Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida, United States

5Chili56 5:00 PM Sep 7, 2022

Looking for the fountain of youth!!!!
This was WELL WORTH THE MONEY!!! The website for the park and for the Yankee Freedom Ferry details exactly the itinerary, what to expect, what the price of the ferry provides, and what to bring. You can tour the fort, snorkel both beaches, fish and eat lunch within the time allotted….perhaps not as long as you would like, but enough to give you a representative sampling of the island. In addition to the information on the websites, I’ll add the following: 1. Fully charge electronic devices and/or bring a portable recharging source. 2. Bring cards and/or portable games to eat away some of the 2 hour drive to and fro. 3. If you have your own transportation, arrange for a taxi or Uber. It will be cheaper than the $40 parking fee. 4. Do not park in the reserved residential parking spaces. 5. Fishing is allowed, so bring your fishing gear. 6. Whatever you bring with you you will have to carry it with throughout your time on the island. Unattended bags are not allowed on the ferry, nor are there storage facilities on the island. 7. There is no internet connectivity on the island. 8. Camping is allowed. See the website for details. The staff of the Freedom Yankee were customer centered and did everything in their span of control to make the trip enjoyable. Thomas made powerful rum runners and strawberry daiquiris!!!!! And Carrie was an enthusiastic and passionate tour guide who really brought the fort to life.

5Pusheen8645 5:00 PM Jun 18, 2021

Favorite part of KW trip!
Took the Yankee Freedom ferry. Crew was nice and knowledgeable. Breakfast provided was a plain bagel with cream cheese and coffee/juice. Lunch was Jimmy Johns subs, chips included in ticket price. The boat ride takes about 2.5hr each way. There is alcohol available and snacks on the way back (not free). Boat ride was a little rough on the way there with choppy seas, but they do sell dramamine on the boat if you need it. The fort was awesome and definitely worth the trip, truly a one of a kind experience. Conditions for snorkeling were not great that day but still saw many fish and some coral just walking along the moat and looking down. Only complaint is that you don't get much time to explore the fort before having to return, but this time limit is decided by the park service, not the crew. Took the 20min tour of the fort and then tried snorkeling. Would not recommend taking the 1 hour tour if you intend to snorkel or you will run out of time. Only thing I wish I was told in advance was that you must keep all personal belongings with you and can't have anything on the boat once you get off.... Meaning I got to carry a heavy bag of snorkel gear and fins all over the fort. Many people seemed unaware of this rule and had brought large bags.... Not fun. They do offer snorkel gear rental but in the times of Covid I preferred to use my own equipment.