Everglades National Park

Small Group Boat, Kayak and Walking Guided Eco Tour in Everglades National Park

Badge of ExcellenceEverglades National Park, USA
Boat Assisted Kayak Eco Tour ENP

Overview

Escape to the wilderness of the Florida Everglades on this small-group eco-adventure. Explore a variety of lush landscapes by foot, kayak and boat looking for dolphins, manatees, sea turtles, bald eagles and more. Hike along the beach, dunes and mangrove swamps. Kayak to Barrier Island Beach — no kayaking experience necessary. And take a boat ride through some of the most remote areas of the park. It’s the ultimate Everglades experience rolled into one unique, half-day adventure.
  • Small-group Everglades eco-adventure by foot, kayak and boat
  • Take a boat ride through remote areas of the park and admire the diverse vegetation
  • Enjoy a kayak adventure to Barrier Island Beach -- no experience required!
  • Hike along the beach and see shallow tidal zones, dunes, mangrove swamps and more
  • Tour led by an experience naturalist certified by the US Coast Guard

What's Included

  • Professional guide
  • Kayak equipment and instruction
  • Boat ride
  • Professional naturalist guide
  • Guided nature hike
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • Food and drinks
  • Gratuities

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

  • 238 Mamie St, Chokoloskee, FL 34138, USA

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

South of Fort Myers is Everglades National Park, one of the most beautiful and unique places on earth. This tour is led by an experienced naturalist guide who is certified by both the park and the US Coast Guard. Learn about the history of the Everglades, as well as the wide variety of wildlife and vegetation that exist throughout the park.

Every tour is different, but expect to encounter the Everglade's wildlife at some point. Look for manatees, dolphins, sea turtles, bald eagles, ospreys, herons, egrets and roseate spoonbills, to name some of them.

Begin the tour with a boat ride — it’s what’s known as a kayak transport boat with all the trimmings (full safety equipment, satellite communications, GPS tracking system, large sunshade, even a cooler for drinks) — through one of the most remote areas of Everglades National Park. At the destination, this is where it turns into a hands-on eco experience. It’s time to hop in a kayak. Don’t worry about knowing how to get going. It’s easy and fun. A few simple instructions will get the one- or two-person kayak moving in the right direction. Paddle along close to the flora and fauna, en route to Barrier Island Beach, an island seldom visited by others. 

At the beach, the interpretive experience turns into a walking tour. Check out the wrack lines, shallow tidal zones, dunes, uniquely adapted plants, shells, mangrove swamps, plus the many different invertebrate species. 

After the beach hike, it’s back in the kayaks to paddle back to the boat for the ride home.

Everglades Area Tours

30 minutesAdmission Ticket Free

Everglades National Park

3 hours Admission Ticket Free

TEN THOUSAND ISLANDS NWR

30 minutesAdmission Ticket Free

Smallwood Store (Pass By)

Chokoloskee

20 minutesAdmission Ticket Free

Additional Info

  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • You will need to access the boat by decending a couple steps of a ladder.
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Service animals allowed
  • Infants must sit on laps
  • No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
  • Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 6 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

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Featured review
Dan_J
Don was a great tour guide. He was very knowledgeable and taught us quite a bit. We enjoyed our time greatly.

Reviews

5.0
150 reviews
Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews
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Reviews by Viator travelers.
Showing 1-10 of 150 reviews
The beauty of Everglades
Marit_S, Mar 2024
We had an amazing tour with Dan. We manged to see lots of Dolphins, various birds and endangered species of sawfish. Dan was very knowledgeable of the marine life and environment. Our kayak tour was through beautiful areas with mangroves and the beauty of silence. We also enjoyed a lot just sitting at the boat with the sun in our faces and wind in our hair. Excellent day.
Response from Host, Mar 2024
We're ecstatic you enjoyed your time with Dan on the boat and got to see some of the beauty the Everglades has to offer. The creatures and the area are truly something to behold. Thank you so much for touring with us and leaving a review.
Great Experience
David_S, Jun 2023
Lots of birds, enjoyed kayaking, walking along beach of island great, thrilled to see shark, sawfish, sting ray. All in all a rewarding experience. Captain was personal and very knowledgeable.
Awesome! Educational, breathtaking nature
Melissa_V, Apr 2023
Extremely knowledgeable and lovely guide! Went with my science curious 6 year old. Just wish we didn’t have rain and could have stayed out longer
Response from Host, May 2023
Thank you. Rain is April is rare...but much needed
Great tour
Shellane_B, Apr 2023
It was a 4 hr tour but didn’t seem too long, had a long boat ride , short kayak and a walk to a sandbar. Tour guide knowledgeable of area. Meeting place was a little harder to find, we were there early and the office is not staff, just be on time, not too early.
Response from Host, Apr 2023
Thank you ... the office is being renovated to be a restaurant/Sandwich Shop...opening soon!!
A worthwhile trip!
Cynthia_G, Apr 2023
Don was a knowledgeable and competent guide, who made our trip very enjoyable. I had no idea how seashells developed, which was so interesting.
Response from Host, Apr 2023
Thank you
Great Time in the Everglades
Bryce_M, Apr 2023
We had a great time on this group boat and kayak tour in the 10,000 islands area. It is a great way to experience the Everglades mangroves, see bird and sea life, and experience pristine beaches.
Response from Host, Apr 2023
Thank you
Great tour guide
Dan_J, Feb 2023
Don was a great tour guide. He was very knowledgeable and taught us quite a bit. We enjoyed our time greatly.
Response from Host, Feb 2023
Thank you
Not what was advertised.
Gregory_P, Feb 2023
Our guide seemed reluctant to be there. Though the the tour was supposed to be part walking, there was no walking. Our guide did not tell us much about the area unless prompted and appeared to meander around in the boat for three hours aside from a brief period where we kayaked, but again, he did not explain the area very well. I would not recommend. Very disappointing.
Response from Host, Feb 2023
Gregory, This public review is different from what you conveyed privately, when you said " I was looking forward to exploring on foot, but our guide skipped that part. Can you explain what happened?" ... I copied my response to you below. "Convective Sea Breezes! This has been an unusually warm period on the Florida peninsula, yet the water temperature is still relatively winter cool. As the land mass heats up relative to the water, the air over the land rises significantly and rapidly draws in air from the water to replace the rising land mass air (convection). This phenomenon occurs everyday in the warmer months and is the energy source for our afternoon thunderstorms. The breezes can become significant near shore increasing wave action making the ride to the outer barrier islands "bumpy" and making beach landings, where we conduct the walks, impractical or unsafe. Because of this convection and the energy/waves created, we try to only conduct morning tours in the warmer months ... before the convective sea breezes develop. Sunday, the convective sea breezes, although fairly unusual for this time of year, generated pretty quickly. Your captain, based on comfort and safety, made a decision to extend the paddle and not go to the outer islands under those conditions."
Kayaking, dolphins, and beach exploration
Siobhan_F, Dec 2022
Dolphins playing in the wake of the boat, on both the “drive in” trip and the return trip, and the story telling of the guide Don. He was very knowledgeable and was able to answer all kinds of questions about the sea animals, birds and flora. As we were kayaking on the return trip he got into the shallow waters and pulled out a living Conch - and it was a very large shell! I’ve never seen that before and then found viable egg sacks for the Welk (another sea creature, gastropod) and explained that process and I’ve never seen anything like that either. Loved the trip!! Maximum if 6 people, so very private and serene experience.
Response from Host, Jan 2023
So glad you enjoyed your tour with us Lauralynne
Great family experience!
Joyce_B, Dec 2022
The boat captain was very knowledgeable. He gave us a great experience! We saw lots of wildlife and historical shells pottery. We also saw a dolphin that swim with our boat.
Response from Host, Dec 2022
Thank you so glad you enjoyed your tour with us
Wonderful experience
Jolanta_M, Dec 2022
Fantastic captain. It didn’t feel commercial. Beautiful nature, comfortable boat ride. I would recommend to my friends.
Response from Host, Dec 2022
Thank you so glad you enjoyed your tour with us
Come to the Everglades!
Todd_S, Aug 2022
Don McCumber was an excellent guide who loves the Everglades. He's knowledgeable and friendly and gave me a great introduction to the wonderful world of the Everglades. I'll be back!
Response from Host, Sep 2022
Thank you so glad you enjoyed your tour with us
Best time to spend around coast of Everglade City
Joseph_S, Aug 2022
Captain Don McCumber Everglades Area Tour - thoroughly enjoyed boating around Ten Thousands Island, and mangroves. Had a dolpen follow the boat, rising the surf, so cute. Walk along the beach and listen to him explaining all these different shells and marine life, was fascinating. Captain was so knowledgeable about the area, flora and fauna and you could really tell he loved sharing it with people. Then kayak around Mangrove trees to the Rabbit and Bunny Island to see Calusa Indiana shell beach 9am - 1230noon, about 3.5hr long Best time to spend around coast of Everglade City
Response from Host, Aug 2022
Thank you so glad you enjoyed your tour with us
Everglades Experience
Herbert_C, May 2022
The walking on the sand barrier as this was in between 2 islands. The tide was high and provided a great opportunity. Our guide was great. Very knowledgeable.
Response from Host, May 2022
thank you
It was a relaxing boat...
Denise_H, May 2022
It was a relaxing boat and kayak ride. Captain Dan was very informative. Seeing the large conch shells was amazing. Loved the small group
Response from Host, May 2022
thank you
Enjoy the beauty of the Everglades!
Heidi_H, Feb 2022
The kayaking was in a beautiful area and truly spectacular. Dolphin sighting and eagles and ospreys were awesome!
Response from Host, Feb 2022
Thank You
Wonderful adventure in nature!
Deborah_C, Feb 2022
The variety of this trip was amazing. Motorboating through the Islands of the Everglades, kayaking through the mangroves and walking on shore. Captain Don was so knowledgeable about the birds and other wildlife. We saw ospreys in their nest, bald eagles, pelicans and more. A great afternoon!
Response from Host, Feb 2022
Thank You, so glad you enjoyed Captain Don
The best tour guide
Oleh_B, Jan 2022
Dan was great. He made our adventure unforgettable . His interesting stories about this park were fantastic
Response from Host, Jan 2022
Thank You
We went out and it was...
Barry_H, Jan 2022
We went out and it was raining on and off and when it did clear we just power boated around which was interesting but not what I signed up for or paid for. Never got to kayak which is what I really wanted to do and thought that this would be a good combination. Sadness. I would have signed up for the power boat tour and saved alot of money if that had been what I wanted to do.
Response from Host, Jan 2022
So sorry but we can not control the weather, If you would like to try another tour, we are willing to give a 10% discount on your tour. thank You
Fascinating!
Kendle_J, Dec 2021
Jason our guide was a treasure trove of knowledge about the wildlife! My favorite part was learning about the birds and seeing an Osprey catch a mullet.
Response from Host, Jan 2022
Thank You

From $199.95

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

  • 3 hours 30 minutes
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English