Bree was most attentive to our needs throughout our cruise and a delight to talk to! We spent about an hour shelling, got some great shells and it was just enough time. The boat was spacious, seats comfortable, plenty shade and the head was clean! We had a great time and looking forward to taking the evening light show tour when we return in September! I strongly recommend this tour!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Travel_loverrrrrrs
Apr 12, 2024
Great family fun!! - We had such a great time looking for dolphins and shells at shell island!! Our kids and grandkids found so many unique, one-of-a-kind shells. We even found a female seahorse!!!! The captain and she-captain were amazing! The she-captain (I wish I could remember her name but remember she was from Los Angeles, CA!) even recommended a wonderful place that could accommodate our large family of 13 for lunch—O’Maddy’s!!! The food was bountiful and the vibe was on point! Overall, an amazing day—we would definitely do it again!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Colleenc683
Apr 4, 2024
So many dolphin sightings! - Thank you captain Tim & captain Briana. We had so much fun! My daughter was so excited about how many dolphins we spotted. The shelling was also a highlight. A great morning cruise to start our day. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Road28845684507
Mar 28, 2024
Fun cruise! - What a fun trip! The crew were so much fun & the dolphins came to play too. Shell key was a great spot to enjoy the sun, sand, & shells! We thoroughly enjoyed our few hours on this cruise!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Z6187ixkellyw
Mar 9, 2024
Definitely do it! - Highly Recommend!! Amazing experience making awesome memories. We saw lots of dolphins, found some really cool shells, spotted some interesting sea creatures and had a relaxing boat ride thanks to Paul and Tim! (The shells with creatures in them were so much fun to explore and were then placed safely back in the water 😊) Didn’t get the best photos of the dolphins because I was enjoying the experience ❤️
Review provided by Tripadvisor
113jennk
Mar 2, 2024
Highlight of our week! - This was a highlight of our vacation and I definitely recommend it! It was a nice, relaxing cruise. We saw many dolphins. We were then dropped off on a beach for about an hour with many variety of good-sized shells. We also found a handful of sand dollars. The staff was very friendly. We can’t wait to do this again!
Review provided by Tripadvisor