St Andrews Shell Island Adventures — Attraction in Upper Grand Lagoon

I usually don’t write reviews like this, but the experience I had with this charter company raises serious safety and customer care concerns that should be addressed.

TL;DR: The company may be failing in its duty of care. Guests were transported to an uninhabited island without potable water, no warning about biting flies, and no reasonable means to mitigate these issues. Staff not only failed to inform guests but seemed to find amusement in their discomfort. While we were fortunate no serious harm occurred, these conditions posed a real risk, particularly for children or anyone with allergies.

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The Experience

We boarded the boat and waited while a fellow passenger was on a phone call about seeing a medical specialist. The captain made a comment aloud to everyone on the boat:

“I could make a lot of jokes about 5%, but I’m just not going to.”

Right away, it was clear that staff were willing to draw attention to private matters for amusement, setting a troubling tone.

Upon arrival at the island, we were immediately swarmed by biting flies. There was no warning beforehand, and the company does not provide bug spray or alternative means of protection. I had brought my own, but many passengers—including children—were clearly affected.

When we returned, one of the captains immediately responded to our polite feedback about returning early with a:

“Come on guys, WE KNOW how it is am I right?”

This seemed to confirm that staff were aware of the issues and were actively choosing to treat guests’ discomfort as entertainment rather than a safety matter. Our refusal to acknowledge we suffered any difficulty, had them semi-confrontations and alluding to the fact that we were returning early because of the females in our group and the flies.

Later, another staff member said:

“Oh, how were the flies? They were bad yesterday, but we don’t have any bug spray, sorry about that.” Of course this wasn’t said until after we had returned, gotten off the boat, and were taking the tram back to our vehicles.

This dismissive attitude highlights the lack of proactive care or communication. There is no potable water on the island, which we knew of, but having the only options in the store be vitamin water or Gatorade sold by the company(a small sampling compared to the pop available. This just further compounds the risk for visitors, particularly children or anyone with medical conditions.

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Why This Matters

The combination of: • No potable water • Lack of warning about biting flies • No mitigation or alternative safety measures • Staff actively mocking or minimizing guest discomfort

…creates a foreseeable risk of harm. Guests should be informed so they can take precautions. Parents, those with allergies, or anyone with a medical condition should be especially cautious.

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Conclusion / Advice to Future Guests

While our group ultimately enjoyed the natural beauty of the island and even captured some great moments with dolphins, the experience was marred by the extremely unprofessional staff and preventable safety risks they chose to expose their passengers to.

If you plan to visit, bring your own water, bug spray, and be aware that the staff may not provide full warnings in the name of profits and a laugh at your expense. Whether this is of any legal concerns, I would guess would depend on the severity of the reactions to the bites.

0/5, fail at every standard of safety other than in the manipulation of the...

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