Captain Fred’s Airboat Tours

great fun great people great time you need to add this place to your vacation

Got to hold gator, learn about Lake Hamilton and the history/​ecosystem. Take my money! :D

Great airboat tour in Winter Haven. Captain Wayne was a wealth of knowledge about the local flora and fauna. Even on a windy day we saw an Alligator, Otter, Turtles, and several species of birds including bald eagles in their nest. Our tour was followed by a baby alligator presentation. You are allowed to hold the little guys!

Had a great time at Fred’s airboat tours and definitely going to go back. The staff was very courteous, friendly and knowledgable!

Nature’s Employees of the Year:
What’s an excellent way to discover nature’s secrets or continue your study of them in while having fun? One way to do this is by spending a couple of hours with people who live and work with nature daily. Such was my experience with Captain Fred’s Airboat Nature Tours. There’s a cliché that goes: «If you’re having fun, then it isn’t work.» To the staff of Captain Fred’s it’s a motto they live by. You can tell they’re true to these words by the way they work together and relate to the patrons. They want you to have an experience not just spend some time.
The experience started with an outdoor classroom-​like presentation about the alligators of the Lake Hamilton community with me and 6 others. We all had a chance to interact with 2 domesticated baby gators while being given a very interesting presentation by someone who really enjoys her work. I didn’t handle the gators allowing everyone else the fun but did ask a few Gator/​Crocodile questions that were unnecessary due to her thorough presentation. When the airboat arrived we were given the proper safety gear and hearing protection by the captain who continued the practice of professionalism, courtesy, and fun. The actual ride was the right mixture of «wind in your hair» acceleration and stopping for more education on the wildlife, besides the gators in and around Lake Hamilton. For example, till now I never knew there are bald Eagles living in FL. We amateur shutterbugs were allowed time for pictures. The captain told us historical facts as well going from recent times to as far back as The Seminole Native Americans.
To summarize: A great time, great ride, and at a great price. At no time did I get the feeling that the staff were just employees reading the script and going thru the motions. I learned new facts, confirmed old ones and at no time got bored or felt I was in a classroom. I’m just guessing, but I don’t think these people will ever retire. They love what they do too much.

My girlfriend and I were visiting some family recently and took off to do some «touristy stuff» that she had in mind. As we were driving down the road she noticed Captain Fred’s and asked if I would rather do that than what she had in mind. I immediately did a U-​turn and drove straight back. Sure glad I did! We met Bev. as we walked in, and she could not have been any sweeter! She gladly gave us a rundown of the business and the services offered. We ended up booking a 1 ½ hour tour for early the next afternoon.
Upon arrival, there is a half hour presentation which Bonnie gives about alligators and all get a chance to hold and take pictures with a 2 and a 4 year old gator. My girlfriend and then got to go on a private boat ride with Captain Wayne, who owns the business with his wonderful wife. What we experienced would be more appropriately described as a nature tour, rather than a boat ride. Cpt. Wayne took us through reeds and marsh to find gators of all sizes and their nests. Along the way, Wayne would periodically stop the boat and talk to us about all sorts of interesting facts about wildlife in the area. We saw so much great and unique wildlife up close! Our ride was so much better than I anticipated! It only cost us $ 40 a person. I had expected something closer to double that amount, especially with all the fun we had! We told our family about our trip when we got back and showed them all the photos and video I took out on the ride. They said it looked like more fun than they had a few months back down in the Everglades. That prompted them to book a tour the next week and they loved it, too! I highly recommend!!!

Captain Wayne is awesome, the airboat ride was fun, saw a few gators. Just wear sunscreen!