Everglades tour FAQ

Book as early as you can from December through April, when we are often sold out several weeks ahead. From May through November, three days ahead is usually enough. We take reservations until 5 p.m. the day before your tour and we do not sell same-day seats.

A credit card is required to hold your seats. You can pay by card when you book or in cash on the day of the tour. We do not accept checks.

Our vans carry a maximum of 13 guests, so the day feels personal rather than like a coach trip. The airboat and the mangrove boat are shared with other guests on the water.

Departures run when we meet the minimum for that tour. We confirm your departure with you the day before. If a date does not fill, we will offer you another date or a full refund.

Yes. Groups of eight or more should call (239) 472-1559 so we can hold the right van and pickup. Private tours and step-aboard guide service for groups travelling on their own coach are quoted by phone.

From about 40 hotels on Fort Lauderdale Beach, around 17th Street and the cruise port, and in Weston, plus Galleria Mall and Flamingo Gardens. On the west coast we pick up at Perkins on Tamiami Trail in Fort Myers, Embassy Suites in Estero, Target on Tarpon Bay Blvd in Naples and the Hampton Inn Fort Myers Beach/Sanibel Gateway.

Not on the day safaris or Captain Bob’s tours — pickup from one of our departure points is required, and it is included in the price. The exception is the Western Everglades Adventure in Immokalee, where you drive yourself between the trailhead and the marina.

Yes, free parking is available at Galleria Mall and Flamingo Gardens in Fort Lauderdale, at Perkins Restaurant in Fort Myers, at Embassy Suites in Estero and at the Hampton Inn Fort Myers Beach/Sanibel Gateway.

Call us. In many cases we can add a stop or suggest the closest departure point. Guests staying in Fort Myers, Estero, Bonita Springs or Naples can often be collected at their hotel when they book a private tour.

Many Fort Lauderdale-area pickups are at airport and cruise port hotels. Tell us your hotel when you book and we will confirm the closest point and the exact time.

The Everglades Day Safari is a full day — about nine hours — with an airboat ride, a wildlife drive through Big Cypress National Preserve, a guided nature walk, lunch in Everglades City, the Smallwood’s Store Museum and a boat cruise into the Ten Thousand Islands. Captain Bob’s Excellent Adventure is a five-hour, family-focused morning with an airboat ride and an interactive reptile presentation, suited to guests with small children.

It is a four-hour tour that meets on site in Immokalee. You walk Corkscrew Marsh with a biologist, then drive to Lake Trafford Marina for a reptile presentation and an airboat ride. There are more alligators per acre on Lake Trafford than almost anywhere in Florida.

Yes — we guarantee wild alligator sightings on our airboat tours. Dolphins, turtles and wading birds are common too. Manatees and black bears are rare, and a Florida panther is extremely rare.

Around 40 companies run airboat rides in Florida. Ours is a true safari: the airboat is one part of a day that also includes a national park boat cruise, a wildlife drive and a naturalist walk, so you see several habitats rather than one pond.

The airboat is open, loud and fast — it skims the sawgrass and pond apple sloughs and gets you close to wildlife. The boat cruise is a quiet six-passenger Carolina Skiff through the mangrove islands of the Ten Thousand Islands in Everglades National Park. Ear protection is provided on the airboat.

The day safari is best for ages six and up. Captain Bob’s Excellent Adventure and the Western Everglades Adventure welcome all ages, including toddlers and infants.

Tours run rain or shine and ponchos are provided. The Everglades is the only subtropical rainforest in the continental United States, so summer showers are part of the experience.

Only if it rains or if you fall in — and no one has ever fallen in. The airboat and the skiff stay dry, and we keep ponchos on board.

Far less than people expect, and numbers have stayed low since Hurricane Irma. We carry insect repellent on every tour.

Ochopee, in the heart of the Everglades, averages a low of 54°F and a high of 77°F in January, and a low of 75°F and a high of 93°F in August. Layers work better than a heavy jacket in winter.

Lunch is included on the Everglades Day Safari, at a restaurant in Everglades City, with a drink. You choose from dishes such as a fried chicken strip basket, fried mahi basket, grilled or fried chicken sandwich, charbroiled cheeseburger, mahi sandwich, veggie wrap, cheese quesadilla or mixed green salad.

Yes — vegetarian choices are available and rotate with the season. Tell us when you book so the restaurant is ready.

All food is prepared in one kitchen and we cannot guarantee that any dish is completely free of allergens. If you have a serious allergy, tell us at booking and bring what you need.

Bring a refillable water bottle — we do not hand out single-use plastic bottles. Alcohol is not permitted in the vehicle.

Closed-toe shoes (no flip flops — it is hard to run from angry armadillos), a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, a refillable water bottle, a light layer and your camera. Backpacks and small coolers are fine; please leave luggage at your hotel.

About one mile on the Fort Lauderdale day safari and 1.6 miles from Fort Myers and Naples, at an easy pace with stops. You can walk as far as you like, as fast as you like. The boardwalk can be slippery after rain.

Collapsible walkers and wheelchairs are welcome with advance notice; motorized scooters cannot be carried in the van. Restrooms are available at each stop. Tell us what you need when you book and we will plan around it.

Our vans have LATCH anchors. Bring your child’s own car seat so it fits correctly.

Many guests join us while pregnant, but please check with your doctor first, especially for the airboat portion.

No. There is no tobacco use in the vehicle or at the stops.

Tipping is optional and appreciated. Guests typically give $10 per person for the day safari, $5 per person for Captain Bob’s and $1–2 per person to boat captains.

A National Park pass does not discount the tour, but Fort Lauderdale tours stop at the Oasis Visitor Center where you can have your pass stamped.

Gift cards can be used toward any of our tours and do not expire. Donated certificates expire about a year after they are issued.

Reception is spotty in parts of Big Cypress and the Ten Thousand Islands. Download a map before you leave the coast.

Booking direct means you speak to the people who run the tour, you can move your date or add a pickup without going through a middleman, and your money stays with a locally owned company that has run these tours since 1991.