Licensing, Insurance and Safety on Every Leonida Tours Departure

Florida's waters are genuinely dangerous, and a boat trip is the part of this job where being careful is not optional. This page is the licence and safety information, written out plainly.

Licensing

• Tour operator: Leonida Tours operates under a Florida commercial tour operator licence. Our licence number is on every tour confirmation and on every invoice.
• Vessels: every boat we operate is US Coast Guard documented and carries the required safety equipment: life jackets for every passenger and crew member, flares, a first aid kit, an EPIRB or equivalent, a VHF radio and a working anchor with adequate rode.
• Drivers: our minibus drivers hold Florida CDL licences with passenger endorsements, and every driver is checked against the national driving record and our own reference list.
• Airboats: our airboat operator is licensed for Everglades sightseeing, and the boats are inspected annually by the manufacturer and by the National Park Service concession requirements.

Insurance

You are covered while you are on the tour, including on the transport to and from the meeting point. If you are bringing your own child car seat, tell us and we will confirm we can fit it in the vehicle you will be in.

The guides

• First aid: every guide holds a current first aid and CPR certification. On the water tours, every captain holds the USCG captain's licence.
• Radio and float plan: before every departure the captain files a float plan with the coast guard, naming the vessel, the route and the number of people aboard.
• Headcounts: we count you on and off the vessel. It sounds basic, and it is the single most important habit on the water.
• Weather limits: each vessel has a documented wind and sea limit. If the forecast exceeds it, the trip does not run, regardless of how good the day looks from the shore.

On the water

Three rules that apply to every boat tour, and they are the reason we cancel so readily.

1. Life jackets. There is a jacket for every person and every child on board, and the crew will tell you when to wear yours. On any rough crossing or when the captain calls it, you wear it, and it stays on.
2. Stay seated and hold on. The vessel moves, and it stops suddenly. The worst injuries we see are people standing up to take a photograph.
3. Keep arms and legs inside. Not one arm over the side, not one foot out, not for a second, not for a photograph.

The Gulf and the Atlantic around the Keys carry real tidal currents, and the weather can change in under an hour in any month. None of this is dramatic or unusual. It is simply why the operator you book should be able to answer the next question clearly.

Three questions worth asking any operator

1. What is your wind limit, and what happens when you hit it? The answer should be a specific number and a specific action. An operator who cannot give you a number is guessing.
2. Are there life jackets in child sizes, and how are they fitted? Not what sizes you have, but how they are fitted and by whom.
3. Who is the captain, and what licence do they hold? On a passenger vessel that should be a USCG captain's licence, and you should be able to see it.