We were originally on the fence about booking this tour, but I am so glad we did!! Kieran was our…read moretour guide and was super accommodating with us. If you have kids, they provide them with life vests and such! We saw a lot of dolphins, pelicans, osprey's, manatees and even saw an Eagle Ray pop out of the water! Kieran had a lot of information about the life around us and even had some Dolphins ride the wave behind our boat! It was awesome. Thank you Kieran, this was a great family experience.

We had a great experience as a family with our two kids (10 and 7) fishing with Kieran during our…read morevisit to Marco Island. Kieran was an absolutely fantastic guide - he was very knowledgeable & helpful, and most importantly, he was a lot of fun! Our kids loved him and thought he was "the best" and very funny. We caught a lot of fish (5+ different species), and when we weren't actively fishing, we went shelling and observed sea turtles & dolphins inbetween! Boat was clean, always felt safe, etc. Highly recommend, and ask for Kieran!!!

My daughter and I had a wonderful Sunset Shelling and Dolphin experience with Captain Meghan. It…read morewas a perfect evening and Meghan was full of interesting information about the 10,000 Islands and the mangroves. Once we arrived at her island of choice, she guided us to the shelling spot and gave us the names of some of the shells. The sunset was ok but she had no control over that. It was a wonderful evening! I highly recommend Sand Dollar Shelling.

This was a great tour. I got clear directions to the marina and parking. Megan, the captain, was…read morefabulous. She was very professional and knowledgeable about the area and boating. Keewaydin was beautiful and just what I wanted for a shelling tour. Beautiful beaches, lots of shells and almost no other people.

We didn't know what to expect when we booked this excursion, other than that we were going to go…read moreshelling. At about $600 for our group of 6, we thought it was expensive, but you only live once, right? Well, now that our vacation is over and done with, I can say that that was the best $600 ever spent! First off, we had a private tour. After doing research, other excusion companies were charging the same or more, and you were on a boat with a bunch of other people you didn't know. It was just our little group of 6 and our captain on this boat. Second, we saw dolphins. Dolphins doing it. I didn't know that was on my bingo card, but here we are! It's pink. That's all I'm sayin'. Third, and the most exciting, we saw a manatee! Sure it was only one, but after Captain Jeff explained that we might not see any, and also why that might be, we were ecstatic and thankful. Lastly, the shelling. We didn't find anything spectacular, like a sand dollar, but we all found nice, intact, beautiful shells of different kinds that will forever remind us of this awesome trip. Captain Jeff was not only friendly, he was extremely knowledgeable about the area and the animals. We learned a lot and had fun at the same time. Highly recommend!!!! 124/2025

What a fabulous day! We did a private dolphin and shelling excursion with Captain Matt. We…read moreabsolutely LOVED everything about this experience. The little island that we visited was completely made out of seashells - so beautiful! Then, we were able to search for dolphins and definitely saw several. It was such a good day! Perfect way to celebrate my daughter's 18th birthday!! Thanks Captain Matt!!

Boat was a blast. Tour was very interesting. Guide was great. Saw Dolphins, eagles, osprey. Shells.read more

This is easily the best way to get a first and true experience of what the Marco Island area was…read morelike prior to development. We loved driving the Craig Cats, seeing dolphins playing from 1 foot above the waterline, learning about the ecosystem here and the Calusa Indians who once lived here. Tony is a super guide and a heck of a terrific person. Bring some cool drinks for the cooler provided on board and have one of the most unique adventures ive ever had on a vacation!

We had an amazing experience with Captain Nate. We booked a private tour, and in our booking we…read moreindicated that our priority was to see manatees and then dolphins. When we arrived Captain Nate told us he would try, but that January is not the best time to see manatees around Marco Island. About 5 minutes later, he found one. The manatee was friendly and curious, so we got to spend a long time watching him as he swam near the boat. We were all ecstatic. We then went out and eventually found a pod of dolphins, including a baby, who had fun swimming in the wake of the boat. Captain Nate was incredibly nice, helpful, and knowledgeable. We had a really great experience that we will remember for the rest of our lives. I highly recommend this company and tour!

Booked our second trip with Captain John - great tour of Marco and shelling on the outer island…read more Thanks!!!

We found Captain Marc thru the Marriott. Contacted him by phone and arranged for a private boat…read moretour for my granddaughters and 4 adults. It was the best decision we could have made. Marc was a great guy who educated us on the wildlife and took us to 2 shelling islands and the Dome Houses. The highlight for the girls was Marc was able to get Dolphins to ride the wake of his boat for 30 minutes. The granddaughters were so excited. On the shelling island he took time to show us the rare shells and even helped us to collect a lot of rare sand dollars. We highly recommend Captain Marc's tour.

From the owner: Relax and enjoy this 3-hour tour with Saltwater Magic Boat Tours on our brand new 2020 Robalo 25…read moreft. vessel, cruising through The Ten Thousand Islands with comfortable seating and T-Top for shade. Tours have a 6 passenger maximum. Let our Captain show you the beauty of the Gulf of Mexico. Enjoy dolphins, shelling, wildlife, nature, barrier islands, Kice Island, beaches, Dome Houses at Cape Romano...

This was an absolute incredible experience. The lead that navigated us through all the turns and…read morekeys was Devon. He was totally professional, his instruction was easy to understand, he educated in many areas (boat operations, on Bismal Key, on White Horse Island, about dolphins, etc.). My wife and I had one of the most memorable vacation experiences ever, thanks to Devon with Backwater Adventure. I am now so excited to share my experience with others!!!!

This was a BLAST! We went out today and the weather was iffy (stormy). Their priority was our…read moresafety, so they had us wait a bit until things looked better. We went out a bit late but the guides (Andrew, aka Big Mamma) and Devon were amazing. So experienced and kind and fun and helpful. We went out and got in about an hour and a half before the weather turned stormy/lightning again, and we had to head back early. It was still a total blast and we were stunned when we learned they were offered a refund. Seriously, they have no control of the weather. So I didn't expect it. But their priority was 1) our safety, and 2) our fun. We will DEFINITELY come back. This was worth it. Thanks guys!

What an EXCELLENT charter fishing and ecotour we had with Captain Brig and Captain Christina of…read moreEverglades Discovery Tours. These guys know their stuff. Fish caught on every cast, then a little shelling and going through the mangrove tunnels of the 10,000 Islands. This was the best fishing and boat tour we've ever had. Best pricing too, by the way. These guys are great big fun (and really knowledgeable). We will be doing this again real soon! Thanks Brig and Christina!

All that it was advertised to be Lots of fun dolphin time we saw a bald eagle osprey blue heron…read more The shelling beach was perfect The captains were informative and friendly and great with kids

Great boat tour with tons of dolphins, some birding, mangrove investigating, and sunset finish…read more Captain Clay rocks!!, great banter, good piloting of the boat for comfort, knowledge of the area, and perfect wakes to attract dolphins chasing us. Thank you CLAY!!