From the ease of booking to the clear communication, New Wave ecotours exceeded our expectations. Captain Keith was a wealth of local, natural, and historical information throughout of whole day tour. The boat was comfortable and clean and stocked with ice in a large cooler for our drinks. We saw dolphins and a group of 5 manatees. We swam and went shelling on an island accessible only by boat. We stopped on Cabbage Key for lunch at Jimmy Buffet's restaurant. Our family consisted of 2 50 year old and our 21 and 23 year old children and their significant others. Everyone had a great time. I highly recommend New Wave Eco Charters for a terrific experience ! read more

We have used New Wave Eco Charters twice. They are the best boat charter you can get by far!!! We used New Wave 4 years ago and used 2 other charters and were no comparison. Went back to New Wave this year. Captain Steve is amazing!!! He's the best--from his wealth of knowledge, personality, and his navigation through the waters around Captiva and area. He is like family. We saw so many dolphins, manatees, birds, and went shelling on secluded beaches!!! It's just an amazing experience. So beautiful!!! Something we all look forward to--best part of vacation!!! Memories for a lifetime!!! Highly recommend!!! read more

Adventuring out with Captain Steve (marine naturalist) and Stephanie (marine biologist) was an unforgettable experience that we loved so much, we can't wait to come back to Captiva and do this again with our extended family and friends. Would totally make the trip just to do this. So worth it! We saw everything we hoped to find - even the elusive juvenile sharks, a sting ray, many dolphins (and close enough to photograph without a zoom lens!), loggerhead turtles, and five manatees that swam right up to the boat to say hi. Lucked out shelling at low tide, full moon, after a storm and this was a shelling adventure highlight. Incredible to walk the surf with Stephanie while she identifies every single shell. Could have done this all morning. She and Steve were able to find and spot things, just knowing where to go, and being so familiar with and passionate about exploring this unique area -- that we could never have seen elsewhere. Loved that they could tell us everything we wanted to know. So knowledgable and fun to hang with, they are both fantastic teachers and great at vibing the folks they're with. Snorkeling for sand dollars was another highlight. We found spider crabs, sponges, sand dollars - dead to collect, and live ones too. Having snorkel gear and shelling gear on the boat was awesome and it was great that the snorkeling, even with some wind and current, was shallow and safe for young kids to do, too. Lunch at Cabbage Key was fun - spotted gopher tortoises lunching as well, which was cool! It felt like we explored the entire area by boat, swim, snorkel, stroll - and returned to the dock so happy with all we'd been able to see and do that day. Steve and Stephanie's love of environmental science and exploration inspired our kids (and us!) - all passionate about wildlife conservation. Thank you Steve and Stephanie! Can't wait to do this again! read more

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I can't even begin to describe the incredible experience we had with New Wave and Captain Jenni. It was the most perfect day we have ever had from start to to end. It bordered on magical as if nature and the sea conspired to put on a show for us. From the dolphins froclicking less than a foot away from our boat to the treasure trove of sand dollars and seashells you could not have planned it any better. My 8 year old daughter said "Mommy you have no idea how happy I am right now." We could not have had a more knowledgeable and friendly captain than Captain Jenni. I would venture to call her a kindred spirit who instantly bonded with our daughter and made her (and all of us) feel like anything was possible. It wasn't just a day on the sea. It was a memory our little family will cherish for life. Worth every cent and beyond. Just. Do. It. read more

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Repeat customer. we couldn't have been happier with Steve. His boat is really nice with plenty of shade that covers the entire boat. We started at 8 am for a full day. He took us to Cayo Costa for shelling, saw manatee and a dolphin on the way out there. Our shelling was amazing. He even got in with us and shelled. He then took us to Cabbage Key for lunch and had a really nice time there. After lunch, we went to a sandbar and shelled some more. Before going in for the day, we went to Foster Bay and found a herd of the most friendly manatee. We loved our trip with New Wave. Next year we are going to book with his wife who is a marine biologist. Last year we had Jenni and she was really great too. We were very pleased. read more

What an amazing day we had with Captain Steve. Each trip is tailored to what the customer wants to see. It was an amazing day! We saw dolphins, manatees, and so much more. If you take a charter, you will not be disappointed read more

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Awesome crew and great little boat trip. Highly recommend! We had the biologist scientist added to our charter and it was so worth it - tons of great facts about the ecosystems & wild life. So good, my children wanted to go back the day after! read more

New Wave Eco Charters - Shelling loot - Boat Charters Near Me - Captiva, Florida

Captain Jenni exceeded our expectations. She was very knowledgeable and asked us what we wanted to see. We saw manatees and dolphins, found incredible shells, explored the shallow waters, and walked along the beautiful, secluded beach of North Captiva. Jenni told us so many interesting things about the nature and history of the area. Even our 8 year old was enthralled. It was a vacation favorite and will be a must any time we visit Sanibel or Captiva! read more

New Wave Eco Charters - Another exciting part of shallow water stop - Boat Charters Near Me - Captiva, Florida

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Our tour with Captain Jenni was the highlight of our spring break trip! From the wildlife (dolphins, manatees, osprey) to shelling in the shallows of the Gulf, to a fantastic lunch on Cabbage Key, the whole day was amazing. She knew just where to take us for an unforgettable experience. read more

Steph and Steve were really nice and awesome guides. They interacted so well with our whole family. The boat was awesome: clean, stable, and even had some shade. They are so knowledgeable and taught us a ton about the area. We got to swim in the gulf on a secluded beach, go shelling, and swim in the bay, we saw amazing wildlife, including an alligator, lots of dolphins, cool birds (bald eagle, pelicans, ospreys, turns and frigates and more), manatees, fish and sting ray. We even saw some baby dolphins and new dolphins and got to help Steph and Steve photograph them and identify them. It was a really awesome tour and a highlight of our trip. read more

Couldn't be happier with our trip. We lucked out with a beautiful day and captain made sure we saw as much as possible. Truly memorable and a highlight of the week. Stopping over a sandbar/grass in the middle of the sound and finding tons of sand dollars, etc... was also great experience. Boat was clean and well taken care of and can't imagine a better guide. read more

The sunset cruise with Capitan Jenni was amazing. It was the highlight of our trip to Captiva. She knew the best places to shell and snorkel. We found sand dollars galore and even a few star fish. Jenni knew all about the local birds and we even were lucky enough to see a dolphin and a few manatee. The sunset did not let down to close out the trip. We will be back on our next trip to the island. read more

Awesome!!!!! Loved the whole experience. We came down to get away from the craziness of hurricane Michael. The kids and I decided going boating would be fun. We decided to book a four hour boat trip and packed a lunch to bring along. Captain Steve made this trip wonderful! He is very personable and great with kids. He brought his dog Dawson, along (our request) and the kids had so much fun hanging out with the dog on the boat. Steve told us all about dolphins, manatees, birds, plants and trees growing in the area. He is a bowl full of knowledge and kept the kids engaged. We learned about the islands of the area and he took us to a place to go shell hunting. We found jingle shells, also known as mermaid nails and he made us necklaces out of them. The boat was so comfortable my little one fell asleep in the seat! It was a very relaxing, fun adventure. Thank you Captain Steve! read more

New Wave Eco Charters - Beautiful scenery on our trip. - Boat Charters Near Me - Captiva, Florida

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We had a fabulous time on our half day trip with Captain Steve. Had our 4 and 7 year old children with us and Steve did a great job of engaging with them. Boat was beautiful and Steve clearly knew the waters, bringing us to excellent spots for shelling, we also got to see dolphins and the manatees were a highlight! read more

Great afternoon with Steve, Stefanie, and Dawson! We had to cancel our trip in 2020 due to COVID, but Steve and Stephanie were extremely accommodating and we were so glad we got to go this year. We had a picture perfect afternoon seeing dolphins, manatees, and learning about the amazing ecosystem of the Gulf and local islands. We will definitely be back again! read more

Captain Steve did an amazing job, making this the best boat trip we've ever been on. He knows where to find lots of animals and told us many interesting things about the islands and it's history as well as the animals and plants that live here. We saw manatees (precious!), dolphins, Roseate Spoonbills, egrets and herons. Boats intimidate me but Steve made sure I felt safe. We had so much fun! I loved the shade on the boat since I burn easily. We went to a great place to snorkel and found so many interesting live creatures there including sand dollars and a starfish. Steve showed us an egg case from a mama Whelk. We made sure to put the live animals back after observing them. He knows so much about the animals here. Steve was really fun to talk to and he paid attention to what we enjoyed the most, tailoring the trip to be sure it was lots of fun for us. The boat is so pretty and clean. What a highlight of our trip to Captiva! I highly recommend this company. read more

I've been on many tours over the years when I visit my mom who lives in Fort Myers. I have to say Captain Steve was marvelous! If you are looking for a small, private tour, he's your guy. He customized the tour to what we were looking for. We had a wide range of people going: my 80-year​ mom, two of us in our 50's, and two 16-year-olds! Captain Steve grew up in the area​ and was very knowledgeable​ about this as well as the marine and wildlife. He was very responsive to my calls and questions prior to the trip. He's just getting started, and we took the chance to see how it was. I recommend him highly. read more