Go Local Manatee Tours — Local services in Crystal River

HOLY. COW. (Or should I say, Holy Sea Cow?) This tour with Pete and Lindsey was the absolute experience of a lifetime. We went for our 10 year anniversary and it was the perfect way to celebrate our love for the natural world and love for each other.

I chose Go Local for a few reasons... first, they have super small group sizes-- max eight people. (More on that later!) Second, the way Pete operates his trips is ethical for the Crystal River ecosystem, which is super important for us. Finally, I chose this company because they're the one of the only locally owned and operated outfit! Pete and Lindsey are both Crystal River natives and have a wealth of information on the area, plus that means we're able to give back to the local economy and not a random CEO in Colorado.... And I am SO GLAD we chose them! Booking on the Go Local website was a breeze and I got personalized text confirmation from Pete as well as the email. It was easy to find the location and parking was plentiful and only $5 at the Pier. The tour had everything we needed from snorkels and wetsuits to bottled water and pool noodles.

We were on the 1:00 tour in early June, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that we were the only people on the whole tour! A private manatee tour?? you can't get better than that.

After a warm welcome from Lindsey, Captain Peter drove us through the water and we saw plenty of wildlife -- fish, crabs, and even a small gator! We quickly had our first Manatee encounter and it took my breath away. Before you take a tour, you'll learn the importance of "passive observation" and how to make the manatees feel safe, and it definitely paid off. The little fella was comfortable enough to come super close to us and it was such an incredible thing to see him munching the grass and hearing Lindsey point out all the cool behaviors. After that, it just kept getting better! We saw tiny babies, a massive mammoth of manatee, and even a nursing calf and his mother. Most of the manatees were super chill and a few even seemed to want to engage with us! However there were one or two who gave signs they weren't into it, and our guides immediately respected that and we went another way. I'm really glad they care about the welfare of the animals and not trying to chase them down to make a buck! .

Another thing I really appreciated was that the tour took photos for us the whole time so we could totally be immersed in the moment. :) And the photos are included in the package! I can't wait to see how they turned out.

One of the greatest unexpected bonuses of this tour was getting to see a few natural underwater springs. House Springs especially was straight out of a movie, and my inner child rejoiced at being able to play mermaid in a crystal clear lagoon. I absolutely adored hearing all the local lore, cool facts, ecology knowledge, and fabulous eatery recommendations.

I could go on, forever and ever, about how much fun we had. It's difficult to overstate how magical everything felt.... It was a great experience, phenomenal company, and easily worth double what we paid for the trip. I will 1000000% be back again--I'd love to make this an annual trip. Thank you Peter and Lindsey for the trip...

Wow. Where can we start with the Go Local Manatee boat ride and swim. It was by far the best thing I have ever done in my life. It was a magical day in which myself and my young family will never forget. We arrived 20 minutes early and was welcomed on board by our swimmer/photographer/tour guide/manatee expert Lacey who spent time getting us settled in on the boat and prepping us for what to expect. She couldn't have been more reassuring for my 10 and 13 year old who were a bit apprehensive. She answered many questions and passed on her wisdom. Then we met Walter our captain who was the nicest guy. Very warm welcoming and had an heir of he knew what he was doing so we would be in safe hands. We set off from the dock and Walter was in constant contact with other captains to find the best location to spot the magnificent beasts. Within 20 minutes we had dropped anchor and found our first Manatee. With wetsuits already on and snorkels prepped we descended into the water off the back of the boat to float with our noodles alongside the most placid and gentle creatures. We spent a good hour in the water and was joined by several more manatees. Lacey was great in keeping us informed of where the manatees were and where we should be for the best view and experience. The other great thing about this tour is all the photos are done by Lacey on her go pro and were sent out via whatsapp/google link that evening for free! The quality of the pictures were great and it meant you could just enjoy the experience without having to take pictures yourself or the awkwardness of buying photos at the end of the experience for over inflated prices.

We returned to the boat once we were ready to leave the manatees behind and we moved on to the natural crystal springs, where the water is the clearest you will ever see. We swam m and were able to do some free diving and swimming. We were also lucky here to be joined by a Manatee which meant the pictures were extra clear. We were also lucky enough to spot some dolphins in the bay which was a great bonus for us when we were leaving. I give our whole experience a 10 out of 10. Lacey and Walter couldn't have done any more for us to make this day any better.

I would recommend to anyone and it is definitely one of the things I have ticked off the bucket list but would want to do again and again.

Thank...

What a Magical Experience! Go Local, and Captain Peter and Lindsay specifically, were Amazing! The Fact that they are the Only Locally Owned and Operated Tour in the area, with a focus on Sustainability, and were able to share their love of their Beautiful, Natural Environment felt like such a Privilege! Because they keep their boat size small, my family and I were able to enjoy a Most Personal and Intimate Experience! Captain Peter was so Knowledgeable and Informative, answering all of our questions in depth, all while guiding us to the perfect spots where we could continue to have our private experience in the water with the manatees as well. Lindsay was our most patient, kind and caring guide in the water as well not only helping us and staying with us the entire time but also photographing our trip the entire time so we could simply focus on being in the moment and enjoying our experience! After seeing how the other tour boats are out there, packed in like a zoo with a dozen or more people, all crowding around each other practically scaring off every manatee in the area while the tour captain sits around talking on his phone, I know we made the best decision going with Go Local. But please don’t go with the predisposition that you will leave with the perfect up close shot of you with a manatee. This is Not Sea World. This is An Opportunity To Show Your Kids What The Real World Looks Like, And you Never Know What Mother Nature Will Have In Store For You! So Please Go With An Open Mind, And...