Miami Boat Tours
- January 21, 2026
One of the most wonderful features Greater Miami & Miami Beach offers is that it’s surrounded by water. This includes the abundant marshlands of Everglades National Park to the south and west, making it the perfect city for boating enthusiasts.
Booking a boat tour with a lively, informative guide makes your experience on the water even more entertaining and educational. Here’s a guide to some of the best Miami boat tours.
Celebrity Boat Tours
The celebrity boat tour, where you get an outdoor peek at the homes of the rich and famous, is perhaps one of the most popular Bayside boat tours.
The 90-minute Miami Celebrity Homes Boat Tour along Biscayne Bay passes by Star Island, Fisher Island and Miami Beach, where you’ll see the mansions of Shakira, Jennifer Lopez and other celebrities.
The tour guide shares stories about these luxury homes. There will be many photo ops with stunning backdrops, so have your camera handy.
Island Queen Cruises & Tours is a private yacht charter that departs from Bayside Marketplace every hour. It offers a 90-minute, bilingual narrated sightseeing boat tour along Miami's coastal sites, including the Downtown Miami skyline, PortMiami, Fisher Island, Miami Beach and Millionaire's Row.
On both boat tours, beverages and light snacks are available for purchase onboard. You can choose from an air-conditioned section to keep cool or an upper deck to feel the breeze.
Speedboat Sightseeing Tour
Thriller Miami Speedboat Adventures is a highly-rated, high-speed tour for those seeking a Miami Vice-style adventure.
You’ll lift off from the Thriller or Hurricane speedboat from Bayside Marketplace. Then, you’ll speed by the multi-million-dollar homes of Star Island and Miami Beach.
The captain will slow down to give you curious tidbits of Miami history and culture along the 45-minute route. Tours are offered daily, and riders must be 3 years of age or older.
Sunset Boat Tour
The Vizcaya Sunset Cruise takes off from the Miami Beach Marina in the antique Mizner’s Dream boat.
For two hours, up to 20 guests will cruise around the Venetian Islands and through Biscayne Bay until arriving at Vizcaya Museum & Gardens – while enjoying all-inclusive hors d’oeuvres and a rotating wine and beer selection.
Looking for something more romantic? You can also book this tour as a private charter.
History Boat Tours
The two-hour Stiltsville Guided Boat Tour departs from Dinner Key Marina in Coconut Grove – where you’ll learn about the history of Biscayne National Park and see the last of the unique Stiltsville historic houses up close – only one mile off the coast line.
Stiltsville was a community made up of 27 shacks built on stilts above Biscayne Bay – dating back to the 1930s. Today, there are only six shacks left, and they are still accessible only by water. All ages are welcome on this tour.
The Miami Yesterday and Today Harbor Cruise is a 90-minute boat tour that transports you back in time. The journey starts in the Miami Beach Marina, continuing through Star and Venetian Islands and up the Miami River.
The guide gives a fascinating history lesson about the inspiring characters that were influential in the creation of the city of Miami, such as Julia Tuttle and Carl Fisher.
Everglades Boat Tours
Coopertown Airboat Tours has been an Everglades staple since 1945. It’s located 45 minutes west of Downtown Miami on Tamiami Trail.
Once you arrive, a tour guide takes you on an educational nine-mile airboat tour featuring alligators, a hardwood hammock and other native wildlife habitats.
You can make a reservation for your tour anytime between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily and then end your adventure at the on-site restaurant sampling local catfish, frog legs or gator.
For those with an extra thrill for adventure, try the Big Bus Everglades Night Experience. An airboat tour guide will give a one-hour boat tour through the Everglades while traveling up to 40 miles per hour under the light of the moon.
Participants will learn about the wildlife of the area, as well as the history of the native Seminole culture.
The package includes roundtrip bus transportation from Miami (Bayside or Miami Beach) to the Everglades. Ages 3 and older are welcome to participate.
Private Boat Tours
SeasidEscape by MYA Boat Charters was voted Traveler’s Choice Best of the Best of 2025. You’ll have a choice of booking a private tour for two in the evening or taking an exploration day trip with a group of your friends.
The boat takes off from Miami River and passes by Bayside Marketplace, Hibiscus Island, Palm Island, Star Island and Fisher Island. Afterward, it stops for 60 minutes at Flagler Monument Island.
During the longer four-hour charter option, the tour stops for two hours at the historic Miami Marine Stadium in Key Biscayne, where you can rent jet skis, have lunch or lounge on the boat’s floating mat.
The guide for this tour speaks both English and Spanish. The tour is available for all ages.
