Paddle in where the tour boats can’t. Sea caves, mangroves, glowing bays.
Which Benagil trip actually goes inside the cave. Whether a clear-bottom kayak is worth paying double for. How far a first-timer can paddle before lunch. Reviews of kayak and canoe tours on every coast worth the flight.
Four kayak trips that sell the whole idea of paddling on holiday.
Turtles under the hull, a see-through boat over Tampa Bay, the karst islands of Ha Long, Dubrovnik’s walls at dusk. What each one costs, and what the people who went say.
01The wildlife paddleTenerife: Kayak and Snorkel with Turtles, Wetsuits IncludedGreen turtles feed off the Tenerife coast, and the wetsuit and snorkel come with the booking.
02The clear kayakClear Kayak Tour of Shell Key Preserve and Tampa Bay AreaA see-through hull over the Shell Key seagrass, with a guide who knows where the rays settle.
03The limestone bay dayHanoi: Ha Long Bay Day Cruise – Swimming, Meal, KayakingA day on Ha Long Bay with a swim, lunch on board and a kayak stop among the limestone islands.
04The evening paddleDubrovnik: Sea Kayaking&Snorkelling Guided Day/Sunset ToursUnder the walls of Dubrovnik and out to a snorkel cove. Take the sunset departure for the softest light.
Florida springs, Nevada canyon water, Hawaiian reef: how America goes kayaking.
The States paddle in four very different ways. Pick the water first, then the tour. Here is what each kind of American kayak day costs to book.
★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · Clear Kayak Tour of Shell Key Preserve and Tampa Bay Area
Clear kayaksSpring water so clear the manatees look close enough to touch.
Wildlife paddlesDolphins, manatees and wading birds in the Florida estuaries.
Paddleboard toursLessons, glowing night paddles and the turtle coves off Maui.
River runsThe Colorado below Hoover Dam, Kauai rivers and spring-fed Florida creeks.
All 199 kayak tours in the USA →
Sea cave kayaking: the arches and grottos only a paddle can reach.
Benagil’s domed cave on the Algarve, the hidden lagoons of Phang Nga, the green-lit Emerald Cave in the Black Canyon. A kayak slips inside on a calm morning while the bigger boats wait at the mouth.
- 1Half-Day Emerald Cave Kayak Tour with Optional Hotel Pickupfrom $99
- 2Benagil: Kayaking Tour to the Benagil Cave (Free Shower)from $29
- 3Emerald Cave Kayak Tour: Scenic Paddle with Optional Shuttlefrom $89
Six coastlines worth flying to with a kayak in mind.
Costa Brava coves and Canary turtles, the Algarve’s cave coast, the Phang Nga limestone, Ha Long’s karst islands, Dubrovnik from the water and Sardinia’s dolphin bays.
Kayak and snorkel tours: paddle out past the swimmers, then roll over the side.
The best snorkelling on most coasts sits a few hundred metres beyond the beach, and a kayak is how you reach it. Turtles off Tenerife, the Costa Brava coves, the reef off Kailua with the Mokulua islands on the horizon.
The kayak tours more paddlers book than any others.
Every kayak tour we have reviewed →Ha Long Bay, Tenerife turtles, a clear-bottom kayak on Tampa Bay. The most popular paddles on the site and what earns each its place.
1
Hanoi: Ha Long Bay Day Cruise – Swimming, Meal, Kayaking
Spend a long but rewarding day on Ha Long Bay, with hotel pickup, a modern bus, seafood lunch, Sung Sot Cave, Luon Cave by kayak or bamboo boat, and Titop Island for swimming or a climb. Guides such as Sunny, Alex, Ken, and Tom are known for keeping the trip lively and well organized.
From · $41
Read our review →
2
Tenerife: Kayak and Snorkel with Turtles, Wetsuits Included
from $35
3
Clear Kayak Tour of Shell Key Preserve and Tampa Bay Area
from $79
4
Ibiza Beach Hopping Cruise with Paddleboards, Drinks and Food 6h
from $83
5
Half-Day Emerald Cave Kayak Tour with Optional Hotel Pickup
from $99
6
Barcelona Costa Brava Kayak, Snorkel & Cliff Jump Day Tour
from $102
7
Benagil: Kayaking Tour to the Benagil Cave (Free Shower)
from $29
8
From Phuket: Phang Nga Bay and Canoeing Tour by Big Boat
from $53
Can you go kayaking if you can’t swim? What decides a paddling day.
Every guided paddle hands you a buoyancy aid, so you rarely need to be a strong swimmer, but most operators want you comfortable in the water. Tandem and clear kayaks carry a combined weight limit, worth checking before you book for two. Sea cave trips run only when the swell lets the guide in, and morning water is usually the calmest. Expect to get wet from the waist down and dress as you would to swim.
What a kayak tour costs, from a rental hour to a full day on the water.
Every tour on the site, grouped by price. A guided paddle into a sea cave often costs less than the boat trip that motors past it.
Algarve cave tours, Ha Long day cruises with a kayak stop and short guided paddles.
Clear-kayak eco tours, bioluminescent bays and half-day guided sea kayaking.
Private guides, glacier lakes, overnight trips and the long combined days.
Three kayak trips no tour boat can give you.
A big boat stops outside the cave, idles past the mangroves and runs its engine through the glow. These three only work at paddle speed.
Bioluminescent Bays
In a handful of sheltered bays, plankton lights up blue-green with every stroke of the paddle. Puerto Rico has three of the brightest, at Fajardo, Vieques and La Parguera, and the Phang Nga mangroves in southern Thailand glow too. The darker the night the brighter the water, so trips around the new moon show it best.
- 1Phuket: Phang Nga Bay Bioluminescent Plankton and Sea Canoes★★★★★★★★★★ 4.8 · 2,321 reviews
- 2Night Kayak Tour St. Thomas – Westin Frenchman’s Reef★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 1,813 reviews
- 3Hong by Starlight: Sea Cave Kayaking and Loy Krathong Floating★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 1,215 reviews
Clear Kayaks
A polycarbonate hull turns a kayak into a glass-bottom boat. Over Florida’s spring runs you watch the sand stir where the water wells up, and in the cooler months manatees drift underneath. It only works where the water is clear, which is why these tours cluster on the springs, the Caribbean lagoons and the coves around Cabo.
- 1Clear Kayak Tour of Shell Key Preserve and Tampa Bay Area★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 5,800 reviews
- 2Crystal River Three Sisters Springs and Manatee Clear Kayak Tours★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 1,830 reviews
- 3Los Cabos Arch and Playa del Amor Tour by Glass Bottom Kayak★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 1,317 reviews
Mangrove Tunnels
Mangroves stand on stilt roots in salt water, and where they close over a channel they make a tunnel narrow enough to touch both sides. Sarasota, Key West and Krabi’s Ao Thalane all have them. The water is flat and shaded, which makes these the easiest guided paddles for a first-timer and the best for spotting crabs, herons and fish.
- 1Sarasota Guided Mangrove Tunnel Kayak Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 2,440 reviews
- 2Key West Mangrove Kayak Eco Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 2,205 reviews
- 3Krabi: Kayak Adventure through Ao Thalane Mangrove Forest★★★★★★★★★★ 4.6 · 2,024 reviews
Four kayak tours that will not wait while you decide.
Most paddles can be booked the night before. These four run on permits, swell, moon phases and storm seasons that do not move for anybody’s flight.
- 01Bio Bay Kayak Tour in FajardoThe glow is brightest on dark nights around the new moon, and those departures fill first.
- 02Half-Day Emerald Cave Kayak Tour with Optional Hotel PickupLaunches below Hoover Dam run through permitted outfitters with daily limits. You cannot simply turn up with a boat.
- 03Benagil: Kayaking Tour to the Benagil Cave (Free Shower)The cave can only be entered when the swell is low. Morning departures meet the calmest water and sell out first in summer.
- 04Hanoi: Ha Long Bay Day Cruise – Swimming, Meal, KayakingFrom June to October, storm warnings can close the bay to tour boats at short notice. Leave a spare day either side.
By country and coastline
Fresh reviews of kayak and canoe tours, newest first.
More of the newest paddles →
Sant Elm: Guided Kayak Sunset Tour with Picnic in a Cove
Read our review →
From Shkodra: Koman Lake Adventure with Boat Ride & Kayak
Read our review →
From Sant’Angelo: Ischia Kayak Tour with Italian Aperitif
Read our review →
From Queenstown: Dart River Canoe & Jet Boat Day Trip
Read our review →
From Riga: Full-Day Scenic Gauja River Valley Kayaking Trip
Read our review →
From Ponta Delgada: Sete Cidades Jeep, Bike, & Kayak Ride
Read our review →
From Phuket : James Bond Island by Bigboat & Canoe Adventure
Read our review →
From Phuket: James Bond Sunset Boat Tour & Canoe Adventure
Read our review →
