More About Us

---

Hey y’all! 

I am Ellie, my husband, the captain of this ship, is James. We’ve got three kiddos between us; a grown boy who we’d love to have come captain for us one day *wink, wink* and two young girls who, if given the chance, would spend their days on the water! We recently welcomed our Sweet Bee to the family, our beautiful GrandPrincess! James Sr. Helps hold everything together by jumping in and helping out in whatever way possible. Our nephew also helps out with the boats with we've got some work or cleaning to do on them. Maybe one day he'll help captain as well!

Being on the boats and in the water is something we love to do and offers us awesome family time away from electronics and civilization! You may think this a crazy statement, but an airboat ride along the river is a perfect cure for a rough day or a stressed out soul. 

Captain James has grown up around airboats, spending time at camps in the Everglades as a boy, learning to drive them at a young age and helping to repair and rebuild numerous old boats over the years. James holds his state approved captain’s license as well the the airboat endorsement stamp, is CPR certified and has extensive driving time as an airboat driver. When he’s not riding and sliding through the waters (and sometimes on dry land), James is getting a view of the river while working as an EMS helicopter pilot. His 25+ years flying (helicopters and fixed-wing) has taught him quite a bit about the dynamics, pitch, ‘steering’ and overall running/maintaining of an airboat.  

While James is taking care of the maintenance and captaining of adventures, I handle behind the scenes business stuff, the kiddos and a small, home business called The Studio. I am working on party planning, event coordinating, creating custom shirts, mugs, bags, party invites and supplies, etc ... 

While we are called the ‘Green Boat Tour Company’, you’ll see we also spend quite a bit of time on a beautiful looking blue boat! Don’t let that bit of a smaller size fool you, she’s a beast! Our blue boat allows for smaller groups and some extra sliding with awesome power coming from an LS3 motor! Both our boats are amazing machines, built by the fantastic people at Floral City Airboats. Though we have a blue boat as well, we decided to name our company the Green Boat Tour Company because that’s the boat people remember. That beauty stands out on the water, as well as while we’re driving down the road! We’ve heard numerous times from people all over about “the green boat...”. It’s a name and color that sticks with people, so we decided to use that as our company name! 

Our goal is take our clients out for a fun experience on an airboat and offer opportunities to see/enjoy the beauty of our area from a different perspective. We are family oriented and love being able to take young airboaters out for a new adventure! Airboating and time on the water is for EVERYONE! Take a guys trip, girls trip, bring family from out of state, bring the kids for a family outing, come by yourself to clear your mind... There’s so much more to the river than what you see while driving over the harbor or even cruising around in your personal boat. There are so many different options open to our clients for rides & extras and we’ll do our best to keep putting info out there. If there is ever anything you’re wanting or wondering about, please feel free to reach out to us so we can work to make your airboating dream come true! 

Aside from the standard 1-hour ride, some other things we offer and can/will do for you include but are not limited to:
~We offer shorter rides (30 minutes) for those who are unsure about airboating, have younger kids you think may not last longer or for those times you want to squeeze in a short ride to an already busy schedule.
~We offer ‘Captain in Training’ sessions for those who want to experience driving an airboat, give yourself a challenge, who would like to learn how to fully drive an airboat or maybe you’re looking for a unique gift idea for someone who might enjoy giving it a try!
~Would you like to head to the lake instead of the river? We enjoy spending time on Lake Istokpoga in Sebring, where there are awesome lily pads, cool airboat trails through saw grass & mud, beautiful scenery and bit of a change from the river views. Be sure to check out our photos from Lake Istokpoga! This is a specialty drive for us so prices will vary. Please contact us if this is a ride you’re interested in.
~If you’d like to spend some time cooking out along the river while the kids splash around and play in the sand, we can arrange half (3 hours) or full days (6 hours). This is a great time to spend with family and friends without the distractions we deal with on a daily basis. This is also a unique way to hold a birthday party, work meeting, family gathering, etc.
~If you’re looking for a private, unique or a different option than your friends for a wedding, elopement or vow renewal, let us plan something small, intimate and special for you along the river!
~Is it time for family pictures & you want to change up the typical woods or beach photos? Let us work with your photographer or we’ll hook up with our amazing photographer, Courtney Nicole Photography, to get some photos along the river, at the docks, on the boat, etc.
~Green Boat Tour Company is willing to offer rides/gift certificates as raffle winnings for charity events, auctions, etc. Please contact us if you have an event you’d like us to donate to. 

~Be sure to watch for us to pop up at locations and events to show off our beautiful, green machine!
~Green Boat Tour Company is community oriented and committed to helping during natural disasters, flooding and other needs. Please reach out to us if you are in need of airboat services due to flooding issues.