Dolphin Family Tours LLC, Merritt Island FL

Update: My experience was when they still did fishing tours and this review was updated to add more context to my original review. Even if apparently you don’t do fishing tours anymore, this wasn’t a “technical mistake” and this WAS to the right company. It’s kind of disingenuous to imply I reviewed the wrong place when you DID do fishing tours and employ a Captain David in the past. In fact, the original reply from the owner I was able to pull up said:

“We are very upset to hear that you did not enjoy your experience. Managment will be speaking with the Captain right away to ensure that all of our customers are treated with respect and to be more attentive. ”

Original review: “Captain” David is rude and doesn’t show you or teach you anything. For starters, I brought my friends to do the fishing tour, so it was my idea to even patron this place. When the tour started, I was holding the fishing rod with the reel upright. However, I was talking to one of my friends and turned it over where the reel was facing down, David zeroed in and grabbed my rod swapping it out with his and said, “Can’t have other captains seeing you hold the fishing rod upside down on my watch. ” I told him I was holding it the other way originally and he snaps, “No, you weren’t! Don’t argue with the captain, those who do go for a swim overboard! ” It wasn’t a big deal and he could’ve just showed me the right way (like a guide, imagine that!) if it bothered him so much. I don’t want to think it’s a racial thing, but I’m not sure why he singled me out, grabbed the rod out of my hands, swapped it with his, and treated me the worst for absolutely no reason. If me holding the rod wrong warranted THAT, then he’s got deeper issues.

At the end, I caught 6 fish, but one of my buddies caught 7 and David congratulated him and overall treated him and the others respectfully. When it came to me, he either ignored me, or gave me attitude.

Bottom line: For any fishing novices who wanted to experience fishing on a boat and maybe learn something; you could’ve done a better job fishing on your own. David is a real jerk and should not be hosting tours ever again. He’s not a good host and to call him a guide is an insult. I regret ever giving my business and suggesting this to my buddies.

This was a great tour. Captin Russ was amazing, patient, and loves what he does. You can expect an amazing tour. The best tour hours are 12pm to 3 pm. The dolphins are durable and the pelican were following the boat and flying everywhere. Highly recommend tour.

My family of four went on a tour in December. We saw some dolphins. It was very relaxing and comfortable on the pontoon which is small but really nice. If the water is rough, the person in front might get a few splashes, dress accordingly. Our driver/guide was very knowledgeable and friendly and made the whole experience feel very personalized. Would definitely do this again with this company!

Tour was excellent. Saw dolphins, manatees and a host of other wildlife. Captain Candy is extremely knowledgeable, polite and an all round fun tour guide. 10/10

We had a wonderful trip! Our guide was very knowledgeable and friendly and went out of his way to help us dolphins and local birds!

Captain Candy was great! We got to see 3 manatees and 3 dolphins. She explained sites that we saw as well. Highly recommend.

This company doesn’t just say they support local, their actions go above and beyond! They donated 4 tickets to the Pineda Waterway Warriors for a special fundraiser. The family that won had the best experience, they commented on how personal the tour was and how the kids got an up close look at dolphins and manatees
Highly recommend you will want to bring your whole family! Thank you Julia

We had a great time! The captain was very knowledgeable about the area and he knew exactly where the local wildlife could be found. We would definitely go again! Thank you for a great experience!

I had Family visiting so we saw this place on line and decided to give it a try. It was Amazing we could not have got a better tour guide than Captain Russ. He was so Knowledgeable and Caring. He definitely wanted to make sure we had a Great time and we did! We got Beautiful Shells and so many Amazing Pictures of the Dolphins! We will Definitely be going back to this tour and ask for Russ for another Awesome tour!

Outstanding! Tour guide (Captain Russ) was amazing - extremely knowledgeable and personable, and clearly loves his job. We plan to be repeat customers, and we highly recommend!

We had a great time. Four adults and a 2 year old toddler. Got to see dolphins and stop at one of the islands to wade/swim. Definitely worth the money.

Captain Russ was just awesome, he was knowledgeable and so friendly.   We saw so many dolphins, we even saw a baby dolphin with its family.it was just beautiful to experience. We did see other wildlife on our 2 hour tour, different birds etc. Our captain was punctual and we thank him for the wonderful experience!

We had a fantastic adventure, seeing manatees, dolphins, pelicans and more. Perfect that only 6 people can be on board at once. Russ is very friendly and knowledgeable. It makes the cruise enjoyable and he takes the time to make sure you see dolphins and whatever else is out there. He doesn't rush and listens if you think you've spotted something in another direction. Highly recommend Russ and this dolphin cruise.

We had a great time! The captain was very knowledgeable, and we were able to see a few dolphins and some different birds. Unfortunately the weather was not super cooperative and mosquitos had taken over the island, so we didn’t swim or collect shells, but the captain gave us some shells from his trip earlier that day. I would 100% recommend this service to anyone.

Capt. Candy was Great.
She had a good eye for spotting wildlife. When we had just about Given up on seeing Dolphin, she spotted a pod. 4 adults and a calf. They spent several minutes around the boat. Such a thrill! Thanks for taking the extra time to look. (we were fortunate there wasn't a tour after us.)

No pictures. I only video.