It is difficult for me to only give Parrotdise 3 stars. We've done 2 previous tours that were great, but sadly, this time I can definitely say it was not worth what we paid. We are local and had out of town visitors that we wanted to take out to see the area from the water, including Caladesi from the Gulf. We chose the afternoon dolphin tour and understood from previous tours that the route we would be taking was Dunedin down thru Clearwater pass to the Gulf, then thru Hurricane Pass and back to Dunedin. The website says this is the route and they pride themselves on being the only charter to do this. We were informed once on the boat that they no longer do this route due to the post-hurricane changes in the channel at Hurricane pass. While I completely understand the need for this change, I don't understand why they haven't updated their website to reflect this. Had we known this, we probably would have opted to take a charter out of Clearwater and paid less for seeing the same sights.
The day before our tour, we were informed that our charter would be moved to their smaller boat due to the larger boat needing maintenance....this wasn't a problem. However, there may have been a problem with the sound system on the boat we did take, as we only heard a rock music radio station and any narration was yelled out by the captain/not on a speaker...it was just not the same vibe as the tropical music and louder narration on the previous tours we've taken.
We saw dolphins, which was great! We still had a good time and we are happy that Parrotdise has been able to continue operating despite the challenges going on with the Dunedin marina. The itinerary change was just so disappointing, and we really wish we had known prior to...
Read moreDolphin Extravaganza
Went on Sun 4/2 for their 1:30 excursion. Been living in Florida for past 9 years and this was the BEST boat/dolphin tour I have EVER taken. You felt like you were on a boat with family. Capt Jeff was very informative and friendly as we traveled along the waters and First Mate Jerry was so super nice engaging us in conversation and serving us complimentary beverages (free beer, wine, delicious rum punch or water) Tropical music playing as we motored along. We had a Blast!
We left the marina in Dunedin and within minutes we had dolphins! Captain Jeff informed us that dolphins like to entertain so we should clap and hoot and holler to let them know we like them and boy that was the ticket! They were so close, you could almost touch them! We had dolphins to the left of us, to the right of us, in front of us and to the back of us! They were huge! They were jumping in the air; sometimes 2 at the same time and you could look down and see them on their side looking up at you. They just didn’t jump and swim away; they stayed with us for long periods of time. They loved us and we loved them! Even Captain Jack was astonished how long they stayed with us. As we motored along taking in the sights, we would get more dolphins. We had dolphins for a huge portion of our 2 ½ hour trip. This tour includes scenic views from Dunedin to Clearwater Beach, Bellair, Sand Key and all the way to Honeymoon and Caledesi Islands. I would definitely recommend Parrotdise Express Boast Tours. We had a couple on our trip that had already taken this tour 5 times. That should tell you something, right? Go and enjoy yourself. You...
Read moreWe were visiting the Tampa area for a few days and decided to give a boat tour a try. Selecting ParrotDise Express was a matter of random chance, but we sure hit the jackpot on that one!
The thing that immediately struck me, before even getting on the boat, was how our two guides seemed to be enjoying their jobs. In a world suffused with large companies employing workers that want to be anywhere else but dealing with you, it's always nice to be able to support a small business that strikes a balance between profit and job satisfaction.
The unlimited drinks advertisement was true. We were asked every few minutes if we needed anything, and they were happy to top us off.
The guides did a bunch of little things to just make our trip perfect. From cutting the engine and music and letting us drift to watch the sun set, to keeping us out an extra few minutes to get the best chance at seeing dolphins
And we did see dolphins. We were told the first family we came across were probably feeding and may not follow us, but they did come up and swim beside us for 5-10 minutes, often no more than 5-10 feet from us. And on the way back in we had another set come play, swimming and jumping and showing off, and the crew kept us out a few extra minutes to experience it all.
I would highly recommend ParrotDise Express, especially given the...
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