Are you planning a family vacation to Central Florida area and wondering what to do in Orlando? Then you have to visit Wild Florida Airboats and Gator Park.
My family and I were hosted by the Doubletree by Hilton hotel at the Entrance to Universal Orlando and Wild Florida Airboats and Gator Park in exchange for an honest review. No monetary compensation was received.
Wild Florida Airboats and Gator Park
I have lived in the South Florida area since the late 1980’s and I have a confession to make. I have never gone on one of those famous airboat rides. Although I have never been on one, I always wanted to experience one for myself. Hey, after all, the Everglades is such an iconic part of South Florida and what better way to see it all than from an airboat, right? Well, this year was the year to finally experience an airboat ride aboard a U.S. Coast Guard approved airboat from Wild Florida Airboats and Gator Park.
Wild Florida Airboats and Gator Park is just a short 42 min drive from the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel at the entrance to Universal Orlando. And as Wild Florida’s tagline states “come visit the middle of nowhere,” which they are definitely not located in the middle of nowhere, but being there feels like worlds away. Not only because it is such a tranquil environment, but the airboat ride and the gator park is just the icing on the cake.
Wild Florida’s airboats tours happen on Lake Cypress where you get to see some of Florida’s native wildlife. Such as birds, eagles, cows, trees, plants and of course, gators! Wild Florida offer half-hour or one-hour airboat rides and I would highly advise you to call Wild Florida at 866-532-7167 to make your airboat reservation ahead of your intended visit. Their airboat rides start as early as 9:00 AM and the last airboat tour leaves at 4:30 PM.
On our recent visit to Wild Florida, we arrived at around 9:30 AM and immediately check-in for our 10:15 AM airboat tour. While we waited for our airboat tour, we did had the chance to explore some of the Gator Park and definitely liked what we saw, of course, we had the chance to explore more of the park after our tour. When it was time for our airboat tour, the Wild Florida staff indicated us where to go. If you are wondering which ages the airboat rides are good for? My answer would have to be for every member of your family. Kids ages 3 and under are free to ride and don’t worry about life jackets. Because Wild Florida provides U.S. Coast Guard approved life jackets for kids under 3 to wear while on their tours. They also provide noise-canceling headsets for each rider.
I cannot say enough about how much fun we had on our airboat tour. Hey, want to get a taste of an airboat ride at Wild Florida? Just check out our quick video above.
Our airboat skipper was extremely knowledgeable and he even helped us spot some baby gators, can you spot the gator in the photo above? We also saw a ton of birds, a bunch of cows, and even a pair of eagles nesting their young. Did you know that eagles mate for life? If you didn’t, you aren’t alone. 🙂
Wild Florida Alligator and Wildlife Park
As I mentioned above the airboat ride tour are truly an amazing experience. But if you have young kids that love to learn more about wildlife, Wild Florida’s alligator and wildlife park is a must see. By the way, admission to the Gator and Wildlife Park is included in the price of our airboat tour ticket. So, after our airboat tour, the kids requested that we head back to the alligator and wildlife park and explore the park and that’s exactly what we did.
Wild Florida Alligator and Wildlife park has over 200 animals on property. Here you will see both native Florida wildlife, as well as, exotic animals from around the world. We saw zebras, deer, tropical birds, bobcats, sloths, lemurs, foxes, alpaca, llama, turtles, goats, and even a pair of albino gators!
Wild Florida’s alligator and wildlife park also has a super cute petting zoo, which the kids couldn’t get enough of. Hey, even hubby got into the feeding action here. 🙂 I would highly suggest getting to Wild Florida early in the day, taking your airboat tour early, and then spending time at the gator and wildlife park. They do have a couple of animal feeding shows that you don’t want to miss, including a gator feeding. Wild Florida also offers a few animal encounters, which we didn’t do but sure sound like so much fun. Especially the sloth encounter. 🙂
If you are looking for an airboat adventure of your own, from now until September 30, 2018, over 20 are offering a brand new Experience Orlando package, giving guests the chance to enjoy Orlando activities beyond the theme parks during their visit.
Guests who book the Experience Orlando package will get exclusive access to over $200-worth of unique discounts at over a dozen attractions and experiences around Central Florida, from family-oriented to thrilling adventures. So, what are you waiting for? Grab your sunglasses, your sunblock, and book your Wild Florida Airboats and Gator Park now using .
