Dry Tortugas National Park Day Trip by Luxury Private Boat

Completely disorganized. I didn't feel safe.

We booked this Viator charter expecting a premium experience given the more than $3,000 for a not even 8 hours trip, but unfortunately the operation was very disorganized from the beginning. Before the trip, SeaEO Luxury Boat Charters sent incorrect pickup information directing us to a marina in Tampa — hundreds of miles away from Key West. Thankfully, we noticed the mistake and contacted the company to clarify it before the trip. On the day of the charter, nobody showed up, and we were unable to reach the at SeaEO Luxury Boat for quite some time. We were left waiting at the dock for hours with little communication and a lot of uncertainty. To Viator’s credit, their support team stepped in and helped coordinate a replacement captain so the trip could eventually happen. Once underway, the captain did a good job and we still managed to enjoy part of the experience. That said, the overall experience fell well below expectations for a luxury charter at this price level. While the boat itself wasn’t bad, it certainly didn’t feel “luxury” as advertised and appeared somewhat older and worn than expected. The biggest issue, however, was the lack of organization, communication, and professionalism throughout the process. I’m still hoping SeaEO Luxury Boat Charters will offer a fair partial refund or some form of compensation.

via Viator

Wonderful trip !

The trip from Key West to Dry Tortugas was wonderful – had a rocky return trip, but the SeaEO Captain was fantastic. We were confused about the payments with SeaEO. We were charged on the card before the trip and immediately had a partial credit issued ($800). Assumed that was for fuel, which would be an unknown until after the trip. Then we were reminded to pay the captain on site the day of the trip ($800) – in cash, Venmo, Zelle, which was the credit amount that had been issued. Hmmm… then after the trip there was a final charge of $800. Was that the final fuel charge? Who knows? Amazing that fuel cost was an exact amount which also matched the initial credit. This was all very confusing and not clearly explained by Viator.

via Viator

The Best Day!

Had the best time with Captain Patrick out of Key West to Dry Tortugas! We understood that weather may have changed our plans since it is so far out, but thankfully we had a perfect day on the water and sightseeing! We wanted a chill, laid back captain and Patrick delivered! Singing 1990's country to current hits, his love for history and Florida, and flexibility made for a perfect day! We will absolutely be coming back to book with SeaEO and Patrick specifically! Thanks for making our 10 year anniversary and time away from our busy lives simply amazing! - Your friends from NC

Response from the operator: Hello Michael, thank you for taking the time to share your experience! We’re thrilled our luxury private boat charter out of Key West delivered the perfect Dry Tortugas day trip for your anniversary. Captain Patrick’s laid back style, history knowledge, and flexibility are exactly what we love to hear. See you next time for a new adventure like hitting the sandbar at Snipes Key!

via Tripadvisor

Great but expensive

The trip to Dry Tortugas by private luxury boat was very enjoyable but very expensive. The captain was a great guy and the waters were pretty calm so the boat ride was great. We did get to Dry Tortugas and Loggerhead Island and lighthouse which was great. Given that we could not get reservation on the ferry to Dry Tortugas, this was about our only alternative to see Dry Tortugas. It was however very expensive for an 8 hour round trip.

via Tripadvisor

Read fine print

READ FINE PRINT!! We had booked with the advertising stating “Dry Tortuga Day Trip”. 14hrs before the trip the captain messaged that we would not be going to Dry Tortuga due to high winds. Is this not the true definition of Force Majure or “ act of God”?? According to the owner, and since I was made aware (by the company) with less than 24 hours I couldn’t cancel. Crazy. Lost $2200 and got no help from Trip Advisor. Owner was very unprofessional and offered no assistance with at minimum $600 refund stated in the terms. Horrible experience and unprofessional owner. Buyer Beware!!

Response from the operator: This review is utterly inaccurate, false, and does not reflect what actually happened. We rarely respond to reviews in harsh way, but in this case we feel it is necessary to set the record straight. As a company, we take full responsibility whenever we make a mistake, and we have done so on the rare occasions we have received negative feedback. We firmly believe that how a company responds to an issue says everything about its character. In this situation, however, we did nothing wrong, yet we still went above and beyond to try to make things right. Here is what actually happened: The client booked a Dry Tortugas trip with us during our absolute busiest time of the year, a period when we have to decline roughly 80% of inquiries because we are fully booked. On the same day he booked, a month or so before his trip, we personally reached out via text message to his cell phone (which would be the most personal way we could outline a policy, and the complete opposite of “FINE PRINT”) to clearly explain our Dry Tortugas weather policy: If conditions in the Gulf are too rough to safely reach the Dry Tortugas, we would switch the trip to a beautiful local day trip around Key West. In that case, he would receive a partial refund. If his only interest was visiting the Dry Tortugas and he was unwilling to accept the possibility of a weather-related change, we offered to issue a full refund or place him on the waitlist instead. He was explicitly told that weather is beyond anyone’s control, just as we cannot guarantee seeing dolphins or perfect conditions. This is the same transparent approach we have used successfully with thousands of clients over the years. Not once has anyone interpreted our communication the way this reviewer has. Because we honored his booking, we turned away more than 15 other potential charters for that same date. On the day before the trip, it was a gorgeous day in Key West, but the Gulf was unusually rough, one of the rare occasions where it was unsafe to make the crossing to the Dry Tortugas. We promptly notified the client, as promised. Instead of communicating with us, he ghosted our messages, contacted Viator in an attempt to cancel outside of our clearly stated policy, disputed the charge with his credit card company, and left this review. We still reached out to resolve the situation in good faith. JP personally called the client and offered a resolution in which our company made zero profit. We only retained the unavoidable Viator commission and a small captain’s fee, as that is the captain’s livelihood. The client rejected this offer, even after admitting he had seen our text message, understood why the policy exists, and respected that we had communicated it promptly. He then threatened legal action when we would not agree to refund him in full after he had actively tried to circumvent our policy. We have built one of the most successful Dry Tortugas charter operations in the country with an outstanding reputation by treating our clients fairly and honestly, not through fine print or deception. This single review does not change that fact. We stand behind our transparent communication and fair policies. We regret that this client chose to respond this way after we did everything possible to accommodate him. After all of this, we still are willing to provide the resolution we offered him previously. At the end of the day it is him who has to put his head down at night, knowing the absolute fabrication and fabrication this review on a small business is when we have done nothing but go above and beyond. Below is one of many pieces of evidence, but is the screenshot of the text we sent him immediately after he booked to ensure our policy wasn't hidden in "fine print": https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c36urd-0OE4jbP-140V1USy7o_C7bRyi/view?usp=sharing

via Tripadvisor