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Clear Kayak Tours on Chassahowitzka River

Badge of ExcellenceCrystal River, USA

3 hours
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Experience unspoiled wilderness during your time in Florida when you book this clear kayak tour on the Chassahowitzka River. Join a small group and grab your gear for a gentle paddle down the river to underwater caves and connecting streams. While you paddle, keep your eyes peeled for wildlife like manatees, dolphins, alligators, river otters, and several fish species.

Observe both aquatic and land animals while you paddle
Easily see animals beneath you aboard a clear kayak
All kayaking equipment and instruction is provided
A small group means more attention from your guide

What's Included

We will provide everything you need to paddle!
Tandem kayak, life jacket, paddles

Bottled water
Parking Fees
Towels, bathing suits, water shoes, sun glasses, etc.

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

8544 W Miss Maggie Dr, Homosassa, FL 34448, USA
Once you arrive at Seven Sisters Campground, you will go into the campground office to pay $10 for parking and will be directed on where to park!

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge

3 hours • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Service animals allowed
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
Not recommended for pregnant travelers

No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
Not recommended for beginner kayakers
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 10 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

sallie_h

Izzy is a wonderful guide. Incredibly personable and knowledgeable of the area. Found manatees for us!

Reviews

5.0

193 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 193 reviews

Good

Aleen_G, Mar 2024

Clear canoes are difficult to navigate in windy conditions. Guide did a good job in letting teen play at swing

Wonderful

Yok_P, Feb 2024

Our tour guide ‘James’ was wonderful. And he of course we found Manatees also a lot of birds. It was so much fun

Awesome kayaking day

sallie_h, Dec 2023

Izzy is a wonderful guide. Incredibly personable and knowledgeable of the area. Found manatees for us!

Lots of manatees

Frank_P, Nov 2023

We saw lots of manatees. It was a perfect time of year we had a blast. It was so quiet. The he tour guide Izzy was wonderful.

AMAZING!!

Jordan_W, Nov 2023

James was amazing!! we saw a lot of Manatees!! such a great experience..!!! Would definitely recommend this for families with smaller kids. My four-year-old had a blast!!

Great time!!

Brad_L, Mar 2023

Had a great time in a clear kayak! It was a small group which was really nice. Our guide was fun and we did not feel rushed at all. The river was busy but our guide did a great job of navigating around the crowded areas. Would highly recommend this tour!

Nice

Patricia_H, Feb 2023

Nice trip. We got to see a manatee at the end. Wish we didn’t have to paddle around so quickly because I wanted to enjoy the scenery. Maybe they should have a causal group.

Great experience!

Shelisa_P, Jan 2023

Sandy was the best!! We saw several manatees and learned about the area! We had a lot of fun and went at a good pace.

Great for the adventure group!

Christina_H, Apr 2022

Isabel was an amazing guide! She was super friendly and told us what to expect. We stopped to see an alligator family and made sure we had breaks when we needed them.

Response from Host, Apr 2022

We are so happy you enjoyed your tour with Isabel! What an amazing sight to see with the alligators! Thank you for leaving us a great review, we hope to paddle with you again soon!

Connor was a great guide....

Dave_D, Apr 2022

Connor was a great guide. The wind was picking up so our tour had to change routes but he did an amazing job and made sure everyone enjoyed themselves.

Response from Host, Apr 2022

Dave, thank you for leaving us a review! We are happy you enjoyed your tour with Connor. Hopefully next time you come out with us, the wind will not be an issue!

An Amazing Must Do!!!!

Angela_J, Apr 2022

What a great time!!! Our tour guide Hunter was highly knowledgeable and hysterical to boot! He informed us from the get go that chances were slim on seeing any manatees since their season in the area was pretty much over. But it was our lucky day and a mom and calf played around us for a good while and a great experience was had! Highly recommend and five stars across the board! Thanks Hunter and Get Up And Go Kayaking!!!!

Response from Host, Apr 2022

Thank you so much for leaving us an excellent review, Angela! It sounds like you had a great time both with hunter and on the water! We are so happy you got to see a mom and calf out on the water! We hope to see you again soon!

Rent your own kayaks to explore more

Margaret_K, Mar 2022

This was barely a tour. We could’ve rented kayaks and done the same thing ourselves with much more time and freedom to explore. We went thru canals into the main river and went about 5 mins down the turned around and came back. No manatees (which is fine). Did not go to the crack which was what I looked forward to reading other reviews.

Response from Host, Mar 2022

Hi there! I am having trouble finding your booking with us - we would love to connect over the phone if possible! We apologize for the disappointment, it is never our intention to leave any customers with unmet expectations. The intention is always to go to the Crack, with an understanding that certain factors may stand in the way of that (i.e. safety, ability of the group, timing, crowds, etc.), so we are sure there is a reason for this happening. Again, we would love to connect with you to make this right. Please give us a call! 3528341556. Thank you!

Fun trip

Mark_A, Mar 2022

Seeing manatees provided by Hunter our guide. Nice weather ... just the right length of time. Enjoyed the clear boats.

Response from Host, Apr 2022

Thank you so much for choosing to tour with us, Mark! The Manatees are incredible, aren't they? We hope to paddle with you again soon!

Kayaking with the Manatees

Dana_B, Mar 2022

We got to see Manatees up close. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and which really made it a wonderful experience.

Response from Host, Apr 2022

Dana, thank you so much for leaving us a review! We are so happy you got to experience the Manatees up close! We hope to see you on the water again soon!

Great day with manatees on the river

Scott_P, Mar 2022

We knew we were a bit late for the manatees in early-March and didn't have much expectation of seeing any, so we were thrilled to encounter three of them in a quiet cove. Our guide let us linger there for about 30 minutes, while the manatees played around our kayaks. We also saw lots of birds, and one alligator (another surprise!)

Response from Host, Mar 2022

So amazing! This is incredible - what a fun memory!! Thank you so much for paddling with us and for taking the time to write about your experience. Can't wait to do it again!

Shaggy Delic!

Laura_S, Mar 2022

Love seeing the Floridian nature. Shaggy was the best! He was very knowledgeable and was able to answer all of our questions. He pointed out not only species, but educated us on key points about them. Safety was his focus, while you just enjoyed the sites. Highly recommended, if you would like to learn about the 7 Sister Springs. Shaggy rocks!

Response from Host, Mar 2022

We love to hear it! Thank you so much for taking the time to write this review. We are so glad you enjoyed your tour with Shaggy. Come back soon!

Great day with kids!

Krista_G, Feb 2022

I tried uploading photos but I wouldn’t work. This is a great experience! I took my 2 kids (13 and 16) with me and they both enjoyed it. The views are amazing and having the clear kayak helped in the deeper waters. Most of the water is shallow and you can see fish and even shells below you. What no one ever mentions in their review is alligators. We were able to safely observe a momma and 2 babies! It was really cool to see even though I was initially nervous. Hunter (our guide) was very knowledgeable of her location ahead of time and asked our entire group first before taking us to her. He then positioned his kayak in front of us so we could safely view mom and her babies. I felt very calm and secure the entire time. The final destination is a natural spring with a rope swing that both kids enjoyed a lot. No complaints with this excursion, but be prepared for a good paddling workout!

Response from Host, Feb 2022

Krista, this sounds like an incredible experience! Thank you so much for taking the time to write about your tour. We think future guests will definitely benefit from the information you shared! Hope to paddle with you again soon. Thanks!

Look elsewhere.

Kelly_W, Feb 2022

The first half of the trip was in a skanky canal that wound through a skanky residential neighborhood. The second half was on a river we shared with large loud motorboats including an airboat. We briefly stopped in a couple of side coves but shared one of those with about 15 boats...including the airboat! Never saw the "Jurassic Park" scenery mentioned/pictured in the ad.

Response from Host, Feb 2022

Oh no! This is definitely not what we want to hear. Obviously we cannot control other boaters, but it sounds like the route of the tour was different than expected. Please connect with us so we can further understand your feedback and hopefully mitigate this issue: contactwestfl@getupandgokayaking.com

Awesome experience

Bernd_H, Feb 2022

Very exciting tour Awesome tourguide Shaggy is very dedicated and passionate about the environment and the animals along the way. Definitely worth the trip

Response from Host, Feb 2022

This sounds awesome! Thank you so much for writing this review. We are so glad you had a good time!

Peaceful paddle on the Chazz

Nate_N, Jan 2022

Shaggy the guide was great! He knew a lot about the area and made sure we had a good time. The clear kayaks were really unique. Shaggy is willing to customize your experience so just ask!

Response from Host, Jan 2022

This is awesome! Thank you for the review and for taking the time to write about your paddle with us. Thanks so much!