Clear Canoeing and Wildlife Sightseeing at Silver Springs
Recommended by 94% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Orlando, USA
- 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
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Overview
Explore the serene Silver Springs State Park at your leisure with this clear canoe or kayak rental. The Silver River is a spring-fed waterway that is a favorite spot for local wildlife and visiting tourists alike. Swim and splash as you paddle your way down the river. Keep your eyes open for sightings of native species like alligator and manatees, as well as rhesus monkeys.
- Enjoy a self-led journey down the Silver River
- See below the springs waterways in these clear canoes
- Spot wildlife native to Silver Springs State Park
- Keep a look out for the exotic rhesus monkeys
What's Included
- Clear canoe, paddles, and life jackets are included.
- Tour Guide- This is a self-guided rental not a tour.
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Silver Springs State Park5656 E Silver Springs Blvd, Silver Springs, FL 34488, USA
Enter park at the large wooden and brick sign that says Silver Springs Entrance. At the stop sign turn left to the main parking lot. On the side of the parking is the kayak drop of area. We will be at the kayak drop off area. Our clear kayaks have American flag life jackets.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.What To Expect
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems
- Most travelers can participate
- Weight limit of 250lbs per seat and 400lbs for the whole canoe.
- All canoes are tandem. The canoes comfortably fit 2 people maximum. One small child is permitted with 2 adults if the weight limit is not exceeded.
- Dogs are permitted. They must be leashed at all times.
- Drinks and snacks are permitted. Please remove your trash when complete.
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Kelci_L
Kayaking on Silver Springs was such a fun and relaxing experience. We were able to go at our own pace, and it did not require a lot of physical effort to kayak on the river. While we were disappointed that we could not see manatees (they have already migrated out of this area for the year), we did see a lot of other wildlife (otter, monkey, alligators, lots of birds and turtles). The water was so clear and the trees were so beautiful with Spanish moss.
I am a travel advisor and was happy to participate in this excursion, not only to enjoy it for myself and my family, but to also be able to recommend it to clients. We will definitely be back sometime when the manatees will be there!
The tour group we used were super friendly and helpful. Would definitely recommend!
Reviews
4.7
based on 87 reviews
Kelci_L, Apr 2026
Kayaking on Silver Springs was such a fun and relaxing experience. We were able to go at our own pace, and it did not require a lot of physical effort to kayak on the river. While we were disappointed that we could not see manatees (they have already migrated out of this area for the year), we did see a lot of other wildlife (otter, monkey, alligators, lots of birds and turtles). The water was so clear and the trees were so beautiful with Spanish moss.
I am a travel advisor and was happy to participate in this excursion, not only to enjoy it for myself and my family, but to also be able to recommend it to clients. We will definitely be back sometime when the manatees will be there!
The tour group we used were super friendly and helpful. Would definitely recommend!
Karen_G, Apr 2026
Dylan was super attentive and polite, gave us all the information we needed, it was an amazing experience, super great boats and easy to use! Very affordable too! Can't beat it! We'll come back for sure to do this again! Thank you!
Brennen_F, Apr 2026
Beautiful experience. We saw monkey’s and alligators. I traveled with my spouse and 4 kids. They loved it
harold_a, Mar 2026
It was fantastic! I highly recommend it. We look forward to doing it again. The guide was extremely helpful and very nice.
John_A, Mar 2026
Great experience! We were given great advice on how to see the wildlife, and we did! We will use this service again!
Paula_M, Mar 2026
So fun! Im glad we took the reccomendation to use Victor. Our experience felt organized, smooth, fun, no complaints. Rebecca was kind and helpful, the canoes were well cared for, silver spring is BEAUTIFUL. We saw manatees, monkeys, otters, turtles and so many birds. Will do this again
Jack_J, Mar 2026
The one hour self guided canoeing was perfect! Rebecca was very helpful on providing information and assisting us with the canoe. This was easy, relaxing, and an overall great experience.
Steven_G, Feb 2026
Well organised and super friendly. It is a round trip (rowing) experience. You go down a gently flowing river and obviously return against the currents (a bit more effort required). We saw lots of birds and turtles, plus several alligators. Great fun all round.
Lacey_P, Feb 2026
Was such a fun little day trip for our family. We took our 9 year old and 3 year old and they loved it. The kayak trip alone was beautiful and enough but the new shops, museums, bar, and cafes that Silver springs has to offer now were a nice addition. We got icecream and coffee and both were delicious. The pizza smelled great!
Kayla_J, Feb 2026
Such an amazing experience for the whole family to enjoy. Host was energetic and full of knowledge about where to find the manatees
Alisa_L, Jan 2026
Fun 2 hours! Received texts with clear instructions during the hour or two before our launch time. Do plan on arriving early to purchase park tickets. Saw a few manatees, many gators, wetland birds and turtles. You and your belongings may get a little wet from the paddles.
Chad_F, Jan 2026
Relaxing sighting seeing kayaking with many different wild animals including herons, turtles, fish, cormorants, ibis, and manatees.
Kimberly_S, Jan 2026
Very friendly, shared good map and information so that we could see the animals and stay safe. Boat was clear enough that we got great videos of underwater sea life.
Julia_S, Jan 2026
Rebecca helped make this experience truly unforgettable! Absolutely would recommend, saw tons of wildlife including manatees, gators, fish and turtles. Brought the dog too and she had a great time
Ivette_F, Jan 2026
Surpassed our expectations! Took our two kids 3yo and 7yo and saw SOOO many manatees right under us! Amazing experience. Definitely a core memory 🤍
Jeanie_W, Dec 2025
Christmas holiday time extremely busy. The springs are crowded and the wait to launch from the time of check in was 30+ minutes.
The springs are stunning- definitely worth taking the clear canoe experience. Beautiful clear water, manatees, birds, turtles, fish, and alligators. No swimming area. Very peaceful setting. Highly recommend. Nice café, gift shop and ice cream available- picnic tables too.
Rebecca our organizer was excellent.
Alicia_P, Dec 2025
Rebecca did a fabulous job getting us checked in, oriented to the location and launching our canoe. Would rent from her group again.
Stephanie_T, Dec 2025
Wonderful experience with our family doing the glass bottom boat tour! Rebecca was knowledgeable and hard working.
Chelcee_D, Dec 2025
Awesome experience! Very detailed explanation given for route, & map given to us to make the trip on our own.
Brittany_K, Dec 2025
Rebecca was very friendly and we had a great time we saw gators, turtles, fish, manatees and so many birds. Get there 10-15 minutes early the line to pay for entrance fees was a little long but overall 10/10
kristy_b, Nov 2025
Wonderful experience. Rebecca did a wonderful job would come again weather experience was great………..
Layla_H, Nov 2025
Rebecca was very helpful and kind, she made our experience super smooth! We had the best time! I would definitely recommend Clear Canoeing.
Fania_C, Jul 2025
This was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever experienced! The waters are crystal clear, Rebecca was incredibly kind and helpful and we were so excited when we saw the monkeys. I would recommend this place to everyone I know, truly an amazing experience
catherine_f, Apr 2025
Rebecca was super knowledgeable about the site and made great suggestions on where to paddle. She was communicative, punctual, and accommodating. This was a great activity for our family, and our 2 boys 10 and 7 had a great experience. We came late in April so the manatees had already moved on to cooler waters but there was still so much wildlife to enjoy.
Dawn_N, Apr 2025
This operator has either gone belly up or doesn’t care about their customers. No communication, didn’t show up, phone went straight to voicemail. Viator customer service helped me and also got no response and fully refunded my credit card.
Meaghan_K, Mar 2025
Great Experience, beautiful clear spring water. Really enjoyed not having to have a guide on the tour but getting to use the clear canoes to see the fish and manatees. Saw manatees, alligators, turtles, all types of birds and fish. We did not see the monkeys, but I think we heard some. It was spring break so a little crowded, so if you go then buy you launch and admission to the park about 30 minutes before your arrival time. Tania was nice and easy going and helped put the boats in and take them out promptly. It's seemed like a smaller company, so it was more easy going than some of the other outfitters. One thing for all of the outfitters though and the State Park, the launch and park ticket line was long. It might be good if there was an online system that people could buy their launch pass and park pass the day before to quicken up the process.
Christina_V, Mar 2025
The experience in itself was lovely. Saw so many different types of wildlife.
But I will not be booking this again through Viator. The information is very outdated and set us up for a very unpleasant arrival/ start to our day.
There is no one in purple shirts awaiting.
I saw nothing with the vendors name.
We spent a good 20 mins searching around & showing our confirmation email and ticket and no one could help. There was no phone number. We didn’t know about the extra park fees.
Once we got past that and found our vendor, the day was phenomenal.
Rick_K, Dec 2024
Seeing manatees in person from the canoe was a thrill. I recommend going on a cool day when they tend to congregate around springs.
Stephanie_A, Dec 2024
We had a great time! Tania was awesome. She messaged us in the morning to ensure we knew how to get to the dock and met us there. We were provided a map and directions for where to see the most wildlife. Saw lots of turtles birds and fish and even a manatee! Thanks!
Leslie_S, Dec 2024
The problem was not with Clear Canoeing, it was with Viator. The information that Viator provided was outdated and no longer correct. It was also not clear that these were tandum canoes. We requested 4 people assuming it was 4 kayaks. Nowhere did I read tandum. There was no info about additional fees either. When we arrived to the park we suddenly had to pay an additional $25 launch fee we weren't prepared for. The info on how to find the canoe operator was also incorrect, we spent 10 minutes searching for them. It was 30 minutes later and we still werent in the water and our rental time was to only be 2 hours. In the end, we requester a full refund. It has not applied to my card as of yet. The park also had to refund our launch fees. Rebecca was kind, but I recommend thay she use a different 3rd party payment provider instead of Viator in the future. This ruined what was supposed to be a fun Saturday with friends.
Response from Host, Dec 2024
Hi this is Rebecca with Clear Canoeing. Our direct website is clearcanoeing.com. You can also text or call us at 352-816-9072.
Unfortunately Viator has made it more and more difficult to communicate with guests over the last year in an attempt to prevent guests from booking directly with outfitters. As the outfitter we are frequently not provided with a guest phone number until the day of the activity. Furthermore and more concerning is that Viator will often not show the correct amount of guests. Additionally Viator's AI will rewrite outfitter's info and remove and input info that is not accurate.
Silver Springs State Park charges admission and launch fees. Outfitters are not permitted to pay the fees on the guests behalf. It is $2 per person and $4 per kayak.
From $45.00
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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Clear Canoeing and Wildlife Sightseeing at Silver Springs
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