Yesterday we watched several fishermen pull in fish from the dock. A kid even pulled in a 3-4 ft…read moreshark. My grandson was very excited to actually see a real shark in open air.

I love this gem. I go here as often as I can to just breathe...Literally breathe in the air. The…read moretwo light houses are so beautiful and where else can you find that? The quaint little town really has a beauty of a park here. The birds hang out here and people often feed them. The swings are a nice plus to the park. There is a pavilion and ample free parking. The pier is nice to walk out on and during low tide you can even walk on the sand. The beautiful trees and old houses make it even more breathtaking.

Had a great day out on the open water with Captain Rob. Caught some dinner and made some new…read morefriends. Highly recommend!

Very unprofessional, unreliable, and untrustworthy. Do not…read morerecommend. Scheduled a charter through their mom and dad's restaurant, Rusty Hooks, for their Hook and Cook dining experience. The restaurant couldn't guarantee that we would have a seat to actually eat. Very poor execution. Charter cancelled our booking when I expressed my concern. What a disappointment.

I've always had a love affair with water. When we think about New York, we tend to think about tall…read morebuildings and no green space, but 15 minutes from my house in the Bronx, was the Atlantic Ocean and Orchard Beach. This beach was free, and just a bus fare or car ride away. Some of my favorite memories as a child are my mother and grandmother filling a scotch plaid cooler that they got with their plaid stamps, with hard boiled eggs and grapes and bread and drinks and plums and salt and cookies. I can see my mom and grandma now in their one piece bathing suits, sun hats and sunglasses enjoying the freedom that we all got getting out of our apartment in the Bronx and feeling that beautiful ocean air and getting in that water. I remember fondly as a teenager heading over to the Shorehaven Beach club which was an inexpensive way for families like mine to join some kind of club where we could have access to a pool and sports facilities, etc. I have great memories of making lots of friends and enjoying many a summer day playing paddle ball, watching the entertainment and eating my cantaloupe and cottage cheese to stay slim Now, years later, I'm happy to say that I am a homeowner on Oak island. What a charming little beachside town. No high-rise hotels, no major thoroughfares running through it and lots of family-owned businesses. I really like it. Once a year, my best friend from third grade, Amy, and her family come down from Riverdale in the Bronx and Baltimore, and my kids come down and we spread a glorious week at the beach. This year they rented an oceanfront house just a few blocks from mine that had a pool! Boy, was that a game changer! We had the best time sitting under the shaded porch on the back and cooling off in that luscious pool. For Mark and Amy's anniversary, we decided to take an hour boat ride out of Southport that travels through the intracoastal waterway and surrounding areas such as Bald Head Island and Southport. We got tix to Southport Boat Rentals. I thought the entire experience was a big winner. It's 20 bucks for adults and $10 for kids, and you get a full hour. Access to the boat was very easy. It's literally right across the street from Flavas ice cream by Provisions in Southport. We each had plenty of room to sit and we were a large crowd of 18. I wish the seats had backs to them, but that's just me talking like an old man. Overall, the seats were cushioned and comfortable. It was the perfect time of day to go as Erik had mentioned. With it being 1pm in the afternoon, the sun was overhead, and since the boat is covered, we were in the shade the entire time and enjoyed the beautiful breeze from the water. It was so exciting when we saw dolphins playing in front of us and fascinating to see parts of the surrounding area we had never seen before. I want to commend the two young men that ran this boat. I wish I remembered their names. One was very attentive to our getting on and off securely and in enjoying our trip. A special shout out to the young man who drove the boat and was our guide. He was knowledgeable, interesting, a good public speaker with a clear voice friendly and quite impressive for a young man of his age. He has a future! Some of our kids said they were bored, but I just think it's kids not being used to turning off all the electronics and just taking in the beauty of the world around us. Underneath their resistance to embrace nature and quiet, I think they really liked it. We returned back to shore without a hitch and it felt like a nice full hour with a lot of cool information shared with us. Once again, the staff was very helpful in getting us off the boat and onto land. Mark and Amy topped off the afternoon with treating each of us to whatever we wanted at Flavas across the street. Who am I to refuse a waffle cone with coffee ice cream and sprinkles? I would highly recommend anyone in the Southport Oak Island area to take this cruise with Southport Boat Rentals. Seeing everything from the water will give you a brand new perspective of your magnificent surroundings and how blessed we are that we can enjoy such wonderful gifts of nature and the beauty of the water in NC. Enjoy!

We arrived in Southport too late for a beach day, so we decided to explore the market and booked a…read more6 pm cruise. Such a great decision - overcast weather and beautiful scenery. Our guide was knowledgeable and gave us all types of insider tid bits, not just the run of the mill tour info and history. It lasted about an hour, and again, our amazing guide was accommodating and chased a few dolphins so the kids on board could see them. Another plus- you're allowed to bring drinks on board and there's a few bars nearby to grab and board. Overall, pricing is great and hospitality is even better. Definitely treat yourself on a slow day in Southport or post-dinner cruise.

This place is not very big but they have the most amazing selection of fishing gear you will ever…read morefind. They have so many rods, for example, they are literally covering even the ceiling! Any type of hook or weight is going to be here. Their selection of rods and reels, both low and high-end, are unmatched. If you want it, they have it. The people are friendly and will help you out with their vast knowledge. Oh, we also got our frozen fish for shark bait here.

Very helpful people and fair prices. They have bait and a nice lure selection…read more We caught redfish and flounder on the artificial shrimp she recommended!

This is a nice, free pier that has a public restroom, restaurant, and coffee shop attached to it…read more There is ample parking and the view is beautiful!

Nice fishing pier. Great views. City maintained. Friendly staff. Beautiful old glory blowing in the…read morewind at the end of the pier.

The Fort Fisher-Southport Ferry is operated by the North Carolina Department of Transportation…read more(NCDOT) and offers a scenic 35-minute ride across the Cape Fear River. It accommodates a wide range of vehicles and passengers, with multiple daily departures year-round. We had no problem with our ten-foot-tall Sprinter van and no, we did not make any reservations. Just show up and you'll be directed to drive onto the next ferry with space available. There were some pedestrians and cyclists who disembarked in Fort Fisher. This is a great shortcut that would otherwise be a 50 mile drive that takes at least an hour. Enjoy! [Review 1361 of 2025 - 4480 in North Carolina - 24913 overall]

Southport is a charming beach town anyway, and the two ferry rides are absolutely classic. For $7,…read morewe rode from Southport to Fort Fisher. The 45 minute ride was scenic and we even saw dine dolphins swimming in the inlet!! The ferries operate on time, on and off the boat are easy, and there's even a passenger deck and observation room to take in the sites.

Great fishing trip! Captain Ryan and First Mate Deo we're very professional and created a memorable…read moreexperience for our crew of novice fishermen. We had a large party and booked 3 boats (coordinated together). Our charter was in early June, and we primarily fished for Spanish Mackerel. We fished 7am-11am. The bites started as soon as we dropped lines in the water. The fishing did slow down with late morning, but our boat caught so many fish that no one was complaining. Our Captain even won his bet with the other 2 charters as to which boat would bring in the most fish. As added bonuses we saw sharks (fins out of the water - we weren't fishing for them), a rare right whale, a school of sting rays, and porpoises. I've done a handful of charter fishing trips similar to this in the past. This experience was unique (as they all are) but was on par with my better charter experiences. I gathered we had moderate to slightly rough water conditions. In general the ones in our party who took Dramamine did well and those who did not had issues. The only motion sickness I've experienced in my life has been from this style of charter fishing. I would highly recommend Dramamine. Everyone was fairly wiped out for the afternoon. Captain Ryan has been running this boat for 17 years (plus his experience prior). First Mate Deo was quite but very knowledgeable and professional. These guys knew what they were doing. Our entire group across 3 boats all had great days, but I think it's fair to say that our boat had the best overall experience.

From the owner: Longest running fishing charter in Brunswick Countyread more