Swimming with manatees on Florida Nature Coast is one of the best things to do, a unique experience everyone should do at least one time in their life. One of the biggest draws is you can bring your kids with you, making a whole family experience. There are many places to do it, but for swimming with manatees, one of my favorites is the Florida Nature Coast, and in this post, I’ll let you know why.

If you are reading this article before How To Swim with Manatee, I recommend first reading that one, and then coming back for the conclusion.

Once we learned how to play nice with the Manatee it was time for our swim. And the anticipation was killing us.

Florida Nature Coast Manatee Tours 

No matter how much you read about these elusive animals, watch videos on YouTube, and even get glimpses of them in aquariums, nothing – and I mean nothing – can prepare you for your first encounter.

An important difference, and more of an unspoken secret, that our tour with Snorkel with Manatee company had in comparison to all the other Crystal River snorkel tours was that we got to swim with manatees in Homosassa Springs.

For some reason, Crystal River Florida is the main draw for manatees while Homosassa Springs Florida, which is 74 degrees year round (same as Crystal River), has the same perfect conditions and has the same amount of manatees coming here year after year.

When I first signed up for the tour, I honestly didn’t have any idea of the difference. But it is huge. Crystal River has hundreds of people swimming with Manatee every day. Which doesn’t make it very appealing to me at all. When we prepared to get on our boat, we were told that we are going to Homosassa Springs, not Crystal River. I became extremely worried since I haven’t read anywhere about this area as a good place to swim with them.

That’s when we learned the hidden truth. Other than our company, no other company comes out here. Which made the swimming area ours and ours alone. What an incredible surprise!

My experience

Our captain and guide were so much fun. Not only is this her career, but she is absolutely in love with manatees, and every time she has a day off she is swimming with them. Her love affair started when she was seven years old and is now sharing her love with us. And that made the swim that much easier to adjust to.

Because trust me, your first time face-to-face with this animal can make your heart stop. Not in a bad way.  Since we had absolutely no reference points for how to really act, it can definitely frighten you with its mass and unexpected curiosity, completely throwing you off guard.

My oldest son, I’m convinced, has found his calling. After his initial meet and greet with the baby manatee (we saw a mama and baby while touring) they became instant best friends.

Ralph, as he called his newfound buddy, and my son bonded and literally played together in the water for over one hour.

To us, the greatest revelation was how friendly and sociable these creatures were.  Ralph didn’t want to leave my son’s side at all. Even after my boy had to get back in the boat for our return, Ralph clung onto our rope from the anchor until we roared up the engine and waved our goodbyes.

Saying goodbye is always hard. My sons to this day talk about Ralph and how they will return. My baby went into the water, but was a bit eclipsed by the size and preferred to watch and wave from the boat.

On the ride back, we had hot cocoa as we reminisced about our incredible adventure.

And you always know it’s a good day when the baby falls asleep.

Video Fun

Swimming with manatees is something that I recommend for every family to do with kids. Watching your children learn, fall in love and understand the Manatee brings you that much closer to them, helping them save this animal which is extremely endangered.

This was without a doubt one of the greatest highlights not only of our trip but of our year!

The post Florida’s Nature Coast Is The Best Places To Swim With Manatees appeared first on Travel Experta - Travel, Lifestyle, Freedom.