Eco Adventures kayaks

This was one of the coolest things I’ve ever done and the guys that took us out were awesome! We did the 8pm tour, which made the kayaking portion super thrilling because you can hardly see a thing! Then when you get into the bay, the glow is really neat (even though there was a really «low glow» the night we went), it was still an incredible experience. Our guide also found a bio-​luminescent jellyfish that he showed us! Super cool. I would definitely recommend this tour to others!

My boyfriend and I went in January. There was no moon because it was cloudy. The glow was minimal at best. You can only see a flicker when you stir up the water with your hands.
The tour, however, was still a very enjoyable experience. The tour guide made us feel comfortable and offered a wealth of interesting information about the microorganisms and the surrounding area.

Very cool experience! Kayaking at night through the mangroves was really fun and different. The bay wasn’t particularly luminescent (apparently it’s brighter in the warmer months), but it was still really cool to put our hands and paddles in the water and see them sparkle. Our tour guide, Joe, was really nice, helpful, and knowledgable. He gave a very informative talk about the causes of the bioluminescence. However, I felt a little bad for him because the two staff members designated to assist him (Gaby and Dani) were not very helpful or attentive. When one couple had trouble paddling and fell far behind because they kept getting stuck in the mangroves, we tried calling for Gaby and Dani to help them but they were nowhere to be found for about 10 minutes. When we fell slightly behind for a moment and found them, they pushed our kayak off and told us a right turn was coming up but forgot to turn our light on at the front of the kayak, so we couldn’t see anything and ended up suddenly hitting a tree which slammed right into my neck. We also tried calling for them to help turn the light on but they were nowhere to be found.
Still a highly recommended experience, though! They even had snacks waiting for us at the end, which was a nice gesture.

One of the best experiences I’ve had in Puerto Rico. We traveled to Puerto Rico in early September and they suggested we take the 6:00 tour as opposed to us wanting to take the 8:00 tour. I’m glad we took the six o clock tour because we could appreciate the environment on the way to the lagoon. We saw fish and iguanas. The sunset was beautiful and the tour guides were very knowledgable about the area and the ecosystem. The lagoon DOESNT glow like in the pictures but it’s marketing and I get it. That being said, wait until the night sets in and the bay sparkles with light when you move about it. It’s pretty awesome. It’s like a bunch of fireflies under water. Definitely put this on your to do list if you plan on visiting Puerto Rico. You’ll find a lot of companies doing this tour but I can only speak on this one. We booked online but they gave us the option to pay in cash and it was cheaper that way. It was a remarkable experience.

Fantastic organization, friendly guides. Your biggest threat will be inexperienced kayakers crashing into you! We had a pretty seamless and memorable experience. Definitely wear flip flops or crocs and bring a dry set of clothes and/​or a towel!

So much fun! A great way to end your day and see the amazing bioluminescent bay! Definitely a must see! They have very friendly staff and are very professional. They made our kayaking experience unforgettable and fun for our whole family.

Well to start how utterly disappointing! You are given an image in the brochure website ect. to think you are going to see a «magnificent» sight. It is cool to see the organisms light up, however, it would be just the same to watch your paddle make bubbles underwater. You go for a mile to the bay and are their for 10 minuets. You go into the bay with a few other companies putting on the same tour, be prepared for the definition of a «cluster bunch» the guides will escort ALL the groups in AND out in the same time and tell at everyone to stay together. I’m sorry I’m not a professional kayaker. Where you are then escorted in pitch black back through the canal. Can we suggest at least having head lights so your not constantly running into the trees! The main tour guide Danny was absolutely AMAZING! What a gentleman who knows everything you want to know! The other tour guide «havey» or «Ovey» how absolutely unprofessional! Don’t bother asking him questions if their is a boat of girls! He flat out ignored us in everything we asked! I’m excited that we got to experience something that not many people do, but it defiantly was NOT what your expectations are set up to believe in the brochure and website.

Be aware the time of the year or the visibility of the lights show will be diminished. The tour guides were great — gave good explanations and background. But, it’s a busy area that the canoes go out of, so you’ll be canoeing through mangroves with lots of other traffic.

We went on a dark and moonless night! Great for seeing amazing stars and also the bioluminescent dinoflaggelates Not so great for kayaking through the mangrove forest to get to the laguna That said, we had a great time and our guides were very patient as we crashed over and over again into the Mangrove roots We got to be somewhat famous within our group «is that you, D.C.?» Yep sure is! We weren’t so great at kayaking or rather steering our kayak (two skinny girls with limited arm strength) but the guides were awesome and on the way back one of guides decided to tow us out of the mangrove forest It took me awhile to figure out he was towing us! I thought we were just going fast for some reason! Haha! But seriously, these guys are great and know their stuff it was a little scary in the pitch black dark but once we got into the lagoon it was so worth it A really memorable and amazing experience

We booked a combo tour with this company — Rain forest + kayaks. We are the family with two active boys (6 and 8 years old). The tour was great and organized. They text us the night before with exact time of pick up and were down at our hotel right on time.
On the way to El Yunque our tour guide (Andrea) was telling us about the rainforest and what to expect from the day.
Before entering the forest we stopped at the gift shop for some coffee/​restroom breaks/​to buy ponchos if rain hits us (we did not get any rain, but fyi, poncho at gift shop before El Yunque cost $ 4, inside the park — $ 7).
Inside the park we had for stops — one at the information center to watch 20 mins movie about the forest and walk around to look at the exponents. Another stop was the hike to the waterfall. On the hike there Andrea was showing us and explaining about native flora. She gave us enough time at the waterfall to enjoy the view and to get wet.
Then back to the bus and two more stops for the photo ops. One at the overlook tower and one at another waterfall. At all the stops we never felt rushed and always had enough time to explore and enjoy the scenery.
After the rainforest they drove us to the lunch place. You have to pay for the lunch. Lunch was great. We had chicken, beef and fish and all 3 was good. The beef was the best. We also ordered their «Tres leches» for the dessert, which was small portion, but yummy.
After lunch we got back on the bus and were driven to the Kayaking place.
They were able to put all 4 of us in one kayak (we asked for it) and were glad that they did. You have to kayak for one mile each way. On the way there you are kayaking against a current, not a strong one, but after a day hiking, you going to know that you are working you arms off…
The kayaking was beautiful. Most of the time it is in the small river, surrounded by mangroves. It is going to get dark on the way there, but they have 4 guides to make sure no one gets lost or stuck. There is one guide at the front, one at the end, and two along side. Once we got to the bay it was beautiful. We did not see the light right away, but then they all gathered us side-​by-​side and explained the biology behind it.
The moon was bright that night (cannot blame the nature for that), so they had tarp to cover us for several minutes, so we were able to see it better. Under the tarp — the magic happened. When we touched the water — it, like, illuminated. It was beautiful. Then they gave us time to explore on our own.
I noticed that we were the only company in the bay at that time, which was nice. On the way back, it is much easier to kayak, you almost don’t need to paddle, because you go with very gentle current. The only problem was the other kayaker who were going into the bay :-).
Once we were back, they had water/​lemonade and cookies for everyone.
We enjoyed the tour a lot and would highly recommend it, especially if you don’t want to drive around yourself.

Their bio bay kayak tour was the highlight of our vacation. The tour guides were friendly and informative and well worth the extra $ 20 tip we left them. I saw at least 2 other kayak companies operating that night; they all appeared to have this operation down to a science. Eco had bug spray available for use.
We did this with our 2 teens (18 and 15) on Christmas Eve, under ideal moonlight conditions –just a bare sliver was visible. It was amazing, enthralling, and magical to all of us. We opted for the earlier tour (met at 5:00), and got to experience the dinoflagellates glowing in the bay and on the return journey through the mangrove channel; those who took the later tour would have been able to see them paddling both ways through the channel– lucky them! Tips– watch for fish jumping landing in the water and fish swimming around your kayak; and do splash water into your boat and onto yourself. The only negatives about this trip were my 3 – 4 bug bites — but i’m a mosquito magnet — and it was so worth it! Some people might also complain about the inevitable inexperienced paddlers who bump into others, especially when going single file through the mangroves — but I found it amusing and not unlike the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyworld. If you’re in Puerto Rico and the conditions are right, do this!!!

We booked the raniforest/​bio bay tour for El Yunque & Fajardo @ around $ 115/​person. PAY IN CASH so you don’t pay extra in taxes… It ended up being around $ 127 when we paid via credit card.
The staff are all young, local guys that are all super friendly and knowledgeable about the bio bay and helpful with anything and everything. Be sure you realize that this is a 2+ hour kayaking tour and you need some decent upper body strength to accomplish this. I’m not the most in-​shape, but I had a great workout from this.
Think the Disneyland Jungle Cruise… but pitch black… and there are eels and fish and glowing plankton in the water.
I can’t describe the actual experience any differently from the other reviewers here except that you feel so isolated from the «real world» — seeing the stars and sky, faraway lights from cities & the sounds of nature is something one needs to experience once in their life, minimum.
Take on the bio bay tour with Eco Adventures Kayaks! You won’t regret it!

The funny thing is that we were not technically on their tour when at the bay. We were on another tour group because we had the tour booked through the hotel without checking reviews. The tour guide for Eco Adventures actually came to our aid despite us not being on their tour and helped my kayak group get to the bay and towed us to make sure we were not stuck in the man groves. He was very friendly and helpful despite us not being in his group. If I had it all to do again, I would no doubt go on Eco Adventure Tour. If they were that helpful for someone not on their tour, I can’t imagine how awesome they were with their actual group.
All I can say is, «Thank you! Thank you! Thank you, Eco Adventures for going above and beyond!»

We had so much fun.

Friendly LOCAL young guys that know their bio bay. Very organized, straight to the point no frills. 48 dollars per person, if you don’t have a partner they’ll sit you with one of the guides. The lead guide is very passionate about the bay and will answer all the questions you have. Don’t hesitate to use them. They do help you out and make it as fun as possible.
The kayaking is fun and not tiring at all. I think anyone could do it. The water is only waist high, but you’d have to be pretty dumb to fall in. The illuminating bay is AMAZING. You have to wait until it gets really dark for the water to start glowing. It’s not pollution but an organism that glows in order to protect it self. So when you stick your paddle or your hand in the water starts to glow.
Parking sucks in general. Get there early specially on the weekends because it does get packed. Drive down the hill and then make a left and park anywhere you find a spot. I did see the police handing out tickets to those that parked before the street starts curving. Like I said parking sucks.
Once you park just look for the company along the bay sidewalk and sign in. They take credit cards or cash.

Signed up for a tour at the Bioluminescent Bay with Eco Adventures.
January must be the wrong time of the year to do this since the glow was minimal at best. Couldn’t tell if it was glowing or just a reflection from the moon.
The group leader was very knowledgeable — talked a lot about the organism that gives off the glow… Too bad I didn’t care since I wasn’t able to see it.
I’ve never kayaked before, and it showed. The channel to get to the bay was pitch black and really narrow. Plus we had to row in a single file — yeah our boat was the one that always ended up sideways and right up against the mangrove roots. But hey, at least we didn’t capsize our kayak!
All in all, it was fun. If I come back to Puerto Rico, maybe in a different month, I’ll have to try this again.

I definitely recommend booking a bioluminescent night tour if you are visiting Puerto Rico!!! There are only five Bioluminescent Bays in the world and the second greatest bay is located in Puerto Rico. The Bioluminescent Bay is unique and special because it contains organisms that emit a flash of mysterious blue or green light when agitated at night.
We booked our kayak tour through Eco Adventures and the cost was $ 45 per person, which included a two hour kayak tour through the mangroves and bioluminescent bay and a small snack after the tour. (The tour group will pick you up at your hotel for an additional cost.)
No kayaking experience is necessary so there were a few chaotic moments when the amateurs were bumping other kayaks and got stuck in the mangroves. I felt bad for the beginners that had to learn how to kayak in the dark! My husband and I had a blast racing his brother and sister in their kayak. I’m pretty sure we got scolded a few times for breaking away from the group!
Once we paddled upstream to the bay we were rewarded by the shimmering glow of the bay. It was so nice a peaceful to sit in our kayaks and run our paddles through the water and watch the water light up like magic.
Be sure to bring:
1. Bathing Suit
2. Towels
3. Change of clothes
4. BUG SPRAY!!!
Leave your valuables at your hotel. The park area is located in a less than desirable neighborhood.

We had a great time with Eco Adventures. This operation came recommended by our hotel and I would recommend them too. The experience was magical and definitely a must-​do while in Puerto Rico. All of the kayak operators launch around the same time so it seems a little chaotic but we only encountered other kayaks and boats a few times. Albeit, it always seemed like the worst time and a few flashed their bright flashlights when it was the darkest and the best time to see the bioluminescence. Our tour guide was very good and funny. All of the «Bio Bay» tours are priced at $ 45. I liked Eco Adventures because they limited their group size to 24. Definitely a highlight of our stay in Puerto Rico. I’d like to try it in Vieques next time.
PS Expect to get bumped into here and there because you have to go single file and if you’re not used to controlling a kayak, you’re going to bump into someone. It was all good fun but the guy in front of us got a little annoyed when someone bumped into us and then we wound up bumping into him. Oh well. What are you going to do?

This was SO MUCH FUN!
Imagine climbing in to a tiny 2 person sea kayak, never having tried kayaking of any type before, and launching out in the Caribbean Sea (albeit an incredibly tranquil lagoon-​like section of it) at night and then paddling amateurishly through a pitch black narrow mangrove forest trying to avoid smacking your head on the low hanging branches or crashing in tot he mangrove tree roots — for what seems like forever — as you are generally headed ‘upstream’ /​against the current until you finally reach the Bioluminescent Bay and you can see the glowing plankton-​like creatures below the water which luminesce brightly whenever you run your hand through the water or paddle.
Sounds crazy, but it’s amazing!
Several tips:
1) Roads are very poorly marked in this area and a LOT of tour companies depart from the exact same launch area, so get there EARLY to find your group and check in/​douse yourself with mosquito spray. Time permitting, you may be able to get in and play around /​start paddling in the launch zone to get better acclimated to the communication and stroke style of your paddling partner.
2) Wear clothes which can get WET up to your waist, i.e., a bathing suit with a cover up or all weather gear. You will be sitting in a POOL of water inside the kayak!
3) Leave your phone, camera (unless waterproof) and other valuables locked in the trunk of your car BEFORE arriving at the launch site as it is in a very sketchy park area and it is best if people who are just hanging around do not see you stash stuff in your trunk when it is obvious how long you will be away from your car — about 2 hours round trip for the whole kayaking experience.
4) Once you are underway and paddling: when it seems like your arms are just about to give out, you’re almost to the bay so keep going! (Besides, you aren’t really allowed to turn around and go back by yourself any way!)
5) Smile, laugh at the comedy of errors that is likely to befall you when others crash in to you or you are not skilled yet. My bf and I were lucky in that since we were late, we ended up with our own guide for the trip out. Fortunately we picked up the rhythm of the kayaking cadence quickly and easily so we were able to pass by other big groups and rejoin our group in time for the ‘science lesson’ held by the nature guide out on the bay where all of the kayaks in our tour group linked together and learned about this extraordinary natural phenomenon before having some free time to paddle in the bay and then head back for the –much easier– return trip where the current in the mangrove forest river assists you.

Wow is all I can say. This was by far the best part of our vacation. We drove out on our first night in Puerto Rico and got lost on the way… so after driving around for hours our group was very determined to go to the biobay kayaking.
Later in the week, after another long drive out of Old San Juan, we finally got to our destination. $ 45 later we were strapped in our life vests and ready to go! Our group leader was Michael. He was very humorous and knowledgeable about the the biobay. Michael also knows some Chinese so make sure to test him!
Our favorite part was after kayaking through the mangroves was getting to the lagoon. I suggest going to the later tour because the darker it is out, the better you can see the glow of the bio-​luminescence plankton and the constellations in the sky!
After learning more about the bio bay and a little history about Puerto Rico we headed back for some refreshments waiting for us at our starting point.
This was a very memorable excursion. You learn team work because of the tandem kayaking, but also a lot about the ecosystem in Puerto Rico! This is such a fun thing to do and also a great workout for your arms! Be prepared for sore arms, sore butt and to get all wet. Definitely worth the $ 45!