Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center Eco-Tours - St. Petersburg, Florida

Janice B.

We had great 2 hr tour - friendly and informative. We saw a dolphin while netting specimens. Our tour they found a large Welk, a burr fish(a type of puffer fish), spider crab & sand crabs & a baby seahorse. We also visited bird island and saw many species nesting in the same area. We highly recommend this tour good for young and old.

John B.

Second time on these tours. Staff was again superb, so friendly and knowledgeable! Boat is a nice size for a very personal experience and ability to be close to water. We saw a great sunset and multiple dolphins, plus many varieties of birds and aquatic life. Helped us much more appreciate and understand the specialness and importance of Tampa Bay.

Ginka N.

Update Feb 2025: took the morning wildlife tour with Captain Mel and Izzy and it was fantastic. We saw lots of dolphins, birds, and we even saw them do a scientific study of what's on the bottom. They dragged a net on the bay floor and pucked up some alive sand dollars.

Feb 2024: We had an absolutely outstanding time with Captain Moe and biologist Abby on Valentine's day. We saw lots of dolphins, a sting ray and many birds. Learned some interesting facts about the local wild life. The sunset views were spectacular. They had treats for us too.

Margie S.

I could not have loved the birding boat tour to “Bird Island” more!

Going there just before sunset allowed us to see over 100 birds, including Great Blue Herons, Cormorants, Pelicans, Great Snowy Egrets, Reddish Heron, a few really dazzling Roseate Spoonbills, and more Ibis then I’ve ever seen. They were all soaring in to roost overnight.

The day was gorgeous, with flat calm water, blues skies and sunshine.

It was a perfect day.

Bryan M. V.

Booked it on a whim after a kayaking tour got canceled due to the cold. Wow, was I impressed. The staff are so nice and informative. It was an awesome eco tour of Tampa Bay. We even caught a bonnet head shark, which we were told was the first time Tampa Bay Watch has caught one during one of these tours. You learn and see so much. Dolphins, manatees, so many types of birds, box fish, and more. There were no kids on the boat, but I'd imagine they'd have a blast if you decide to bring your children. And knowing it all supports great ecological work makes it well worth the cost of admission!

Ruthie R.

My husband and I have been on many boat tours in Florida and this was the best one by far! The cruise began a little before sunset and we saw so many birds returning to Bird Island to roost for the night: roseate spoonbills, snowy egrets, great blue herons, night herons, pelicans and more. Our wonderful guide Lexie was both knowledgeable and enthusiastic about her subject matter. Highly recommend if you are visiting or live in the Tampa Bay Area.

Rebecca H.

Loved this tour. It was our first time and we saw dolphins, fish, dozens of birds, sand dollars and so many sea critters. I learned so much I didn’t know about the Tampa Bay ecosystem and loved the entire tour. The boat was easy to find on the dock and the tour was smoothly operated from start to finish. This is a great way to entertain out of town friends and family! I will definitely be going again.

Michael J.

What an amazing 90 minutes on the water with these guys today. Water wasn't safe to go into after the Hurricanes so we decided we're going onto the water. 20 min later we found ourselves on board this boat.

Found some other tours as well but these guys are not in for profit but for education and that's exactly what we love about it. They will tell you a lot of very interesting things and answer any possible question you might have.

We will definitely recommend this tour to all our friends coming to that area.

Special shutout and big thanks to Sean, Dakoeta, Connor and Sydney. Very jealous of you guys. Wish I could do something like that for a living.