Captain Doug is from the area, and was thus was full of information, and gave me the ongoing…read morenarration I was looking for, throughout the tour. He He was helpful in answering questions as well. I will say that is way colder than you can imagine on the VERY windy water, and my 3 layers of clothing were not enough to keep me warm. No matter how tough you think you are, wear at minimum 2 *heavy* layers of clothing, and a thick windbreaker (my think raincoat did not hold up) and a hat to keep your head and ears warm. It's not just that it's 10 degrees colder on the water -- it's a constant cold wind blowing at you... and that's on a day when there wasn't a strong wind on the island itself. If you're not properly dressed, you won't find it relaxing. Although this tour company does warn you about the colder weather on the boat, it does not sufficiently warn you about the constant unrelenting wind.

The entire time was visually beautiful and Captain Dan was a wealth of information…read more We would highly recommend this tour.

What an amazing trip! My mom waited 70 years for this! We booked our trip for a Saturday 2pm and…read morethere were only 2 others on the boat. We went in with the idea that we will have a great trip on the water and learn a little about the area. Fingers crossed to see the horses, that is what mom waited all these years for! We saw part of the heard on the way out from a distance and were happy with that. Then we saw a pair of eagles and dolphins and a group of pelicans and leaned about wallops island. On the way back the heard was closer and we got the experience of a lifetime. They came closer and closer and we were in awe. Captain John was great and the rest of the staff were very friendly and the boat was very clean. We also got a special shell from a little entrepreneur!

We took an early Sunday morning boat tour around the Chincoteague Wildlife refuge with Captain…read moreJohn. Although it was cloudy and raining, John reassured us that we would have better chance of seeing wildlife in such a weather. He took us to interesting places around the island including the lighthouse, oyster beds, mariner's cross, and popular bird nesting grounds (egrets, pelicans, laughing gulls, black backed gulls, ducks). We also saw the ponies from afar. Overall, this was a great memorable exprience! P.S. only suggestion: could rain coats be provided to customers in a rainy weather?

A delightful real life experience of the famous Chincoteague Island and ponies. Storybook boat ride…read morearound the island at 6am spoiled us with ponies right off dock. Ours tour was chock-a-block full of personal stories from our husband and wife Captain and tour guide duo extraordinaire. Our eye candy consisted of a sting ray enjoying a clam breakfast, flopping around in the shallow waters like a happy kid in the candy shop. It was topped by a crane slurping down an eel then a bald eagle. We spied a few more ponies then made our way around the other side of the island for a full grand tour. Appreciated the excellent service and comfortable boat.

The best part of our trip! The sunset tour was perfect for our ten year anniversary! The staff was…read morevery great from start to finish. Our tour guide, Aiden was awesome. He was very knowledgable about the ponies and history of the island. We got a great view of the ponies and dolphins, as well as a great tour of the island.

My family of six booked the private pony tour and had a terrific time. Our captain was Jake and he…read moreis 10 out of 10!! He was very informative, answered all of our questions, even the ones from our inquisitive grandchildren. Jake is an excellent captain and found all of the dolphins, wildlife, and ponies. We will definitely book another tour with Saltwater Pony Tours and will request Jake as our captain. A fun day on the water and great memories of our trip to Chincoteague Island. Thank you, Jake.

Captain Jake was very personable and had great knowledge of the island. We got to see the infamous…read more"Riptide" with his mares and their foals and two bald eagles, and enjoyed some laughs along the way. A super fun and beautiful experience. Highly recommend!

captain left was great highly recommend…read more Entertain entertaining great stories Very knowledgeable

Captain Mark was excellent! We saw the ponies (3 babies) and a bald eagle! Highly recommendread more

We had a wonderful boat ride with Randy as he gave a lot of information about the island, the…read moreponies and how the area has changed over the years. Very personable. A worthwhile tour.

Captain Randy is the best! Extremely knowledgeable of the area and provided lots of information…read moreabout all of the hidden gems. Friendly, kind, and helpful. Highly recommend!!!

To say this was our daughters favorite part of our vacation may be an understatement!!…read more My wife and daughter squeezed into a last minute opening for the time of their lives!! Our daughter learned so much, had a blast, and carried some fish! Captain Barry really made them feel important and special! I'm sure he makes every trip the best ever; but we really enjoyed the time/effort he put into pointing wildlife out and explaining marine life!! Our nature obsessed kid wanted to go again as soon as they docked! If you're looking for a fun adventure (not pony watching) then this is the place for you!!! Captain Barry also has the coolest Jeep in the parking lot! We forgot our water bottle and saw him the next morning getting gas and he hopped out to return the water bottle (we didn't even know we left behind!)

Captain Barry's has become our family tradition with all the generations in our family. We never…read morestop learning something new with Captain Barry and we could not imagine our family vacation without this experience.

If you want to go on a tour to look for ponies and other wildlife, this is the tour group you…read moreshould book. Captain Mike was great. He not only got us so close to the ponies, he pointed out bald eagles, the different birds that were flying around. I was amazed at how he could recognize what horse was there by sight. From hundreds of meters away while in the middle of the bay. He also had some fantastic and funny stories about Chincoteague (wait for the Sugar Shack story) what is was like growing up in the area. You can tell he loves his home very much. The pontoons were brand new and stable and very comfortable. It was windy when we went out but I never felt nervous because the pontoon was so sturdy and stable. We got some great photos. And Captain Mike was awesome. I would go again.

I highly recommend picking Mike and Up the Bay tours for your pony sightseeing…read more Mike is a native to the area, and thus very knowledgeable, but also extremely enthusiastic about the ponies. Thanks to Mike's knowledge of the area, the ponies, and the waterways, we were able to boat right up to the ponies in a manner that was clearly comfortable for them and not intrusive. He was happy to chill there watching them graze and swim, never rushing our tour. But we watched as many tours stayed outside of the marshes and never came close to ponies because the captains were not comfortable navigating the shallow marshes. We would have been quite sad if we were in one of those tours!!! Lastly, the boat is shaded fully shaded and the most comfortable tour boat I have ever been in. Recommend 10/10 - worth every penny!

We did the afternoon kayak tour. Our guide Brody was there right on time and wasted no time…read moregetting us in the water. I was nervous as it has been 25 years since I have been on a kayak and I have a bum knee. We opted for a tandem kayak and I am glad. Brody knew all about the marsh and really enjoyed sharing his knowledge. Not only did we see ponies, we saw a variety of other wildlife like various birds and turtles. This was a 2 hour experience and we traveled about 3 miles into the marsh. We were the only ones on the tour and to their credit, they did not cancel it. But, like Brody said, it is not a job!

I went on the boat tour with Captain John. I have been on other tours but Captain John was the best…read moretour guide. He is a native and his ancestors were some of the first settlers on Chincoteague. If you want a great historical tour with the best sightseeing this is the tour! I love Chincoteague and love Captain John.

Amazing! Our tour guide knew so much and knew great areas to see horses. He got us so close to the…read morehorses. The tour started on time. I had two kids with me (5 and 1), they loved it. Such an amazing experience!

We had an awesome two hour cruise with Aiden this morning. We loved the fact that it was a smaller…read moregroup allowing for a more personal experience. He was able to get us in pretty close to the marsh where the ponies were grazing. He provided the history of the ponies and the island. He was able to name the various ponies and their offspring. Aidan shared information regarding the oyster and clamming industry in the area as well. He was a wealth information. It was wonderful to see how proud he is of his family heritage and his hometown. It was a great cruise and passed by way too quickly. We saw Bald Eagles, frolicking dolphins, lots of birds, and a few of the various herds that inhabit Assategue Island. It was all around a great experience. I would highly suggest this tour if you will be in the area.