River Ventures
River Ventures
5
Scuba & SnorkellingBoat ToursNature & Wildlife ToursStand Up PaddleboardingKayaking & Canoeing
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
6:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
The 'OG' Swim with Manatee Tour in Crystal River & Homosassa. Join us on The Nature Coast for adventures that range from ‘Mild to Wild’! Cruise on one of our air boats, harvest scallops in the Gulf of Mexico, or enjoy a privilege that is exclusively ours: to snorkel with manatees!
Crystal River, Florida
Meets animal welfare guidelines

Awards
Travelers' Choice
2023

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Tours and Tickets by River Ventures
Travelers talk about
(73 reviews)
(265 reviews)
(48 reviews)

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

5.0
5.0 of 5 bubbles6,339 reviews
Excellent
6,005
Very good
231
Average
59
Poor
32
Terrible
15

Diane W
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Family
We absolutely enjoyed our tour with the Manatees! Trish and Wade are top notch guides! You can tell they have lots of experience, and a love for what they do, and their tour did not disappoint. We luckily found the manatees quickly and got a lot of time in the water with them. My little one (7) got cold and went back to the boat early, Wade quickly heated up the boat and served him hot cocoa, and he was comfortable, the rest of us were able to keep floating. Trish was extremely good at always getting us a good view of the manatees and helping my sons stay in the appropriate position for viewing and very encouraging towards them. We also had the treat of seeing 2 large tarpon and hundreds of mullet. I could not recommend this company and Trish and Wade more! We went on the earliest tour for the best results and I feel like it was worth the early wake up and the money. We will definitely be back!
Written March 18, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

SSHARK1991
Rochester, NY5 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Family
Captain Troy and Guide Marissa made the tour a memorable experience. We were a group of six, two families with two young girls, age 10 and 11. Troy and Marissa were informative and reassuring for the girls. They took us to a cove where we experienced the manatees. Wow! The manatees are gentle giants! The water was pretty clear and the manatees were amazing. We also experienced a swim in a cove with underwater springs with fish and crystal clear water and bubbling sand.
Written March 18, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Stephanie S
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Family
Amazing time! This was our first trip with small children, 6 and 8. I was also 5 months pregnant. They had a large size range of wetsuits for us. We were worried about if they had a suit big enough for my husband who is 6’ 6” and usually wears a Xxl in most sizes, and they had a great fit for him as well as a comfortable suit for my pregnant belly.
Dani was our instructor and Mike our captain. Both were entertaining and compassionate. My youngest had a hard time getting in the water and Dani made it look like magic as she let him ride on her back to go see the manatees! So awesome! That made a world of difference to the trip for me! Mike was equally patient when he needed to move the boat to get closer to the group so we didn’t need to swim as far! We will definitely request them again in our next tour.
Written March 17, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Joleen R
7 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Couples
We had a amazing day. Marissa, our guide and Brian ,our captain were knowledgeable, friendly and highly competent at finding manatees in Crystal river.
We were able to find and swim with several of them during our tour. Marissa took underwater video as well.
Written March 17, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

rickhawkins61
Savannah, GA1 contribution
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024
Really nice staff and boat, but end of season meant very few manatees remaining, and the one animal we snorkelled with seemed to have boat after boat of snorkellers visiting it without a break whilst we were there in the morning, and I felt a bit sorry for it. Semi private seems a slightly misleading title if there are still 6 persons on a boat.
Written March 17, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

FarAway15200293446
Splendora, TX1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Family
My 16 year old daughter and I came here mid-March and had such a great time! The water was cloudy, but we were still able to see about 10 manatees! Our guide was actively looking for more the whole time and guiding us to the most active ones. Our boat captain was also looking from the boat and guiding us to the ones that just surfaced. I got nose-to-nose with one twice! It was the most amazing thing ever!!!! We will definitely be coming back!

There’s not a ton of swimming required, but probably best for older kids who can control their bodies better bc there is absolutely no kicking allowed and maneuvering using only your hands.
Written March 17, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Rose C
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Family
Words cannot express the gratitude I had for the tour guide and boat captain on River Ventures. I had lost my phone while swimming on tour and was freaking out because I wouldn’t be able to leave Florida without it since it had my ID! In under 15 minutes, our talented captain Jason located my phone sitting at the bottom of the murky water about 15-25 feet away from the boat. If our tour guides weren’t excellent divers and hosts, I probably wouldn’t have my phone now to leave this review. They were very kind, knowledgeable, funny, and made my first experience swimming with manatees amazing. Also offered options to swim in clear water or dive for interesting sights as well. Crosby and Jason were awesome. For people who aren’t strong swimmers this tour was very easy to keep up with. I would recommend this to anyone as it is an experience of a lifetime. These guys went above and beyond for our group which I am really thankful for.
Written March 16, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

debdoodles172
Greece, NY1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024
Had a terrific time! Our guide, Crosby and Captain Jayson were efficient, personable and funny.
Despite the low numbers of manatees, we were able to find one in minutes! What a thrill. We saw them swimming, floating on the surface and one resting on the bay floor.
I was by far the least athletic in the group, and Crosby kept an eye on me and made sure that I got to the manatees. Shout out to Darius, with his own group, who also gave me a hand.
I enjoyed talking with Captain Jayson about a common interest & he had some great quotes & stories.
Overall, my experience was a 5 +, and I’m planning on going on another adventure with them next time! Everyone I dealt with was excellent. Thank for a lifetime experience!
Written March 15, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mark P
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Couples
This was such an amazing experience and I highly recommend to anyone interested in not only having a great time, but also learning about manatees. It truly makes you appreciate them more and I think it harbors a respectful understanding of them, which is what we need because of the fact that they are endangered. Everything they are doing here is so meaningful. Our guides were Dave and Captain Tanner- who I highly recommend. They were SO knowledgeable on not only the manatees, but everything else the bay has to offer. It was such an entertaining and meaningful part of our vacation, and wouldn’t have been without such amazing guides! I would give 10 stars if I could and we will be returning in the future and bringing our friends so we can spread more awareness on these beautiful creatures.
Written March 15, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

aklueppel9
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Family
My daughter's 10th birthday wish was to go swim with manatees. As I began planning, I found River Ventures and talked to someone on the phone, who was super helpful and answered all of my questions. I loved that they offered a guarantee of seeing manatees (for just a minimal added charge) or would allow us to book another trip out for free. Also, the semi-private boat tour with heat was a selling point. It just so happened that we came right after a warm up in the area and so it was a little harder to find as many manatees but Trisha and Wade were great and found the perfect spot for us to have the experience my daughter was looking for. They also were super knowledgeable and great guides. The experience will live on in our memory for years to come!
Written March 14, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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River Ventures - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)