Manatee Tours

Our swim with manatees tours begins at 8:00 am and 11:30 am daily.  Each manatee tour lasts about 3 hours, however, as your enjoyment is important to us, your time on the water may be extended to try to ensure everyone has a good encounter, especially the manatees!

If you are staying at a nearby hotel/motel, you may want to ask for a late check out time, as our tours are on the manatees schedule, and not necessarily ours. 

From the 8:00 am manatee tour you should expect to return around 11:30-12:00 pm.  Our 11:30 tour does not always begin right on time, so please be patient, as we will be sure everyone has a great time.  From the 11:30 am manatee tour you should expect to return around 2:30-3:00 pm.

Rates are as follows: 3 Hour Manatee tour-    

• $35 per person
• $10 rental wetsuit
• $10 rental snorkel gear

• We do not have an age restriction
• Children under 2 years old are no charge
• We only take 6 people per boat

Native Vacations, offers a 10% discount at a local Cuban restaurant called Cravings Cantina for all of our guests.

Also available at our shop and/or boat:

• Underwater, disposable cameras
• Underwater, re-usable cameras
• Manatee souvenirs & gifts
• Private shower and restrooms
• Coffee or tea and pastries
• Cold drinks on the boat

Join Native Vacations, Inc. for an experience of a lifetime, the way nature intended. Below is what you can expect when you visit us for your manatee swim experience.

Upon arrival, and after signing the necessary paperwork, each guest will change into the rental wetsuits, or the wetsuits each guest is allowed to bring of their own. 

After ensuring all the wetsuits fit properly, we will play a short DVD, (filmed in cooperation with the United States Fish & Wildlife Service) which demonstrates how you must behave while on a manatee tour, interacting with them in their natural habitat.

Next, all guests and their US Coast Guard Certified Captain will proceed to the dock area and board our comfortable pontoon boat to embark on your manatee tour.

While touring King’s Bay in search of manatees, your Captain will teach you about manatee and their habitat, and answer any questions you may have. 

You may also expect to see Bald Eagles, dolphins, otters, wild pigs, raccoons and a large array of local and snow birds. Once the captain has found some friendly manatees, the anchor will be dropped and everyone will quietly enter the water to interact properly with the manatees. 

You may be allowed to take pictures, swim/snorkel with the manatees, and even, if the manatees allow, touch these amazing creatures.

Manatee Tours begin at 8:00 and 11:30 am Daily (Reservations Required)

Snorkeling with manatees tours are conducted all year long, although many of the manatees will leave the area during the Spring and Summer months, however, King’s Bay boasts a year round manatee population.

Soft-In-Water Encounters:
The foundation for a meaningful encounter with manatees The technique outlined by the regulations is referred to as a Soft-In-Water encounter. It is the only type of in-water encounter permitted in the refuge. The basis of a Soft-In-Water encounter is a passive, non-aggressive activity wherein the participants float quietly on the surface of the bay in the vicinity of a tolerant and cooperative manatee or manatees, and allow the natural curiosity of the manatee to draw it closer. Participants in a Soft-In-Water encounter may use mask, snorkel; but no SCUBA or re-breather equipment of any type is allowed. In a Soft-In-Water encounter there is no aggressive swimming or free dive. Participants are also required to stay together as a group. So though it is commonly referred to as "swimming with manatees," there is little swimming involved! By entering the water quietly, and floating peacefully as a small group, the participants minimize any disturbance to the manatees, and then allow the manatee to choose to approach or not. It is an encounter in their environment, on their terms.

You Don't Approach the Manatee; the Manatee Approaches You:
To better explain it, consider that you cannot get close to a manatee, a manatee has to want to get close to you! Granted, with our technology, we do have the ability to zoom up in a boat and jump on a manatees head. That kind of behavior is obviously blatant harassment, a total violation of Refuge regulations, and a violation of the spirit of the Crystal River Refuge itself. There isn't a single operator in Crystal River that would even consider that approach for one second. But relevant to this discussion is the end result: a very unhappy manatee that will bolt for the horizon, leaving you swirling in its wake as you stare into now-empty water. Aggressive swimming has the same effect as zooming up in a boat: the sudden end of an encounter. But a Soft-In-Water encounter is a passive approach that puts the participants in proximity of an appropriate manatee and allows the manatee to set the distance, mood, tempo, and duration of the encounter. They are not threatened by the approach, and therefore are much more comfortable in choosing to interact more closely. By staying together as a group, participants make it easier for the manatee to keep track of their location, which helps to keep the manatee calm and accepting. Since manatees are wild animals, there is no way to accurately predict the outcome of every opportunity, but using this non-aggressive technique in the past has resulted in manatee encounters that have lasted anywhere from minutes to hours.

Successful Manatee Encounters:
Vital to the success of any in-water encounter is the initial selection and approach of an appropriate manatee. There is a wide range of behaviors exhibited by the manatees in the Crystal River Refuge, and many are not conducive to in-water encounters. A great deal of time is spent by the guides to find manatees that are likely to welcome interaction. Through years of experience observing and interpreting manatee’s behavior, your guides have developed the skills needed to successfully place you where you need to be for the greatest chance of success. For example, manatees that are cruising or involved in rowdy behavior are not candidates for an in-water encounter, while non-resting manatees or surfaced manatees are. Experienced guides will not only explain and educate about the behaviors seen, but will also prevent participants from wasting time by trying to impose themselves on uninterested manatees, which is better for both the participants and the manatee. Sometimes guests may learn that the best way to successfully encounter a manatee is to not get in the water at all! Although this rarely happens.

Understanding the Manatee and Its Environment:
With that in mind, it is important to understand that the manatees of the Crystal River Refuge are wild animals in their natural environment, and are therefore impossible to predict with total accuracy. A journey to the Refuge is filled with opportunity, but as with any other wildlife activity, there may be times of greater or lesser activity, and not every excursion in the tenders will result in an in-water encounter, again this rarely happens but is possible. During the slower moments it helps to remember that this is a wilderness area, and full of potential surprises. Spend this time learning from your shipmates or sharing with them, or simply lost in thought, but always keep a curious eye to the ocean...

Reservations are required

Call us toll free at 1-866-Go-Native

Credit Cards Accepted

Note: Until confirmed, rates are subject to change without notice.