Big Bus New York - Premium Tour

Shearwater is a classic Newport-style schooner yacht, only recently recognized as a national landmark in 2009. The vessel was built by Rice Brother Corporation in East Boothbay, Maine, back in a time when yachting was a rare combination of elegance and adventure; Rice Bros. were well known for building luxury pleasure yachts and produced some 4,000 hulls over a period of 64 years. The keel was laid down on January 4, 1929 and a news clip from the Boothbay Register reflects alongside a photograph "Tyler Hodgon at the old Tide Mill is getting out timbers for the schooner to be built at Rice’s. Vessel to be built of native white oak." Traditionally built from hand-hewn native white oak, she was the last boat to be constructed at that yard - likely due to the ensuing Great Depression brought on by the Stock Market Crash that occurred later that autumn. East Boothbay was a small coastal town with shipbuilding being its only industry. About 40 workmen were employed for the construction of SHEARWATER. Her designer Theodore Donald Wells was born in Hudson Falls, N Y on October 22, 1875. He was a naval architect and marine engineer, a member of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers and also the Institute of Naval Architects London. His education included post-graduate work at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. He began his career as a member of the firm Herreshoff and Wells, N. Y. City in 1902. Working with Herreshoff no doubt had an influence on his designs, which bear similarities to many of the famous Herreshoff designed yachts of that time. From 1903 to 1907 he worked for Wintringham and Wells and then began practicing his profession under his own name. Mr. Wells joined the Navy Department in March 1917 and became Superintending Constructor of the Baltimore District U. S. N. Notable yachts designed and constructed under his supervision are "Viking" a 272 foot steel motor yacht built for George F. Baker in 1929 by Newport News and "Karina" a three masted schooner built for Robert E. Tod in 1932 by Staten Island Shipbuilding. Mr. Tod was a well-known offshore yachtsman as was his former yacht ‘Thistle", which competed in the Emperors Cup ocean race. SHEARWATER was launched on May 4, 1929 and photographs in the Boothbay Register reflect her graceful and elegant lines. Her first Captain, Leon Esterbrook of Edgarton, MA, arrived to take charge of the fitting out. Her owner Charles E Dunlap was a member of the Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club, Oyster Bay, NY and this became SHEARWATER’s first homeport after her completion in late September 1929. It was there in Oyster Bay that she first started to thrill those who sailed in luxury aboard her and those who were privileged to crew her on race day. Since her launching and documentation in Lloyd’s Register of American Yachts in 1929, she has had a colorful history and has been carefully maintained and restored to standards that few contemporary vessels are able to match and is truly a piece of American Maritime History. On November 7, 1942 SHEARWATER was requisitioned by the War Shipping Administration and became a member of The United States Coast Guard’s Coastal Picket Patrol during World War Two. She was painted gray and bore the numbers CG67004. Based at Little Creek, Virginia she patrolled the waters east of the Chesapeake Bay entrance and south towards Cape Hatteras. Her skipper during that period reflected on how they used their free time while out on submarine patrol to race against other yachts and in his own words "sailed in tandem with the schooner Lord Jim, racing in and out of port, up and down the east coast and winning." She was designed and built as a gaff rigged schooner but during this period was changed to a Marconi rig. She carries over 2,550 square feet while under full sail. A true veteran world cruiser, she first transited the Panama Canal in July 1946 and in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s completed a two and a half-year global circumnavigation. In December 1971 Mrs. John B. Thayer of Rosemont, wife of a former trustee and treasurer, donated SHEARWATER to the University of Pennsylvania’s Institute of Environmental Medicine. She was used by the university as a laboratory for research on physiological responses to the stresses of living and working underwater. Captained by James Shearson, she was fitted with compressors, generators, monitoring instruments and a small decompression chamber. She has participated in many Ancient Mariner and Classic yacht races in U S waters as well as racing in the Bay of Islands in New Zealand while on her circumnavigation in the early 1980’s. It is rumored she was once dismasted in the famous Newport to Bermuda race. She was last raced by the current owners in San Diego in May 1995 in the American Schooner Cup and finished second overall. She entered the yacht charter industry in 1966 whilst on the West Coast sailing to the Channel Islands and was again used to generate income to keep her shipshape while owned by the University of Pennsylvania. During the chartering industry’s infancy in the Caribbean, SHEARWATER was known as the " Queen of the Fleet". Today she continues this tradition offering the most unique sailing experience and has passed rigid Coast Guard inspections and can carry up to 49 passengers. We welcome you to join us for an excellent opportunity to experience the ambiance of a vintage sailing vessel while delighting in the splendors of The Manhattan sky-line, the Statue of Liberty or the beauty of the oceans beyond.

Your Florida Master Naturalist guide and US Coast Guard Captain will introduce you to the area's unique ecosystems, its history and its culture. Your final destination will be a remote, uninhabited island like Shell Key, Kice Island, Panther Key, Morgan Key or, may be, where the Gulf of Mexico waters are claiming the Dome Houses of Cape Romano. Tour includes: Boating Eco Tour Kayaking Eco Tour Walking Eco Tour ​Limited to 6 Guests per tour Great for all Ages. No experience needed  3 ½ Hour Educational Tour (with breaks)

Round Trip transportation is included on this authentic Floridian adventure!  Hop aboard an airboat and travel deep into 100,000 acres of protected swamps, marshes and rivers that make up the Central Florida Everglades. On this 60 minute tour you will get an in depth look at the gators, birds, eagles, trees and plants that make up our beautiful wetlands. This is Natural Florida and Wild Florida at its best! We guarantee you won’t see any development, homes, or signs of human life. Come see how good it feels to be in the middle of nowhere.     By now you have worked up quite the appetite and you will be able to enjoy a freshly prepared BBQ lunch including pulled pork, chicken, cheeseburgers and much more.  After you have licked your fingers clean you will be able to take your adventure to the Wild Florida Wildlife Park where you will see over 100 different species of animals including both native and exotic animals.  On this self-guide tour you will see sloths, lemurs, porcupines, and we can’t forget… huge alligators that you can feed!  Enjoy an animal show and learn about these amazing animals and even get your picture taken holding an alligator.  This will be an adventure you will never forget!  Guests should bring camera and bug spray. DRESS CODE: Casual & cool. You may want to bring a poncho as sometimes you can get a little wet on the airboat.     

Flightlinez Bootleg Canyon is an amazing way to enjoy the surroundings just 30 minutes off the strip. You'll start with a safety class followed by a scenic van ride up the Red Mountains. Next you'll have a combination of some minor hiking and 4 separate flightlines covering over 1.5 miles of canyon, while you soar at up to 60 mph. Located in beautiful Boulder City, NV enjoy seeing the Eldorado Valley, Lake Mead, the new bypass bridge and the Las Vegas strip from 3800 feet above sea level. Flightlinez have a completely different system than your average zipline. They have engineered the safest system and equipment to give our guests a complete feeling of security. The guides are professional, educated, personable and always ready to fly. Tour times vary based on the season change.  Important information: You must have closed toe shoes to take part You must weigh at least 75lbs You cannot weigh more than 250lbs Sunglasses recommended Water is provided Gratuity is not included You will be weighed at the office. As per Flightlinez Terms and Conditions refunds are not given if guests are overweight.

Must be booked 24 hours in advance. For ages 12 and up. Maximum 4 people per party. As a keeper for a day you will help with everything from preparing diets, feeding our animals, as well as training and enrichment with our exotic animals. If you were ever interested in a career working with animals this is your chance to experience it!

A trip on one of Barcelona's iconic pleasure boats, the 'Golondrinas', is one of the most authentic visitor experiences. You'll have a lot of fun as you sail out of the old harbour, the Port Vell and along the Barcelona coastline, and enjoy unusual, attractive views with a Mediterranean flavour with the sea breeze in your hair. Climb aboard this iconic boat! The Golondrinas offer you two unique trips from the Port Vell. The first, Barcelona Port, is a 40-minute tour which will take you to Barcelona harbour where you'll see its facilities and enjoy views of the north of the city. Soak up the sun's rays and let the breeze caress you as you watch the World Trade Center, the Porta d'Europa bridge, the International Cruise Terminal, the Llevant and Ponent quays, the leisure marina Nova Bocana, the fishing port and clock tower pass by.