This was the highlight of me and my daughters trip. We got there about 5 minutes before they closed and Chase, the Adventure Guide, was very cool and welcomed us to enjoy one of their experiences We took a twin Kayak out and it was my daughters first time kayaking. Chase made sure she was secure with a life jacket, and even though I didnt need one, encouraged me to have one as safety is always the best route. He pointed us in the proper direction of the Congress Bridge so that we can see the Austin bats fly at sunset. It was amazing ️My daughter cant stop talking about how cool it was that she got to Kayak and see Bats . Thank you capital cruises for making this a memory of a lifetime!

We enjoyed our second experience with Capital Cruises this weekend. We rented a duffy boat on Friday evening a long with one of the meals from the Hyatt Regency. The overall experience was just as wonderful this time as it was the last. The duffy boats drive almost like a golf cart and are very easy to handle when trying to have a relaxing evening. With just the two of us we had plenty of room to sit back and relax.The braised beef pasta we had for dinner was of a very nice quality. The only complaint if any was there was no bread with the pasta, but it really wasnt necessary. I would almost think this is purposeful so you dont feed the ducks on the lake, but I could be wrong. Overall the meal was great and very well flavored.If you get the evening cruise at sunset, then you can position yourself just east of the Congress bridge to see the bats fly out at sunset. Its a very interesting experience and well worth having a boat or a kayak out on the water to experience it.Definitely give Capital Cruises your business if youre looking for a nice evening in Austin or a nice afternoon if the sun isnt being a scorcher!

Really cool. Even if youve lived here for a while its still a great experience. The tour guide is informative and chill. You wont regret booking this. They take you to see the sunset, under several bridges, to a pic opportunity with the skyline in the bckg, then you get to see the bats. I bet you learn something even if youre a local!

We caught the last tour of the season and it did not disappoint. The tour guide was informative about the buildings, history and nearby attractions. Overall a good experience. I would recommend it to anyone visiting Austin!

Five stars goes to our tour guide Leah. She was absolutely amazing. Her humor was great and her knowledge was very informative. The problem I had was with the parking. We spent 15 mins finding parking where we then ended up having to pay $18 for parking in the Hyatt garage cause if we were late we would lose our spots and not get a refund. A little info about where you could park would be great to put in the website. When we tried to call on our way to the tour no one answered cause we couldn’t even find the location in the beginning either. There’s no signage. So great tour. Well worth it but maybe get all the info beforehand if you’ve never been. It can be a little confusing.

Captain Michael was the best! My husband and I booked this wanting to see the bats, and our experience was so much more than we thought it would be. Captain Mike explained some fun anecdotes, played wicked tunes, and the boat ride itself was super serene right at sunset. Definitely a must do when you’re visiting Austin - thanks for the great time!

My room mate and i went on the sunset bat tore wich was wonderful experiance. We are both blind and vission impaired wich the tore guide gave a great description of everything on the tore. He was extremly friendly, helpful and energetic you can tell he love his job and wants guests to enjoy there experience. You can here the bats also wich is cool. Not a bad price if you something fun to do that normally cant do unless your in austin. If you visit you should take this tore

We LOVED this cruise. Beck, our guide, was informative and funny. We saw BATS, lots of them. You should definitely go. It’s sad that Covid is limiting the number of passengers but on the other hand, it was also nice having the elbow room.

A magical evening - thanks Brittany! We had the loveliest kayak night, gorgeous weather, beautiful sunset, amazing bat watching, and lots of interesting info from our tour guide. A very memorable experience, so fortunate that it all fell into place with perfection.

45 minutes left to kayak. Group of 8. They insisted on charging us for 2 hours. I dont think this is good business practice and left 8 customers with a very salty taste in our mouths. I usually just write positive reviews but I cannot agree with this one and feel compelled to speak. I understand it is policy, but my point is that this policy sucks. I ended booking with the company right across the lake, and it was a much more legit company that was super professional with an even better price, and no policies that werent fair. We went for one hour on 4 kayaks and had an amazing time across the lake and they have much newer cleaner equipment. Not the best price here at Capital, definitely not the best policies and experience. I hate leaving bad reviews, but sorry I got to keep it real for other customers to make their best choice!

*Covid review* Theyre open and taking reservations for several boats to rent. Wear a mask when boarding and docking, its not necessary when you on the lake. The team helps with instructions for a designated captain in your group. Easy to work with and book through. Website has great FAQs to help. We parked at the Hyatt, $10 until midnight. Lake was amazing to see the bats during sunset . Have fun, be safe, enjoy.

Bat boat tour sunset 10/16/2020.Brittany was our guide and she was great. I am in Austin for a work thang and brought my awesome niece and her friend. We all enjoyed it. Brittany’s attitude, “jokes” and love of Austin really turned a very bad day, for me, into a better evening.We really highly recommend Capital Cruises’ bat tour and other fun looking activities but don’t be cheap like me, tip your tour guides and attendants.Ps sorry all I had were $100 bills.

I love capital cruises. This is the finest rental dock in Austin. The prices are the best in the city for paddle boarding. The electric boats are also amazing, but they require a reservation.

Georgia was an amazing captain. A wonderful day on the lake, lots of very cool information and music. In the world we live in lately, we were so thankful to be able to get out and enjoy the tour. The entire experience was perfect, and the team took wonderful care of all of us in the time of COVID and social distancing. Without a doubt the sort of local business we all need to enjoy and support. Thank you all for exceeding expectations. The bat tour is next!

This was a a wonderful cruise. Our guide was very informative. Beautiful Austin skyline on one side and the park on the other side. Great to view bats under the bridge (unfortunately January is not month for Bat viewing since most of them fly to Mexico). Reservation highly recommended as tours can get full quickly.

Alex was excellent and sooooo funny. We learned so much about town lake and bats! Worth the time and small amount of money.

Georgia is an Awesome Tour Guide! Went all the way down pass Mopac bridge and she described many of Austins buildings and history..The finale was seeing the bats come out from Congress Bridge! She knew exactly where to go and the perfect time!

We are visiting and decided to do the boat tour instead of just watching from the bridge. We are glad we did it as it was very informative. We learned way more than I thought we would. Our boat Captain was very knowledgeable about the bats and the history of Austin. I definitely recommend Capital Cruises!

BEST PRICES OF ALL PLACES TO RENT THE BEST KAYAKS!!! I HIGHLY recommend! Near great sites, and can check out the famous Austin Bat Bridge! Staff is chill! Thank yall!!

We did the kayak bat viewing tour. Our tour guide Josh was great. He was very knowledgeable about the bats and the city. It was a nice peaceful tour. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a great view of the bats as well as learn about them.

Took the Bat Watching Cruise. It was great weather and the operator of our boat was informative and entertaining. I really enjoyed the whole cruise in Lady Bird Lake.

How is this only $12?? What a steal! We had a great time, definitely plan to do it again.

My wife and I had an amazing time on the tour going to see the bats. Brittany was great and very knowledgeable about both the city and the bats. Definitely recommend if you want to have the best possible bat viewing experience

My best friend from Michigan was visiting. Our tour guide Leah was amazing, friendly, and informative. We had an amazing time.

Be sure to get on the boat with Leia. She is the best!

Great evening on Lady Bird Lake with very informative guide and perfect view of Mexican Free Tail Bats coming out from Congress Avenue bridge. Highly recommend as the best way to see the bats and learn about them as well.

Weve lived in the city for years but never been on the bat cruise. This was the perfect summer activity for the kids and was fun and informative enough for adults and our guide Georgia was awesome!

Brittany was awesome on our sunset bat cruise. We learned a lot about bats and the city of Austin. It was such an amazing experience and I would definitely recommend.

Totally doable while maintaining social distancing. The chairs are spaced on the boats. It was a fantastic experience. Thanks for being open. Our out of town guests were excited to do something in Austin. It never disappoints.

Wow! An amazing experience. Our captain Georgia knew so much about the landmarks and had such a love for the beautiful bats we saw. Calm waters, amazing sunset, really romantic time for my boyfriend and I. We will definitely be back

Great tour. Very good COVID measured to keep everyone safe during the tour. Our guide was awesome and shared knowledge about the city and the bats.

No bats, just bat facts. We booked this cruise expecting to see bats but this is the beginning of their migratory season. The cruise itself was beautiful as the sunset on the Austin Skyline. The 4/5 stars is due to the cruise being labeled as a bat sightseeing trip and not a sunset cruise. If you’re looking to see Austin from the water I recommend you take the trip and give yourself plenty of time to get there during rush hour traffic.

I worked an event on one of their cruises a few Sundays ago - SO MUCH FUN! Live DJ, and rooftop and cabin downstairs. Get quite a long cruise down the lake and back and got to see everyone paddleboarding and everyone enjoying the lake...was amazing and fun especially for me just working it! I cant wait to go after i purchase a ticket. Highly recommend! So much fun and worth it!

Highly recommend the Duffy boat for a fun, relaxing cruise around the lake. Had such a great time on this boat and saw Austin in a new light. Missing one star because unfortunately the stereo to hook up your phone was not working!

Had a great time with my wife and children on this bat viewing excursion. We had fun, and yes, we saw bats, lots of them!Our tour guide Georgia was awesome. She shared so much info about the city, and her passion was authentic Austin, not some imitator looking for a pay check. She even suggested some local restaurants for us to try after the tour.I suggest you have reasonable expectations during this outing, the bats do what they want to do when they want to do it. There was one customer with the most sour of attitudes, first off she was about the size of the boat, and her poor husband looked ashamed of her obnoxiousness. Poor guy.We saw this swan before the sun went down. Had a great time.(Edit typo)

Our guide was fantastic, very knowledgeable about the bat colony and the history of Austin. The hour sunset and bat watching tour was a great value and the perfect way to see downtown and the bats. Parking is limited.

Our tour guide was pretty cool!! He was good

Had an amazing time watching the bats under the bridge on the boat the crew was very friendly they made us feel very comfortable were very funny and very informative I highly recommend this cruise.

We went on a capital cruise on a whim. It was a nice way to pass some time while enjoying the sites from Lady Bird Lake (or Towne Lake) the captain was informative, funny and safe with us on board. It was chilly, even chillier on the water so bundle up when its mid January.Beautiful views of the Austin sky line and information of the Colorado Dam system. I recommend this for visitors, entertaining guests and we plan to take a bat tour cruise this summer.

Very bad . ruined my sons day. He is only 9 years old and was with me. It was gonna be his first time in a boat on the water. I called yesterday to see what was needed. Not once was i told credit card only.i only have cash.exact cash. I got a ride down there took 1 hour to get there and we were rudely denied...i wont be back ever....that was my first and last attempt. Something needs to be done about this......

Very nice tour. Our guide was excellent and the bat show was even more incredible. We did it mid August which they said was peak season, so there were millions of bats. Im typically leery of bats but this was not overwhelming. I would do it again.

Loved our host Leah! Very fun and information for people who dont live in Austin! Went at a perfect time of year and they are dealing with covid restrictions very well! Great family activity!

Unique way to see the city scape and the bats. Would highly recommend this company for the easy booking process, great value for the experience, and funny/friendly tour guide. It’s an hour on the water and BYOB, I’m so glad we did this while in town!

This is our 3rd time on the bat tour and we highlyrecommend it! Leia was a great guide tonight!

Great times, so tranquil, the boat crew were really nice and hospitable.

Very knowledgeable staff! Don’t miss this tour, if not for the bats, which may or may not cooperate in May or June, then for the local history of Austin. Once you check in, you can go grab a drink at the hotel bar and get it in a plastic cup to go.

Decent food nice romantic catered pleasure cruise. Will definitely go again.

Had a great time, must do again!

I did one of the bat watching tours with my parents when they were visiting for a long weekend and we had a great time with Capt Raynard (this may or may not be how you spell his name).We left with plenty of sunlight still so he took us down the river and told us about the various downtown buildings. We even caught the sunset. At the end, we made it by the Congress St bridge where we saw the bats fly out. We had the best view of the bats from our boat! The docks are behind the Hyatt Downtown hotel. The hotel has parking, and you just walk around to the back.I have some friends visiting next month and will definitely do the tour with them again!

It was my first time on this cruise and I truly enjoyed it. A co-worker that works with me at KAZI 88.7 FM Joshua Hunt was getting married that day.

I highly recommend this cruise to anyone wanting to watch the bats fly out at sunset! Our guide, Beck, was amazing!

Or group did the bat seeing tour at dusk. It included a leisurely cruise up the river to take in a few sights. The tour guide provided a lot of great information about the city and specific points of interest. The Congress Bridge bats were quite a sight to behold, though a bit dark at this time of year to really get the best view. All around great experience.

Captain Brittany was our guide for the bat-watching cruise. She was knowledgeable and energetic and made the cruise informative and fun. The cruise was totally worth the price and we were fortunate to be there during the Bat Festival.They let you bring beverages (and hats/umbrellas) on the boat and that would have been nice. Probably also some wet-wipes in case of stray guano. Actually, Brittany was super-skilled and kept us out of the path of most of the poop.

I liked the fact that the guide toured the river and gave facts about the city and bats, he did not stay just at the bridge like other boats. Amazing to see this natural event specially from the river

Beck was incredibly informative and funny! Could not have chosen a better company to go with!! The bats were an incredible sight, really worth going, plus we saw a generous amount of other birds too.

Very good tour and lots of good info on the tour didnt get to see many bats, but it was unseasonably cold. They warned us before we paid the chances of seeing bats, which was nice.

A great way to see the lake, city, and bats! Very entertaining and knowledgeable guide. Highly recommended activity on summer night in Austin

Took one of the boat tours, local resident, Georgia the guide was so cute and knowledgeable of the area. Lots of information of history and current events, and things to see.

Great tour guide and great experience! Every tour guide is different and ours had a lot of fun facts and knowledge about the bats and the surrounding area. Amazing view of the bats especially during the warmer months when they venture out further. Ill definitely be going again soon!

Had my best experience in Austin with the bat cruise. I enjoyed the cruise, the sunset, the bats, and there’s even a great DJ on the boat. Total fun.

We had a great time. The kids working there are very helpful.

Great times!!! Good Austin food with local adult beverages! Awesome music playing and great company. Definitely a good time just treading up and down the lake. Good way to relax on a Sunday Funday!

Great way to enjoy the Colorado River.

We went on the bat tour with Georgia and LOVED it!! It was one of our favorite activities during our trip to Austin!! We had been excited about it in advance, but it even exceeded our expectations. There was just something so incredible about seeing those million-plus bats streaming and streaming out from under the bridge, and learning the interesting facts about them and where they go and what they eat and how the mamas find their babies again each night. Nature is just so awesome, and this activity was SO COOL!!! And such a reasonable price!! We HIGHLY recommend it!!

Brittany was an amazing tour guide on our sunset cruise. Picture perfect January night on Lady Bird Lake and we even got to see the bats! Brittany brings a wealth of knowledge about the natural and quirky beauty that makes Austin unapologetically Austin. She really made the tour special for both visitors and locals, alike!

Had our wedding on Capital Cruises Pride & Joy II and it was perfect! We had guests of all ages and everybody had such a fun time on the boat. Thank you, Captain Georgia and crew for making our day the best!

Capital Cruises boat ride in Austin, Texas at dusk watching the Mexican Freetail bats fly out from under the Congress St. bridge.

Worth the money! Should definitely try this. Bat watching was what we took and we were happy to see bats. But theyre kinda smaller than I expected.

Friendly staff who got through a long kind of waiting customers fairly quickly. Did a good job of explaining their offerings and even gave us the option to swap from a canoe to one of their swan paddle boats if we wanted to. Very fun and relaxing (even though it is exercising paddling) with great city views everywhere.

We were part of a cruise this last Thursday for the Travis County Medical Society. It was a beautiful and pleasant evening and the crew made for such an enjoyable experience. The bats were an amazing sight and the cruise before and after gave us great views of the Austin skyline. August and September are the best months to see the bats so dont miss out. One word of advice: dont bother with trying to find free parking. Just park in the Hyatt garage and budget for the $21 parking fee.

Enjoyable cruise - great to see the city by night from the water. Good narration (although she had to be loud as there was no PA system). Too late in the year to see the bats (go in August, I’m told). Good value for the price.

I have been to Austin many times but this was my first experience watching the bats energe from the bridge. I am glad we decided to take the boat. It was affordable amd we got to go directly under the bridge to hear the bat and then right in front of the bridge to see them take off. It was a unique experience!

We took some out-of-town guests, and the cruise was a definite hit. Our captain and guide, a rare Austin native, was knowledgeable, funny, and enthusiastic. He answered all our questions patiently and thoroughly. The bats were amazing coming wave after wave! It was slightly cooler on the water and the views of Austin were impressive. I highly recommend.

Very knowledgeable staff on a good night to see the bats...We had fun!

Ive rented swan boats and the donut boat with my kids... The people and equipment are great. Happy to recommend them to anyone.

Handed us 1 inflatable mattress and then they ditched us in the middle of the water.. All because my autistic son Paul forgot the paddle.Left us stranded. Saved by Coastguard. Unreal. Cx

We didnt have a good time we had a Great time! Definitely doing this again.

Very knowledgeable guide, more than just a bat tour.

This was a really beautiful sunset Cruise. The Austin skyline is amazing. Our captain was very knowledgeable and funny. unfortunately, he kept putting the boat underneath the bridge where the bats live. This is the poop and pee zone! Bad enough to get this in your hair and on your clothes but it will be truly terrible to get this in your eyes.

Always a great time! Staff is super friendly and accommodating!

This is a great tour company. We went on the bat tour and were not dissapointed in it at all. Our guide was very knowledgeable about the city, Lady Bird Lake and surrounding area, as well as the city and buildings. My group was not sure what they got themselves into and as soon as the bats came streaming out from under the bridge they all had smiles and looks of wonder on their face. The trip was a success and nothing like we could ever do in our hometown. Certainly worth the money (it is so cheap for the time they take and the info they give you). Go with Capital cruises and you wont be unhappy!

The tour was so much fun and we enjoyed getting to see the bats fly from the South Congress Bridge. It has been a wet season in Austin and we are lucky to have taken the tour on a night where the bats actually flew. Our tour guide Georgia was very educated on the city of Austin and bats. The only complaint was the plastic chairs were uncomfortable. Besides that, it was a great tour! 10/10 recommend.

Fun night, friendly host, wish there were more seats for wait time, otherwise awesome!

Nice relaxing cruise to watch the bats.

Whenever I have out-of-town guests, I take them on a capital cruise. No better way of seeing the bats, the sunset and a dusky Austin skyline.

I took my four kids out on the bat tour. Definitely the best way to see the bats! Great views of the Austin skyline too. Loved it! And great price, too.

My family went on the Capital Cruises bat excursion, and it was an absolute blast! Rainer was a great captain and tour guide, giving us a ton of interesting insights about Austin and its history, in addition to some amazing facts about the bats. And the bats themselves were worth the wait!Its apparently been a wet summer, which means the bats are well-fed — which means they dont explode outward to quite the same extent they normally do. Trust me, it doesnt matter, it was still amazing to watch them! Definitely a must-do if you havent seen the bats in Austin yet, and its something my family will almost certainly do again.

The bat show was beyond what I had imagined.....totally amazing! The cruise guide helped make it a very enjoyable experience. He has an appealing personality and is very knowledgeable of the area.

We had such a great guide ( Captain Ryner ) we were told we would not see bats because its December but we saw a few. That made the trip for me. If you are thinking about it go!!! We learned a lot.

Cant go wrong boating Lady Bird Lake. Air conditioned 1st level.

Great tour with lots of interesting information, good bat watching and some information about downtown. Cruise lasted about an hour and they have different boats. Ours was basic cruise on plastic chairs, but the boat had a canopy which was nice to keep the sun off. Overall highly recommend!

I booked a private electric boat(Duffy) through Capital cruises for a Birthday surprise for my husband. It was quiet easy to call in and make a reservation and the person on the phone was very helpful. They gave me all the basic information and answered all my queries as well.Since It was a surprise, I got there earlier and my boat was ready. They helped me get onto the boat and allowed me to do some decor for bday that I had brought along. The Girl who assisted me in Filling the paper work and gave all the required information to operate the boat, was super sweet as well. The location is perfect, back side of Hyatt, so either you can use the hotel parking or you can park under the first street bridge. Once my husband arrived he was guided on how to use the boat along with the map of the lake and safety instruction.It was a fun ride and the boat was roomy, comfortable, had a nice long table so we were able to easily enjoy a meal on board. There are speakers in the boat and has AUX so we plugged in our phone and played our favorite music as well.The prices are reasonable as well. Their website offers almost all the information you want and even they offer a lot of add-ons for the boat. Though the quote generator on the website adds taxes over the per hour rate(which they dont charge).It would be good if they could have more flexible timings as the website offered all the time slots, but when I called to book they said they it would be tough to do it post 5:00 pm.(I wanted it from 4:00- 6:00 pm or 3:30 - 5:30 pm so that we could enjoy a bit of dusk as well)Anyways, would like to be back with some group of friends and would like to do it again.

They know the perfect time to see the bats and have you in a prime location to watch. Food is good but needs to be purchased separately from a nearby hotel. Worth it for an evening company outing.

Amazing tour. Only 10 bucks..so cheap... and nice guiding for an hour thank you Bruce for making nice trip

A little disappointed at first because we were not atop their LARGE cruiser. Felt like that was a tad bit misleading advertising. But, the pontoon boat we rode in was safe and our Tour Guide, Beck, was fun and informative! He got us a great view of the bats! We enjoyed watching the river of bats fly by for about 15 minutes.The boat ride before sunset was an hour. I felt meeting at the dock at 6:45pm would be sufficient rather that 6:30pm. Too long to wait to board. 4.8

Very informative tour. The guide was very knowledgeable of the area and did a great job getting us close the bridge to see the bats when they finally came out. Make sure you get to the hotel early as you have to park, pay to park, and then walk through the hotel to the back where the capital cruises company is located.

What a bargain. Great experience for people visiting from out of town, however dont bring Californians here as they tend to want to stay after cruising. Will be back!

Very nice and relaxed staff. Plenty of new equipment: paddleboards, kayaks, Swam boats and motor boats and large party barges for your event in the Lake or simply a tour.

Great little cruise. We got to see the best bat show of the season so far from the Congress Ave bridge. If you dont know, Austin is the summer home to the largest bat colony in the world. The captain was super knowledgeable about the bats and told us all about them. It was probably one of the coolest things I have seen in a long time. They parked the boat perfectly in Lady Bird lake and even pulled underneath so we could hear the stragglers. They also served great drinks and good fajitas!

Excellent company. The captain was so knowledgeable. It was a history of Austin much better than we expected. A fantastic experience.