Airboat tours get people down in the swamp--and over the swamp. These flat-bottom boats have their engines mounted above eye level, aft of the captain on the boat's stern. Whether riders crave twisting through the mangroves, flying through the sawgrass, or soaring over flat water, airboat tour operators near Florida City can deliver a unique swamp experience.
The Everglades that border Florida City are packed not only with sawgrass but red mangroves, which are trees that look like they're propped up on roots that stick a foot or two out of saltwater. These trees branch together at their top, creating tunnels over shallow water that airboats can run through easily. Some airboat tours close to Florida City travel through mangrove tunnels or alongside mangrove islands on the way to open water.
Gator Park Airboat Tours
24050 US 41/ SW 8th Street
Miami, FL 33194
786-837-7874
GatorPark.com
Florida's "River of Grass," so named by Marjorie Stoneman Douglas, has plenty of sawgrass to offer. But as an airboat flies through the sawgrass, riders see the life hiding within, from small turtles to large gators. Birds, fish and reptiles all live in the sawgrass, and airboats let passengers get as close as they dare to a Florida gator. The Everglades Alligator Farm takes guests on high-speed airboat tours through the swamp.
Everglades Alligator Farm
40351 SW 192nd Avenue
Florida City, FL 33034
305-247-2628
Everglades.com
Learn about the wildlife in the Everglades as well as the ecology of the "river of grass" on a tour geared toward environmental education. Coopertown--with a population of eight--has airboat captains who provide guests with environmental insight into what they're seeing along the ride.
Coopertown Airboats
22700 US 41/ SW 8th Street
Coopertown, FL 33194
305-226-6048
CoopertownAirboats.com
