The nostalgic train rides at Tavares Florida

[dogken]

Has anyone done this day out riding on the old 1940/50's trains, looking on their webpage and they do a few different trips from a pizza train to a BBQ train or they just do a one called the Golden Triangle Route without food.
Looking for other things to do apart from the parks and I love riding the old trains so any tips would be appreciated.
They also do one called Lake Dora by Air, Land & Sea, it's a canal boat ride then a seaplane flight then the train back to were you started.

[dogken]

Anybody?

[DeniseC]

We did the boat ride at Mount Dora. Recommended!
Mount Dora is a beautiful little town with some nice restaurants/bars and some quirky little shops.
The boat ride is about 2hrs long and on its own costs about $12. You get to see lots of wildlife including gators and eagles. The staff are extremely knowledgable . When we were there they had an old steam train, the cannonball express but that has now been retired in favour of newer trains. The sea plane ride is the third element in the ‘trio’ offer. I think altogether it was about $99 pp.

[dogken]

Originally Posted by DeniseC

We did the boat ride at Mount Dora. Recommended!
Mount Dora is a beautiful little town with some nice restaurants/bars and some quirky little shops.
The boat ride is about 2hrs long and on its own costs about $12. You get to see lots of wildlife including gators and eagles. The staff are extremely knowledgable . When we were there they had an old steam train, the cannonball express but that has now been retired in favour of newer trains. The sea plane ride is the third element in the ‘trio’ offer. I think altogether it was about $99 pp.

See more...

Been looking at some of the reviews and I really fancy giving it a day of our holiday, wanted to do the trio but the wife said no way will I get her up in a seaplane, so we’ll probably do the train from Tavares to Mount Dora then onto the boat trip then back on the train to Tavares, can I ask do you tip after the boat trip, like the crew or captain , not sure of the protocol on that one.

[DeniseC]

Yes, most people tipped the captain.
Go for it! It makes a refreshing break from the frenzy of the theme parks.
I would suggest taking drinks on the boat with you.

[anji]

We loved Mount Dora and did the seaplane and cat boats. The train wasn't running when we were there, otherwise we would have done this too.

The seaplane was wonderful and not at all scary, even for me! We were in the air far longer than we should have been and definitely worth the fare.

The cat boats were self-drive, powerful little boats and we had a couple of hours zooming over the lake and slowly going down the canal, which is meant to be one of the best waterways ever and also where Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed in part.

Here's my trip day if you want to have a look https://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/sho...ght=mount+dora

[dogken]

Originally Posted by anji

We loved Mount Dora and did the seaplane and cat boats. The train wasn't running when we were there, otherwise we would have done this too.

The seaplane was wonderful and not at all scary, even for me! We were in the air far longer than we should have been and definitely worth the fare.

The cat boats were self-drive, powerful little boats and we had a couple of hours zooming over the lake and slowly going down the canal, which is meant to be one of the best waterways ever and also where Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed in part.

Here's my trip day if you want to have a look https://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/sho...ght=mount+dora

See more...

Wow just looked at your trip and I'm definitely doing now, the trip that I've seen it the Lake Dora by Air, Land & Sea Pkg, it consists of a 1.5 hour boat cruise thru the Dora Canal with Premier Boat Tours, disembark at the Tavares Seaplane Base to enjoy a 15 minute seaplane flight with Jones Bros. Seaplane adventures and about an hour for a bite to eat or to enjoy Wooton Park, followed by a narrated train ride back to Mount Dora onboard The Royal Palm Railway Experience.
The cost is $93 plus tax each, would you tip all 3 of the transports? I haven't a clue.
The cat boats that you were on look great, can't seem to find them, do you have a link for them?

[anji]

Originally Posted by dogken

Wow just looked at your trip and I'm definitely doing now, the trip that I've seen it the Lake Dora by Air, Land & Sea Pkg, it consists of a 1.5 hour boat cruise thru the Dora Canal with Premier Boat Tours, disembark at the Tavares Seaplane Base to enjoy a 15 minute seaplane flight with Jones Bros. Seaplane adventures and about an hour for a bite to eat or to enjoy Wooton Park, followed by a narrated train ride back to Mount Dora onboard The Royal Palm Railway Experience.
The cost is $93 plus tax each, would you tip all 3 of the transports? I haven't a clue.
The cat boats that you were on look great, can't seem to find them, do you have a link for them?

See more...

Here's the link for the cat boats - catboattours
We tipped our pilot as he's given us such a long flight and also Craig the cat boat guide. I don't think I'd tip the train crew. It does look a great day and we'd have probably done it if the train had been running when we were there. We were glad we did the cat boats though as we had a better view of the canal and racing across the lake was lots of fun, if a bit wet (which cooled us down!).

[dogken]

Originally Posted by anji

Here's the link for the cat boats - catboattours
We tipped our pilot as he's given us such a long flight and also Craig the cat boat guide. I don't think I'd tip the train crew. It does look a great day and we'd have probably done it if the train had been running when we were there. We were glad we did the cat boats though as we had a better view of the canal and racing across the lake was lots of fun, if a bit wet (which cooled us down!).

See more...

Thanks it's now on my list