Croc Encounters

Address:	8703 Bowles Rd, Tampa, FL 33637, USA
Phone:	+1 813-217-4400
Site:	crocencounters.com
Rating:	3.7
Working:	8AM–8PM 8AM–8PM 8AM–8PM 8AM–8PM 8AM–8PM 8AM–8PM 8AM–8PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 7

Sam Gray

This was by far the most horrific scene of an animal habitat that Ive ever encountered. I took myself,my mom, my sister and three kids and all of us were sick to our stomachs while we we were there and after we left. Its sad when a 5 year old says wow poor animals. And its even sadder when two 10 years ask if theres a number to call to report the animals living environment. My kids arent stupid and know how animals should be taken care of. I paid for the tour which was a $100 and that was suppose to be a 1.5 hr to 2 hr tour with tons of activities and basically we were there for exactly 20 mins from start to finish. Yes I had to leave due to the fact the vultures of at least a 100 were swarming with every move we made and I had an anxiety attack due to the grossly kept animals and all the disgusting vultures swarming. I get that vultures feed on dead things so I would love to know besides what you were feeding the poor Nile croc what would cause all the vultures. The only thing that was offered for the kids to touch was an alligator snapping turtle and I wouldnt allow them to do that due to the fact I know and so do my kids what a snapping can do. Then you have one employee or volunteer telling the other one your not suppose to be doing that so that makes you feel real uncomfortable. Then they led us through an area where theres a hole in the walk way, if thats not a hazard Im not sure what is. I usually dont write reviews but the fact after the horrific experience we had you still charged us for a tour and that was a 100 dollars. And by the way what you are advertising on your website comes no where close to what you experience. I will be contacting whatever agencies I need to make sure you are held to the standard of providing a safe haven for animals of need. And the poor turtles I wont even address that situation. The kids were horrified by that alone and that was our first stop on the so called behind the scenes tour. And by the way that was one of the 10 years 11th birthday present.

Jennifer D

Horrible, waste of money and time. If you want to go see an educational, clean, well kept facility with animals, then visit the zoo or aquarium instead. You could also travel to the various nature parks around this area and see wildlife up close and personal such as Circle B in Lakeland or Myakka State Park in Sarasota. This place looks like a run down trailer park with reptiles kept out back in tiny enclosures not even large enough for them to be in. Plants/landscaping is overgrown, mud everywhere. Do not waste your time or money going here. We love animals/nature and visit many attractions all over Florida. This is definitely one of the worst we have ever attended. The only reason we went is because we saw an article about it inside of a local paper. We visited their website and the website makes it look 100% better than it really is. Also, while walking on their "wooden boardwalk", a guest in our party stepped right through one of the boards because they were all rotten. I am not sure how this place is even allowed to operate in such conditions.

Raquel Vergara

Apparently these people spend too much time with these reptiles and dont know how to interact with humans. After the community I live in scheduled a live interaction from Crocs Encounter, a male along with a younger female and two little girls. They showed up 40 minutes late! Due to weather we had to change our locations in which my two children with about 5 others were not able to sit directly infront of him. They began bringing up kids in groups of 5 to touch them.. after 4 sets of kids I asked the male if we should relocate the kids not acknowledged, he snarled with a remark indicating he will get to them when he does.. he proceeded to call 3 more set of kids making sure to make eye contact with me after not calling any of the side kids. At this point we got up and left a long with about 6 other families that felt he didnt deserve our time. I talked to the person in charge of putting it all together to let her know the situation which she already acknowledged.

William Labrit

By far the best animal sanctuary in the whole Tampa Bay Area. All of their animals enclosures are natural and the animals have plenty of room to move around. They have awesome animals that make great photo opportunities! They are run by only volunteers who all make their best effort and seem to work great together as a team. When I arrived today, I was greeted by a nice young lady and her husband who gave a great tour together. The feeding show with Amos, their biggest alligator, is a must see for everyone! I also got to hold a baby alligator which was wonderful and I will remember that for the rest of my life! I think it is awesome that they rescue these alligators nationwide and also give nuisance alligators a home. If you and your family would like to see some cool animals, go visit them for a day! They could definitely use your donation

Rachel Lamanati

The croc encounters were at crews lake park today and the very large alligator was kept in a small enclosure with screaming, running children and although the alligators mouth was kept shut, any time he attempted to move the keeper would stand in his way and not let the alligator move from his spot. Also the baby alligator was handled by his child or some very young child who obviously couldnt properly handle the baby alligator because she was dragging it around on a leash and holding him down for other kids to pet and just not gentle at all. The little girl wasnt being supervised either so this company has no care for the wildlife they have, considering they were both mistreated. As an animal lover, I was very distraught to see this. I hope this isnt a regular occurrence.

Darrel Wanamaker

Took the 4 yr old grandson last Saturday and he had a blast! All he talks about now is how he got to touch a turtle and a little baby gator! This is an awesome little place just a couple miles from the fairgrounds. Its not a big fancy corporate place, its a small family and volunteer ran place that is perfect for a quick outing with your kids and very affordable. It was only $5 when we went. All the staff were very friendly and informative. You can tell they are all there because they truly care about the animals. So if you would like to see all kinds and sizes of gators and crocs and turtles and iguanas etc.. etc.. I would highly recommend Croc Encounters!!

Louise Harlan

It was a great day to see animals of this magnitude. Alligators, crocodiles, tortoise and turtles. I was able to hold a 2 yr old baby gator, wow what a thrill! Our guide was very informative and passionate about the work he has been so gifted to do. Theres a lot of work to be done, so many unfinished projects. I didnt like the fact our guide chewed tobacco and randomly spit wherever, this couldnt be healthy for the animals. Im looking forward to seeing the finished product, I know the animals will be too. Itll also be great to purchase souvenirs as a memory of the experience, which would also produce revenue for the upkeep of the facilities!