Everglades Airboat Tour without a car

[loriva]

This topic came up before we departed on our recent cruise--if you wanted to do an airboat tour of the Everglades but didn't want to rent a car, were there any options out of Ft. Lauderdale? No one had an answer, so here's a brief review of our experience in hopes it will be useful to others.

 

A couple of weeks before our trip, I had called the Renaissance hotel on 17th (where we were going to be staying) and asked them who they used for tours and they had given me the number of Tri-Country Tours and Transport (954-214-9692; Joe). We paid $45 per person for a circa three-hour tour that included pick up at the hotel in a van, drive to Everglades Holiday Park, one-hour airboat trip, a short talk and up-close view of alligators in the park afterwards, and return to hotel. Princess Cruises also uses Tri-county for their post-embarkation tours as we met a couple on the van who had just come off the Coral that morning.

 

We hit a bit of bad luck on our trip in that most people on the trip were on the “fluffy” side and two took up a row meant for three, meaning that four of us had to squish into a row together. But it’s luck of the draw.

 

On the other end of that spectrum, our boat tour (with Jess) saw five alligators (the boat before us didn’t see any) including a family—the bull alligator, the mom keeping him away from the offspring (which the males tend to eat), and a baby. It was a beautiful, scenic experience. Most of us tipped both the boat driver and the van driver ($5/couple).

 

Overall, if you didn't want to rent a car and then have to drop it off at the airport before heading to the pier, this is a viable option. At least for two people. If you have a larger group, you probably come out better renting a vehicle and driving to the park yourself.

[JungleMonkey]

This topic came up before we departed on our recent cruise--if you wanted to do an airboat tour of the Everglades but didn't want to rent a car, were there any options out of Ft. Lauderdale? No one had an answer, so here's a brief review of our experience in hopes it will be useful to others.

 

A couple of weeks before our trip, I had called the Renaissance hotel on 17th (where we were going to be staying) and asked them who they used for tours and they had given me the number of Tri-Country Tours and Transport (954-214-9692; Joe). We paid $45 per person for a circa three-hour tour that included pick up at the hotel in a van, drive to Everglades Holiday Park, one-hour airboat trip, a short talk and up-close view of alligators in the park afterwards, and return to hotel. Princess Cruises also uses Tri-county for their post-embarkation tours as we met a couple on the van who had just come off the Coral that morning.

 

We hit a bit of bad luck on our trip in that most people on the trip were on the “fluffy” side and two took up a row meant for three, meaning that four of us had to squish into a row together. But it’s luck of the draw.

 

On the other end of that spectrum, our boat tour (with Jess) saw five alligators (the boat before us didn’t see any) including a family—the bull alligator, the mom keeping him away from the offspring (which the males tend to eat), and a baby. It was a beautiful, scenic experience. Most of us tipped both the boat driver and the van driver ($5/couple).

 

Overall, if you didn't want to rent a car and then have to drop it off at the airport before heading to the pier, this is a viable option. At least for two people. If you have a larger group, you probably come out better renting a vehicle and driving to the park yourself.

 

The Everglades Day Safari has a much better tour that gives you a trip through the actual Everglades. Not just a roadside place like Holiday Park. Everglades Day Safari. www.ecosafari.com also picks you up in Fort Lauderdale and brings you on a loop of the Everglades, feeds you lunch, brings you on an airboat with several alligators, a boat cruise with dolphins, a wildlife drive and a nature walk with many Everglades birds. It's so much better. I recommend that over any other trip.

[loriva]

How long is the Everglades Day Safari--a full-day trip?

 

I should have mentioned that the trip we took was a half-day trip. They have two pick-up times--0900 and 1300. So, it's an option for those with more limited time.

[JungleMonkey]

How long is the Everglades Day Safari--a full-day trip?

 

I should have mentioned that the trip we took was a half-day trip. They have two pick-up times--0900 and 1300. So, it's an option for those with more limited time.

 

 

The Everglades Day Safari trip is an 9 hour trip. We left at 7:30 from Fort Lauderdale Beach and returned a little after 5 pm. We saw dolphins in the Everglades!