What You'll Get
In the yearly undersea family reunion, the manatee is the beloved great uncle, regaling wide-eyed dolphin calves with stories of his rowdy days as a professional pachinko player while munching on algae. Pay respects to everyone's favorite aquatic patriarch with today's Groupon to Snorkel with Manatees in Crystal River. Choose between the following options:
- For $14, you get a Crystal River Dolphin Encounter tour at 3:30 p.m. (a $29 value).
- For $25, you get a Manatee Swim tour (a $35 value), which includes rental gear (a $20 value), at 7:30 a.m. (recommended for the summer and fall months) or 11 a.m. (a $55 total value).
The Dolphin Encounter transports tour-goers on a two-hour high-speed boat ride to the Gulf of Mexico, where playful pods of bottlenoses torpedo about, feeding, frolicking, and holding out their fins for human high-fives. Along with flippered friends, patrons will set sights on a menagerie of land-loving critters, possibly including bald eagles and wild pigs, and landmarks such as Native American mounds. Dolphins can be spotted on eight out of 10 trips, roughly the same likelihood as seeing a grendel at any given moment.
The Manatee Swim sets guests on a journey to engage in close encounters with nature's cutest cow. These sweet-potato-shaped sweethearts are famously hospitable toward human visitors, whom they almost always greet with curiosity and expertly performed card tricks. On the day of the tour, a Snorkel with Manatees captain will pick up adventurers from the docks of Aquamarina Twin Rivers, where snorkel equipment will be provided. The captain ferries up to six guests to the mouth of the Crystal River for a three-hour tour with the droopy-faced darlings of the deep. During the summer months, approximately 70 manatees will frolic with human chums, and aquatic attendance can reach 400 in the winter.
The Fine Print
Promotional value expires Mar 11, 2012. Amount paid never expires. Reservation required. 7 Day cancellation notice required. Subject to availability. Must sign waiver. Subject to weather. Minimum of 2 people, maximum of 6 for tour. Not valid on holidays. Merchant is solely responsible to purchasers for the care and quality of the advertised goods and services.
About Snorkel with Manatees
Snorkel with Manatees' expert divers lead tours on underwater sojourns to discover peaceful manatees and environs beneath the waves. Offering both group and mini manatee tours year-round, the guides monitor each diver to ensure safe practice with the animals. Their Crystal River scallops tour scours the ocean floor for tasty scallops while avoiding crabs auditioning for The Little Mermaid revival, and the Snorkel with Manatees excursions explore the Crystal, Homosassa, and Chassahowitzka Rivers on airboat. They also teach the fundamentals of their craft during discover scuba-diving lessons.