Spirit of the Swamp, a must do!

Chloe :] · 22 Jul 10, 01:54 AM

Hi all,

Just a little note about this air boat ride. We had an hour trip this morning and it was a fab experience. Capt Harold was really friendly and it was great to have a boat to ourselves with headsets so that we could hear his commentary and ask him questions. We got up really close to a gator that just lay there showing off to us. We also saw a few others and a couple of snakes.

Highly recommended

PS. Tea at The Cheesecake Factory was great too, the portion sizes were huge!!

Chloe

islabonita · 22 Jul 10, 02:01 AM

I have never done this with our family really but want to.
I am a bit frightened of being at some ones mercy.
I can brave coasters but not sure of the swampy water?

Chloe :] · 22 Jul 10, 02:25 AM

Hi, This is Chloe's Dad,

I was a bit nervous and i'm 42!! For the first few minutes i thought a gator might come out of the water and bite off my leg but these people know what they're doing. Harold spent most of the trip standing up with eyes peeled looking for anything. Most of the Gator's aren't that big and we were never in any danger!! This was so much more personal that the more commercial operators

elmlea22 · 22 Jul 10, 09:26 AM

We did this last November and it was brill. Definately agree with Chloe it is a must do.

spendleb · 22 Jul 10, 12:55 PM

Looking at the boats and lack of seat belts, you seem to be sat quite high whereas at Boggy Creek it felt like you had the sides of the boat protecting you if that makes sense? Just concerned with having two kids to keep hold of!!

stacina · 22 Jul 10, 04:49 PM

Thanks Chloe (and dad) you have made my mind up, think we will go for it this year!

islabonita · 22 Jul 10, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chloe :]

Hi, This is Chloe's Dad,I was a bit nervous and i'm 42!! For the first few minutes i thought a gator might come out of the water and bite off my leg but these people know what they're doing.

Not so scared of them coming on board as if we should tip in?

The boats look flimsy!!!!!!!

PeterR · 22 Jul 10, 06:53 PM

We're booked for a 09.00 ride on the 16th Aug and can't wait. Looking forward to going on our own boat with just the 5 of us and Capt Harold.
Great to hear you enjoyed it

Pete

digdisney · 22 Jul 10, 09:49 PM

Does anyone know what we should expect to see in August?

I would love to see Gators, but I know they hide quite a lot in the heat, not sure August would be the best time to go?

It looks fab though

WDWFOREVER · 22 Jul 10, 10:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PeterR

We're booked for a 09.00 ride on the 16th Aug and can't wait. Looking forward to going on our own boat with just the 5 of us and Capt Harold.
Great to hear you enjoyed it

Pete

We are there at 8.30am on 13th August! We are so looking forward to this. A trip to Boggy Creek last holiday was the highlight of my trip. So many people recommended Spirit of the Swamp though that we thought we would give it a try.

Jackie

Chloe :] · 24 Jul 10, 02:38 AM

I think you'll always see something, it was 90+ on Wednesday and we saw a few Gators and snakes, Harold is good at spotting!! The boat is definitely not flimsy and i would say is very safe. There is no chance of anyone falling off. Hope that gives piece of mind. Just a note on the location. Don't panic when you turn up and there is no office. They meet you at a roadside layby and walk you to a boat. On arrival i rang them because there was no office! but Debi turned up a few minutes later

scarecrow · 24 Jul 10, 02:34 PM

We've booked too, really looking forward to this. There is a review somewhere on here for those who haven't already seen it.

quacker · 24 Jul 10, 04:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by islabonita

I have never done this with our family really but want to.
I am a bit frightened of being at some ones mercy.
I can brave coasters but not sure of the swampy water?

Trust me, the airboat rides are much easier than the coasters. Less queues too. The most exhilarating feeling and the pilot/skipper knows exactly what he's doing.

Everyone should do this as it is a true Floridian experience imho.

Steve

quacker · 24 Jul 10, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WDWFOREVER

We are there at 8.30am on 13th August! We are so looking forward to this. A trip to Boggy Creek last holiday was the highlight of my trip. So many people recommended Spirit of the Swamp though that we thought we would give it a try.

Jackie

Yep, Boggy Creek was excellent yet seems to be second to this new kid on the block lol. We enjoyed the trip to Boggy Creek - just keept driving until you arrived what seemed like the end of civilisation.

Tremendous wildlife specifically birds.

Spirit of the swamp seems to be the more popular these days - might have to check it out.

dpmcalister · 24 Jul 10, 05:44 PM

I went with Spirit of the Swamp over Boggy Creek because it was more personal. I'm sure Boggy Creek is very nice, but the idea of an 18-man airboat put me off to be honest.