Frequently Asked Questions

Individual bookings of 5 or fewer guests can be cancelled with a refund or rebooked to another availability or activity up to 48 hours prior to activity.

Individual bookings of 5 or fewer guests will not receive a refund for cancellations or changes to bookings within 48 hours of their activity.

Private bookings or bookings of 6 or more guests can be cancelled with a refund or rebooked 14 days prior to trip.

Private bookings or bookings of 6 or more guests will not receive a refund for cancellations or changes to bookings within 48 hours of their activity.

If a Biscayne National Park Institute activity must be cancelled due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances, you will have the opportunity to rebook for another day or receive a full refund.

All bookings will be considered a “no show cancellation” if you have not checked into the park store and signed the waiver at least 5 minutes before the activity and a refund will not be issued.

Refunds and rebookings cannot take place the same day as your activity. We strongly recommend trip insurance to cover unforeseen circumstances.

If you have a question, please contact the call center at (786) 465-4058 between 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. est. You can also contact us through email at info@bnpi.site.

Excursions can be canceled due to weather, boat maintenance, etc. If we cancel the trip, you will be given the chance to rebook or get a refund.

Some excursions can be canceled while others don’t on a certain day, and this could be due to many factors. Please see the trip details to understand why it could get canceled.

At Biscayne National Park Institute, we strive to ensure your safety and enjoyment during our programs.

Please read the following regarding weather cancellations:

• No Need to Call Us: We will proactively contact you if there are any weather-related cancellations. In the event of a cancellation, we will promptly inform all guests via email and text message (be sure to opt-in to receive text messages when booking your trip).
• Weather Monitoring: We continuously keep a close watch on the weather, which includes wind speeds and storms. Florida weather can change quickly, and the weather on the water can be very different from the weather on the mainland. Scattered thunderstorms often dissipate quickly or are concentrated in areas that can be avoided. To avoid unnecessary cancellations and allow us to adapt as needed, we often wait within 1 hour of the tour to cancel for typical stormy weather.
• Tropical Storms and Hurricanes: We monitor weather closely during storm events, relying on updates from the National Hurricane Center and our Park Partners to make decisions. During these storm events, we will contact you in regard to your trip.

If we cancel a trip due to the weather, you would be able to receive a full refund for your trip. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation. Your safety and satisfaction are our top priorities.

Our website is live and up to date with availabilities, so if you are not seeing the options you would like, it means we do not have it and would suggest looking at a different date, time, or excursion to fill your needs.

Private trips are available but if the website is not showing the option to book it, it means we do not have it available for the date you are looking for.

We would also suggest looking at our other Institutes to see if there’s an excursion available on the day that you’re interested in.

There is no waitlist, but cancellations can occur, we would suggest monitoring the website for availability on the live calendar.

Depending on the time of year and season, we suggest booking ahead of time and if plans change you have 48 hours before your excursion to rebook or refund your trip. We can’t guarantee that there’ll be spots available if you try to book as a walk up.

We highly suggest booking big groups, private tours, and tours during our busy holiday month (November-beginning of January) at least two months in advance to assure a reservation on a desired trip date and time.

Our tour guides, Naturalists, are continuous students of the natural world and provide interpretive, educational, and historical programs in South Florida’s National Parks. Each are trained by the National Park Service to ensure they are equipped with and can provide the most up to date information, research, and opportunities when connecting with guests.

Interpretation is a purposeful form of communication that seeks to translate the world around us. Our Naturalists help interpret the natural environment, history, research, etc. to support guests in broadening their perspectives, deepening their understanding, and inspiring them to cultivate meaningful connections with South Florida’s National Parks.

Each trip is different so when you are looking to book, the page for each tour will state what type of boat is being used on the trip.

Occupancy total will also be listed on each booking page.

Our number of passengers per boat is determined in accordance to Coast Guard regulations and the optimization of space of the vessel to ensure the comfort and safety of all our guests.

We cannot exceed the pre-determined boat capacity.

If you are a private organization or school group with a larger group size, please contact us at (786) 465-4058 for more information.

Yes, babies and children are accounted for as passengers. Under Coast Guard regulations, we cannot exceed the capacity of a vessel, even if the extra passenger is a baby or child.

If your activity involves being in the water; bring a swimsuit and towels to dry off. We do not supply towels. We recommend bringing the following in all Biscayne National Park Institute activities:

• Sunscreen
• Hat
• Sunglasses
• Dry bag for small items such as a phone and wallet
• Snacks
• Lunch for full day excursions
• Refillable water bottle, our boats provide drinking water that can be used to refill

You can keep items on the boat during your excursion but there is a possibility of them getting wet during the trip, we ask that you use a dry bag and keep personal belongs hidden inside of your vehicles.

If you have luggage, we suggest you leave it in your car or a luggage storing facility. We can’t fit big luggage pieces on the boats.

Depending on the tour, it can range from 30 to 45 minutes to your location on trips that include activities. On heritage and wildlife viewing cruises, time on the boat would take up most of the trip. Please see details of the trip to have a better idea of how much time you’ll be on a boat.

On specific tours, there is a bathroom on the vessel. Such tours are listed below:

• Stiltsville Dinner Key
• Sailing
• Deering Estate Trip

We recommend that you use the restrooms in the Visitor Center or restrooms located in the islands.

Lunch is not provided on any of our tours, our stores sell snacks and drinks for your convenience, but it isn’t suitable for a lunch substitute. You are more than welcome to bring a small carry-on cooler to keep your own food safe, but we also have a cooler on the boat.

• There is a local Homestead Walmart nearby for you to be able to buy food and drinks before arriving to our park, it is about 15 minutes from the Dante Fascell Visitor Center.
• For our Coconut Grove excursions, there is a Fresh Market about 2 minutes away by car and about a 7–10-minute walk from Dinner Key.
• For our Deering Estate excursions, there is a Starbucks about 2 minutes away by car and about 5 minutes walking distance from Deering Estate entrance. The Starbucks is in the plaza next to the Deering Estate Visitor Center (not the main entrance).

Our store at Dante Fascell Visitor Center offers a wide variety of Biscayne National Park memorabilia, snacks, drinks, books, dry bags, bug spray, motion sickness medication, etc.

This is the only store located in Biscayne National Park, but you can also find items on our online store.

We have multiple departing locations for the Biscayne National Park Institute.

Dante Fascell Visitor Center in Homestead, FL
Deering Estate in Palmetto Bay, FL
Dinner Key Marina in Coconut Grove, FL

If you don’t have your own car, then we suggest staying in a location that’s closest to the departure location of your excursion and take public transportation or a mobility service provider like Uber or Lyft.

The Homestead Trolley offers free transportation to Biscayne National Park and Everglades National Park please see link to see the Trolley schedule and stop locations.

ADA Service animals (any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability) are allowed on the Heritage of Biscayne excursion. This does not include Emotional Support Animals.

If you bring your pet to Biscayne National Park, please protect them, others, wildlife, and park resources by abiding by these regulations.

• Pets are allowed on the grounds at Convoy Point, they must be always kept on a leash no longer than 6 feet and under control.
• Do not leave pet unattended while tied to picnic tables, trees, or other stationary objects.
• Do not leave pets inside vehicles. Even if the window is cracked open, temperatures inside can rise quickly even on cooler days.
• Pet excrement must be immediately collected and disposed of in the nearest trash can.
• They are not allowed inside the Dante Fascell Visitor Center.

We can’t guarantee how much wildlife you’ll see, but some things that you might encounter are:

• Marine life: hundreds of species of fish, coral reefs, sea sponges, baby sharks, turtles, jelly fish, manatees, and dolphins
• Birds: Ospreys, Herons, Pelicans, and more

Our institutes want everyone to be safe and comfortable on our trips, so we put age limits to control fatigue and ability to do the activity.

• Jones Lagoon Paddle and Snorkel and Paddle Eco-Adventure is 12 and older because the paddle length is at least a mile, and a half and guest must keep up with each other on this tour for everyone to go smoothly. Private bookings can have ages of 8 and older and the child must use a double kayak with an adult.
• Small Group Snorkel, Snorkel and Island Visit from Coconut Grove, and the Sailing trip age is 8 and older for safety reasons because of the size of group going out, we request for children younger than 8 to be in private trips so the captain and staff can focus on the child and your family in an intimate way.
• Paddle the Mangroves and Seagrass Meadows is 6 and older, with children who are 6-11 years old being with an adult in a double kayak.

Life vests are provided on all trips. If you’re snorkeling, you will be given a snorkel vest.

• Floatation devices are given on request such as pool noodles.
• Snorkeling equipment is available for rent during check-out or on the day of your excursion at our store.
  • Snorkeling Bundle (Masks, Fins, Snorkel) $16
  • Mask $5
  • Fins $6
  • Snorkels $5
  • Shorty Wetsuits $10

The captain makes the decision on snorkeling locations the day of the trip. Snorkel locations are dependent on weather conditions and captains’ choice for a better snorkeling experience. Based on weather, including rain, currents, and wind; the snorkel trip could go to either reefs, mangroves, or shipwreck locations. On days with bad weather, an island visit could replace a snorkel location. Once you book and receive an email confirmation, you will be given the captain’s phone line to ask questions about the location of your trip.

Yes, you may still sit on the boat while your family snorkels, but you would still have to pay the full price of a ticket even if you aren’t doing the activity.