We've done almost all of the activities the island has to offer and this is by far our absolute favorite. We can't wait to come back and bring the rest of the family to experience this! read more

This was one of the coolest things my family and I were able to do while at Amelia Island. Bobby gave great directions as I had never ridden a speed boat before and soon we were flying across the water with ease. Learning about the history of the place, seeing Navy bases and an old Carnegie mansion was so amazing. My family and I loved it so much! Please try this out if you're ever in the area! read more

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Though expensive, this was a really fun experience. We had two adults and 10yo and 12yo kids. I was really worried about driving the boat as I've never driven anything on water before - but it was easy to get the hang of and super fun! We did the 2.5 hour tour and saw dolphin in the water, as well as a few wild horses on Cumberland island. (Beware there is no restroom on this trip.) Our trip guide (Cray) was great. Definitely recommend doing this adventure at least once! read more

Backwater Cat Adventure - Boat Tours Near Me - Amelia Island, Florida

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Living here over six years I have taken many adventures with guests. From fishing, catamarans and tours. This by far is everyone's fav. My son In law put it right. He says if someone only has the money to do one thing. They should do this. We had a blast. Thanks read more

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I absolutely recommend this tour. It was so much fun, definitely worth the time and price. TBH I was a little nervous at first on the boat but our guide Bobby gave excellent instructions and made me comfortable. I still didn't drive, but did feel very safe! The 2 1/2 hours goes by so quickly! Beautiful views. We saw a pod (?) of dolphin, an alligator and a horse. Cumberland Island is so quiet and peaceful you wouldn't know it has such a fascinating history. Our guide Bobby Shared great stories and knows everything about the area having grown up there. The fort was cool. Again the boats were lots of fun. It feels kind of like your flying around above the water. It's great, not having to worry about having your phone out all the time because the guides take tons of pictures and email them. I got the pictures today. Thank you so much for a wonderful time! read more

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Our trip today should have been cancelled by the company. The weather was awful. From rain, wind, and rip currents, it was not an enjoyable experience. One of the boats was swamped and our boat had engine issues. read more

Great day on the water. Well worth the price. Very knowledgeable guides that give you a great time. read more

Backwater Cat Adventure - Boat Tours Near Me - Amelia Island, Florida

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I enjoyed my experience so much that I've been twice in 2 months and have another trip planned in Fall. It's a two and a half hour experience which delivers a lot of bang for your buck. Two people per boat, ride behind a fun guide in areas viewing scenic landscapes, dolphins, manatees, and horses. (Each time I've gone I've had manatees swim right beside our boat and been up close and personal to the dolphins.) You even get to crank up the boat speed at certain sections of the trip and play around, which is super cool. The first time I went, my friend and I got in a boat and were part of a group of 3 boats behind the guide. The second time I went I called Backwater Adventures and asked that my family be able to be in our own group with our own guide. So, we had two boats behind the guide and our guide let my niece ride with him. (My niece is 11. She LOVED riding with the guide.) The experience is around 150.00 per person after you add in taxes and fees. You also need to tip so 175.00 in total. TIPs: a. When booking on their website, type in Florida resident or Repeat customer to receive a small discount if applicable. b. Booking the first trip of the day is the best option during the hot summer. c. Wear lots of sunscreen and bring a hat with a string because it will fly off. (I learned this the hard way.) d. Bring a small hand towel and/or extra shirt/shorts if you want to swim in the ocean during the time you park your boat on the shore to look at horses. e. They provide enough cold water per boat so you don't need to bring extra. Their website is super helpful and lets you know all the small details you need to know before and after booking your trip. All the guides are great but my favorites are Captain Cray and Ben. :) This is a fantastic way to spend time with people that's out of the ordinary and fun. read more

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We had the best adventure today! Totally out of our comfort zone, but I'm so glad we did this fun boat tour of Amelia and Cumberland Islands. I would recommend this to anyone. Yep anyone can do this!! Ben was an incredible guide and very patient. We had the best time. Thank you ! read more

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This was so much fun!! Our guide Bobby was fantastic!! Boats were fun and the wild life we saw was great!! Would definitely recommend doing this!!! read more

We had and awesome morning on the water with Bobby! He was very informative about the area and the history. We were able to see a few of the wild horses on Cumberland island and we even saw dolphin. The group was small and perfect! Great tour and boats were very fun definitely would recommend and do again when in the area. read more

The MOST fun thing to do on Amelia Island. The boats are incredibly fun and Bobby, the main guide, couldn't be more perfect for the role. The short trip is great for the 1st time out. The longer trip takes you deep into Cumberland, one of the most stunning places. read more

We just had an amazing experience with this outfit. We reserved four water vehicles for this afternoon. Well, it doesn't look good in terms of weather. I can't tell you how much I appreciated the communication with whomever got a hold of me to let me know they would refund my entire purchase and did not pressure me to reschedule instead. I look forward to utilizing their boats in the future! What a great company! read more

We had an awesome trip! We had so much fun on the little boats. I was nervous but they were super easy to drive. We saw a ton of dolphins and wild horses. Will definitely bring my family back. read more

This is well worth the money! It was awesome. We saw an alligator, dolphins, manatee (came up to boat), stingray, lots of birds, and the horses from afar. You do get a little wet, so wear shoes and clothes you don't mind being wet. Captain Craig was knowledgeable, very nice and easy going. read more

Backwater Cat Adventure - Sisters going, who will be coming back? - Boat Tours Near Me - Amelia Island, Florida

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Fantastic and unique tour. I was originally googling jet ski rental and came about this tour. My husband and I are so glad we chose this over jet ski rental. Ben and Bo were both great tour guides. My husband and I had never piloted a boat so it was a little intimidating at first but then you get the hang of it. They do give you a tutorial before you go out but can still take a but to get comfortable. We stopped at Cumberland island for about 10 mins and saw a horse in the distance. Saw a few dolphins on our ride as well as an alligator. It was cool to be in a boat with just the two of us and to have more of an adrenaline ride than a typical big boat tour. Make sure you apply sunscreen and reapply. I reapplied twice and normally do not burn, and I did get a little red. Wish we were able to explore Cumberland a little more but glad we did the 2.5 hour tour vs the 1.15 hr tour. highly recommend this tour! read more

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Fun boats and great way to spend a few hours. Saw dolphins and some interesting spots Along coast. read more

Great trip! We chose the late afternoon trip, being September we saw a beautiful sunset. Our guide was fantastic bringing us within feet of dolphins and sharing lots of interesting history and local information about the areas we were seeing. Each craft was supplied with a small cooler with ice cold water. The life jackets they use (and require you wear) are cool inconspicuous ones that don't make you hot and are suppose to automatically inflate if you enter the water. This was one of the best-guided boat trips we have ever taken, well worth the time and money. The boats are really fun and according to my husband very easy to drive. read more

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Hubby and I did adventure. Our guide was Jimmy and he did a great job. We were within 6 feet of dolphins playing and stopped to watch them a couple times. Every couple has their own little craigcat boat and the guide rides in his own. The was a stop to walk up a sand dune and see wild horses and time to just play around with the boats, like doing donuts, jumping the waves and so on. They provided bottles of cold water on each boat. There were bimini tips that cut down the beating sun but take sunscreen and use it repeatedly. We got awful sunburns. But that was own fault. Two and half fun filled hours on the water. Now I want to buy one if those craigcat boats for ourselves. Kind of reminded us of riding our Slingshot (3 wheeled motorcycle) only on the water. read more

So much fun. Great way to spend a couple hours discovering the sites of amelia island and Cumberland Island. Daniel was an awesome tour guide. He was able to explain the history of area in great detail. There was a little issue with our tour which was of no fault of the company but they reached out and felt bad and made it right. Awesome time. I recommend if you are in the area. read more

Bobby was the best tour guide ever! He was great and made our boat tour fun, relaxing and wonderfully informative. I highly recommend this adventure! read more

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We had an amazing time! Lots of dolphins and wild horses on Cumberland Island. Bobby, our tour guide was fantastic. They gave us jackets and pants to wear over our clothes that kept us warm and dry. Plan to wear flip flops and wear shades. (Goggles even for the kids!) Worth the money, so much fun. read more

Backwater Cat Adventure - Heading back to the docks. - Boat Tours Near Me - Amelia Island, Florida

We're locals and can't believe this was our first time trying Backwater Cat! This was so much fun! Ben was our guide, he was extremely knowledgeable and made us feel comfortable on all the ins and outs of the boat (dry storage, maneuvering, safety...) They supply a small cooler with water and you can bring your own snacks/drinks too. Leaving the marina we immediately saw a manatee. A storm cropped up about 20 min into our ride so we returned to the dock. We had checked the radar and nothing was expected but the wind changed direction and there it was. We were given the opportunity to wait it out or reschedule. It was barely a drizzle and moving east pretty quick so we and another couple decided to wait and we are SO GLAD we did. It moved offshore within minutes and we were back on the water, only delayed about 15 min overall and they made up for it at the end. We cruised over to Fort Clinch and Cumberland Island, up the little creeks where the water was like glass. The boats are so much fun, they glide across the water and can turn really well without any fear of tipping over. We saw tons of birds. We came back around to the channel and beached at Cumberland Island and could see the wild horses off in the distance. It was a hot day but the passing storm had cooled things down. Overall it was a GREAT TRIP! I noticed some reviews said they "didn't see wild life" as if that would somehow be in their control If we hadn't seen any wild life this still would have been an AMAZING time! Totally worth it for tourists and locals like us!! I want to come back with friends and our teenagers! read more

Backwater Cat Adventure - Backwater Cat boat - Boat Tours Near Me - Amelia Island, Florida

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This was an absolutely amazing time. Our guide was great. I can't wait for these little boats to go up for sale.

Do very much recommend!! Awesome tour all around. The boats are cool and tour guides were dope and knowledgeable. We cruised around the island and stopped at little tiger island. The tour even goes to Georgia and back! Cannot be beat. read more

Ben was an excellent guide and safety was a priority! We had REALLY rough water and he got us through safely. We enjoyed his history lessons and his humor. Our 5 person group had people from 45-80 years old and everyone had a great time. We highly recommend these fun little go-carts on the water & Ben as a guide!! read more

WOW! Jimmy was a great and informative guide. We originally signed up for a 6pm cruise but after very careful review and consideration of the weather he suggested we reschedule for the following day! Jimmy prioritizes safety and comfort and believe me when you see how close you are to the open waters you'll appreciate it. The boats are easy to operate (we suggest having one person handle the throttle and one navigate the steering). There's a dry box to store your phone. Don't worry Jimmy takes so many pics along the way and emails you the album following the trip. Along the route we saw dolphins, multiple species of birds, a ship wrecked sail boat, a famous fort, and the ruins of the Carnegie Mansion. The route takes you out to tiger island, which has the most rattle snakes per square inch. Next we headed over to Cumberland Island, where we docked for about 20 minutes. Once docked we sunk our toes into Georgia. That's right folks you will hit up 2 states while on this trip. Jimmy allows you to collect unbroken sea shells and admire the wild horses!! Pro tips: slather on the sunscreen, expect to get really wet from splashing waves, and keep your sunglasses on to protect your eyes from the salt. It's truly the best read more

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Went on a Friday morning in late September. It was just us and our guide Ben - who was great. We were hoping to see manatees, dolphins, turtles and perhaps wild horses on Cumberland Island. Well we hit the jackpot and saw them all. Ben could not have been nicer, informative and attentive. We highly recommend Backwater and will do it again. Be prepared for water spray, wet feet and an awesome time read more

My husband and I just got home from our adventure and I couldn't wait to write a review because this was such a great way to see the area, enjoy watching dolphins, wild horses, manatees and so much more! We chose to take the 1st trip of the day which was perfect. There was a nice breeze and the temperature was comfortable - not too hot or too cold, juuuuuust right! Captain Cray was AWESOME! He was personable, knowledgeable and had a great sense of humor. His in depth descriptions of the area added so much to our trip. We will definitely book another trip soon! Hurry up and reserve your adventure now; you will not be disappointed! read more

This is more than a boat ride! Our guide, Bobby, was helpful and made sure we had a wonderful trip. The boats are so much fun and really easy to handle! We saw wild horses, dolphin, manatee and lots of birds. It's expensive - but totally worth the cost! Would do this again in a second! read more

My wife and I took the 12:30 tour and had a great time. Our guide Bobby was outstanding! The tour is a great way to experience the marshes and to see both Cumberland Island and Ft. Clinch from the water. Not to mention how fun the Craig Cats were to pilot. We highly recommend this tour! read more

Such a great way to spend the afternoon with our family! So much fun!! We saw lots of dolphins, were able to get off our boats and see some wild horses. 10/10 recommend! read more

My husband and I took the boat trip and were the only ones that day because the weather had been cold. It was mid 60s and sunny. The guide Cray treated us great was friendly ,informative and relaxed. We were glad we took the trip. Well worth the price. read more

Worth the money. Call the phone number to book and save over $10 per ticket. Got caught in a storm is why i didn't give it five stars. We saw wild horses and a few dolphin. Exciting 2.5 hours to spend with a loved one. read more

A different way to tour, fun little boats, friendly staff, but certainly not worth the price.

We had a great experience with our catamaran trip. Ben was a great guide, and did a nice job pointing out places of interest and informing us of the local history. We got free photos after the day as well to remind us of our fun time. If you enjoy being on the water, this is well worth doing! read more

Me and my friend were visiting from Clevleand and we thought we would give this place a shoot and I am so glad we did! Allan, the owner, went out of his way and picked us up from our hotel when we couldn't find an Uber. He was so accommodating and got us there on time. Things only got better from there!!! Our tour guide, Ben, also did an amazing job. He explained how to work the boats really well. We got onto the water and while I was a little nervous to work the boat, it was super easy to get a hang of! We did the 2.5 hour tour which I definitely recommend. We went to Cumberland Island and saw a fort. We even saw wild horses on the island which was super cool. Ben did a wonderful job of explaining everything and really made it a fantastic tour. If you are looking for a cool way to explore Amelia island and want to get on the water in a more hands on way Backwater Cat Adventure is for you! read more