2-hour Shelling Boat Tour in the 10,000 Islands
Description
The 10,000 Islands Wildlife Refuge, adjacent to Everglades National Park, is inaccessible except by boat. Our tour, led by an experienced sheller and certified master naturalist will whisk you to a remote barrier island within the Refuge. While barrier islands such as Sanibel or Captiva offer great shelling, these islands rarely have a foot print on the beaches. Not only can you experience great shelling in a remote location, you will have the opportunity to see dolphin, possibly sea turtles or manatee, and a multitude of birds such as ospreys, eagles, roseate spoonbills, pelicans and the like while cruising to your island. While shelling, learn about the nuances of tides and currents and how it affects sea life. Your captain/guide can make your tour a family learning experience. Note: June through October, we suggest the morning experiences due to the weather.
Tour Options
Itinerary
While shelling on the uninhabited islands facing the Gulf of Mexico, Marco Island is part of your horizon viewl
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(91)
Ed is a walking encyclopedia of fish birds wildlife. He knows things and taught us a lot!! He was the best tour guide. PS. He has eagle eyes.
Thank you for the review! Glad you all had a great time with Capt Ed- he loves to share his passion and knowledge with everyone that comes out!! (Yes, He does have eagle eyes)
Really nice experience! The boat trip was great. We saw dolphins and they even swam with us! The length of time on the island could have been much longer. We really enjoyed the trip! Worth the money! Would love to do again!!!
Thank you for the great review!! Glad you all had a great time. There's nothing like the dolphins coming up to play with you! Thank you all for coming out with us!
We had a great day on the water and Captain Mike was a informative tour guide and told us a lot about the area. We also found a lot of shells
Thank you for the great review!! Captain Mike sure knows his stuff and where to find the best shells!!
Spectacular! Glen was our guide. We were upgraded to a 3 1/2 hour tour. The other couple was a no show so we ended up with a private experience. Glen was so knowledgeable and was able to identify various wildlife. He took us to an island for shelling, giving us hints on where to find the best shells. Glen spent extra time finding dolphins since I had never seen a dolphin in the wild. We saw several! It was a once in a lifetime experience!
That sounds like such a special time! Glad you all had a great time with captain Glen and were able to find a bunch of goodies to take home with you!! Thank you for the great review!
Really enjoyed this trip. He knew a lot about the area and nice amount of time on water and land.. Thanks to both who lead us through this amazing area.
Thank you for the review!
5 stars on beautiful waterways, seeing dolphins, an excellent, informative boat driver Captain Kevin, and his assistant Jules, the sand dollar souvenir at end, An interesting sandbar island was the shelling destination.
Thank you for the 5- star review!! Captain Kevin and Jules take great pride in sharing their knowledge and making each trip special, so glad they were able to put you on some sand dollars! What a treat! Thank you all for coming out with us!
We had such a great time on our shelling tour! We arrived early and got extra time since we were all early! Captain Ed was very knowledgeable about the area and knew exactly where to go to find the dolphins! (I would post a video of the dolphins but it only allows me to post pictures here) We found so many sand dollars and really great shells! We lucked out with a negative low tide and were able to find a wide variety of shells and ocean life like horseshoe crabs, hermit crabs, fish of various types, manatee, and live lettered olive snails! The boat ride scenery was so beautiful and we even learned about some of the local birds inhabiting the area as well! Overall 10/10 recommend and we will absolutely be booking another tour!
Wow! Thank you for the wonderful review, Cindy!!! Captain Ed is one of the best guides you could ask for! He truly loves what he does and it definitely shows! Please come back anytime, we'd love to have you all back!
Absolutely loved this shelling tour. The captain was friendly, knowledgeable, and made the whole experience fun from start to finish. We found some amazing shells and had a great time exploring the island. The boat ride was smooth, the views were beautiful, and the atmosphere was relaxed and welcoming. Would definitely do it again. Five stars.
Thank you so much for the great review!!! All of our captains and mates love to share their knowledge and passion of the 10,000 Islands and the Everglades with everyone that comes out! So glad you all had a great experience and got to see what the 10,000 Islands has to offer! Hope to see you all soon!
We booked what we thought was the same cruise as we did 3 years ago when my grandson was 3. That trip was perfect. A covered boat, high quality life jacket for my grandson, Dolphins on both to and from trips. And we went to an island with unbelievable shells and had a great time for an hour to go shelling. Fast forward to 2025. No cover on the boat which was not as terrible as we anticipated but some shade would have been nice. Crew was friendly and the deckhand entertained our 3 grandkids with shells and information. Issues we had were (1) When we asked for life jackets for our twin 3 yr olds, and 6 yr old grandkids, they were unprepared and told us they weren't required. When we told them that they must have life jackets they struggled to find 3 that fit and the one for my granddaughter was covered in mold/mildew. (2) We took the normal ride out to the sanctuary and saw some cool birds but no dolphins yet. For some reason (I believe the captain said it was because of the shallow water but I am not 100%) we had to take longer (40-45 minutes) to get to the island. By the time we got there we had 35-40 minutes to go shelling. (3) It turned out that it was plenty of time because the shelling was terrible. The shelling on the island we went to in 2022 and 2025 was not even comparable. I thought it might be the post hurricane effect but after talking to others that took different tour companies, they found tons of really nice shells. The highlight of the trip was the ride back we found some dolphins and had a really cool time watching them jumping and playing next to the boat. Overall, had we wanted to go for a boat ride and dolphin watching, it would have been fine. My grandkids wanted shells and the shells they found on the tour were no different than the ones we found on Sanibel where we stayed. Was not close to being worth the $700+
Thank you for your feedback. What you described is understandably disappointing. When you return expecting a repeat of a special memory and the experience falls short, it’s not just about the money spent, but the missed expectations and the letdown for your grandkids. As your party was more than 6 passengers, we had to use the boat certified for more passengers. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have shade like our other boats. The passenger area of this boat is surrounded by railings with 4" spacing. As such, the Coast Guard does not require younsters to wear life vests, so we don’t use them very often. Apparently, they weren’t tended to and dried with all of the rain we have had lately! The tour was conducted at high tide which isn’t ideal for the “best” shelling. Low tide exposes more of the beach and hence more shells. Glad you all got to see some dolphins on the way home! Thank you again for your honest feedback
The trip was one of the highlights of our vacation. 100/10 recommend! The captain was super nice, the boat ride was enjoyable, the water was absolutely beautiful. Would def do again.
Thank you so much for the amazing review! We’re so glad you had a great time out on the water and that our captain helped make it special for you all. Thanks again for coming out with us, you're welcome back anytime!!
