Frequently Asked Questions

The pricing for our boat charters includes up to 6 guests. If you have more in your group, please contact us directly, so we may give you some other options that are available.

If you feel your Captain and crew did an amazing job, a gratuity is a wonderful compliment and much appreciated!  Customary tips are usually 15% to 20%.

Any boat charter that you book will be for you and your group only.  We do not offer public ride shares and take pride in keeping our boat charters strictly private.

During peak months (March, April, June & July) and during the holidays (Christmas, Thanksgiving and all holiday weekends), we advise to book as early as possible.  We also recommend that you book your boat charter in the beginning of your vacation so if bad weather is going to be an issue, we have other dates we can work with to reschedule your charter.

If you need to cancel your boat charter due to any reason, we need at least a 48 hour notice in order to receive a deposit refund.  If your notice is less than 48 hours, the refund for your deposit will be forfeited.

If you cancel your boat charter in 4 hours or less than your departure time, or if a no-call/no-show scenario happens, we will charge your credit card on file the total price of the boat charter.

Safety is our primary concern and sometimes we have to cancel boat charters due to rain, high winds or extreme cold.  We will try to either reschedule your boat charter to another day or time, or if a rescheduled charter is not possible, we offer a full deposit refund. 

Please plan to arrive 10 minutes early and be ready, with your gear, on the dock. 

Please contact the Captain (you will be given their phone number in a boating confirmation email) to let them know that you will not arrive on time. We will try to make up the time difference on the back end of the charter, but it is not always a guarantee.

Our Yacht "Top Shelf" has a very large bathroom available. The Tri-Toon Boat under the affiliate charter does not have a bathroom. 

We see Bottlenose Dolphins most of the time on our boat charter.  Though we cannot guarantee we will see them (they are after all, wild animals), we do know where they like to hang out. 

Manatees, otherwise known as Sea Cows, make the Sarasota waters their home in the summer months.  There is a great chance to see manatees on your boat charter from May until November.

Only children 5 and under need to wear a life jacket at all times.  Should you like one for yourself, we of course have them on board, and available.  

The sun is strong in Florida and we recommend an SPF 15 or higher to protect your skin.  When choosing your sunscreen, please DO NOT BRING spray sunscreen or sunscreen with tanning, glitter/shimmer or bronzing agents.  This will stain our boat and the Captain will ask you not to use it.  Sunscreen is for your skin, not the boat seats, so we will also ask that if you are covered in sunscreen, to please place a towel between your skin and the boat seats.  Thank you kindly!

Of course alcohol is allowed, but please do not bring anything that can stain, like a red wine. We do offer some non-alcoholic items on the boat.

Yes...but keep in mind this is a boat with occasional wind, wakes and waves.  We pride ourselves on a neat and clean boat and ask that you avoid bringing food that will make a mess or stain the interior.  

Foods that work well on the boat:

• Sandwiches
• Fresh fruit & veggies (dips are ok - if the boat is anchored or moving slow).
• Cheese & crackers, nuts, and fruit plates.
• Pretzles, Pita Chips, Veggie Sticks (Basically a harder type of chip - that is not dyed).  

No...we have coolers on the boat filled with ice, to keep anything cold that you bring.  An additional larger cooler takes up floor space and will make it harder to move around.   It is ok, though, if you'd like to bring a smaller, soft-sided cooler.

We do provide large noodle rafts for your use.  If you’d like to bring a special raft, please just let us know first so we can make special room (if needed).

We only offer pleasure cruises and do not offer any fishing.

We do most of our boating in the intracoastal waterways and only go out in the Gulf of Mexico in safe conditions and if our charter guests feel comfortable.  The intracoastal is generally calm with minimal choppy waters.  If you tend to get a little woozy on a boat, we recommend taking an over the counter medication before your boat charter.  We do not provide this type of medication on the boats.

We like to say - if you're smoking on our boat, you better be on fire!  No...we do not allow cigar, pipe or cigarette smoking on the boats.  Besides it being unsafe with fuel fumes, it's just too easy to burn the interior with the wind.