I booked this tour as a treat for my husband, but I ended up loving it at last as much as he did if not more. We're both animal lovers, and I really appreciated how much respect the staff here have for the manatees and how much they care about interacting with them in a considerate way. We did a short education session and watched a video before we went out on the boat, were given wetsuits to wear, and headed out. Our group only ended up having four people, plus the boat captain, and one guide who got in the water with us (shoutout to Rhonda and Lindsey—you were both fantastic!) I was a bit worried that I could get seasick on the boat because I get sick on anything that moves, but it was a short ride and it didn't bother me at all. (The water is very calm, and the boat moves slowly, partly because they can't wake with the manatees.) We saw so many manatees in the one small area around the spring where we stopped. They are lovely gentle creatures, and were curious about us (especially one of the babies we saw.) Nobody touches a manatee unless it initiates an interaction with you and gets up in your personal space first, but it was really fortunate that I think that experience happened at least once for everyone on our tour. It was a bit chilly in the water in mid-November, but it seemed like the perfect time to see manatees. The staff told us that this is the time of year when the Gulf starts getting colder and they just begin to start moving into the warmer waters, so we saw lots. The guide and captain were really friendly and knowledgeable and put the manatees first. They took pictures during the encounter and we bought the photos on a USB. When we got back on the boat, they had super yummy hot chocolate for us. I would definitely recommend this company to anyone who's considering swimming with manatees, and we would always choose River Ventures again if we went back.