Downtown Austin Sunset Kayak Tour with 1.5 Million Bats
Overview
Available languages
2 hours 30 minutes
Mobile ticket
Welcome to Austin's #1 Booked Experience.
This 2.5 hour kayaking trip through downtown is magical. We start by paddling the length of the Austin skyline during the golden hour, then stop to watch the sunset.
We then get into position for the best bat viewing and give a speech all about the bats just before they all fly out. We can usually time the bat flight perfectly so you have more time to explore the rest of the skyline.
On the way home, we encourage you to take your time and take a few breaks to watch the cities lights come to life when the skyscrapers turn on their lights.
Additional Info
Wheelchair accessible
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What To Expect
Congress Avenue Bridge Bat Watching
The Congress Ave bridge is home to 1.5 Million Mexican Free Tailed Bats. Come watch them from the best vantage point in the city - on a kayak in the middle of the river!
Austin
The entire kayak experience is paddling along the river going through downtown Austin. You can see the rapidly changing skyline 95% of the trip. You get the whole experience watching the sunset and then checking out the skyline after dark when the city lights come on.
What‘s Included
We provide the kayak, paddles, life jackets and lights. We also take high quality photos for you and send them to you at the end of the night.
Options
Downtown Austin Sunset Kayak Tour with 1.5 Million Bats
Reviews
188 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Boats & Bats is Awesome!
Krystal B,,Feb 25, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00Boats and Bats was a fantastic experience! The guides were very helpful and knowledgeable without being intrusive into our own family experience! Highly recommend and will book again! A+++
Nice experience
Mgmcmahon,,Feb 23, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
4.00Very easy to find the location and the experience was really fun. Recommended Bangers to eat after. And it was excellent.
Unique
carlosgsalce,,Feb 13, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Great experience with Channing; spent a good evening getting to know downtown Austin and this was a fantastic end of the day activity, I would definitely recommend - also incredible photo spot and beautiful views during the way to the bridge where the bats come out of.
Incredible Bats!
Stephanie P,,Nov 22, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00This was such a wonderful way to kick off our quick stop in Austin before our morning flight! The bats were absolutely incredible to see. The tour felt relaxed and intimate—there weren’t too many people on the water, so it almost felt like a private experience. Highly recommend!
Unique Kayaking in Austin!
Jasmine S,,Nov 19, 2025
- Review from Viator
4.00Such a unique experience! Our guide was very knowledgable and was prepared with red light to see the bats in the dark. Would recommend adding lights to the kayaks as they can be hard to see by other boaters in the night.
After a day of work this...
Shannon S,,Nov 19, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00After a day of work this was a fantastic way to enjoy and relax. Time on the water and watching bats was wonderful.
If you do the bats in Austin, make sure it's with Boats and Bats!
P4955CBklaudiak,,Nov 16, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Unbelievable experience from start to finish! The river is beautiful at sunset and we enjoyed the paddling as much as watching the bats. When it came to seeing the bats, Hannah absolutely made our experience! She is so knowledgeable and passionate, not only giving amazing guidance and information but thoroughly answering any questions we had. It was a while before we turned around and noticed that all the other tour boats had left! Hannah allowed us to stay right to the end of the main event, and was still giving fascinating info as the last bats trickled out from under the bridge (we were provided with red lights so we could still see them). The paddle back was fun and relaxed, we never once felt rushed by Hannah. She was a dream guide for this kind of experience! It was a bonus to have our photos taken by Hannah throughout the experience, which were uploaded to an accessible drive for us to download that same evening!
Great tour!
Lauren S,,Nov 15, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00Extremely organized and accurate with excellent communication. We saw all of the bats on time as promised.
Bats under the bridge in Austin
Richard K,,Nov 15, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00We arrived from Sacramento and went to the kayaking location an hour later. The tour guide was well informed and knowledgeable about the area and the bats We kayak frequently and had no problem with the tour. The bats came out from underneath the bridge as the sun set. We were hoping to see them fly across the sky but they swarmed around the bridge. It was still very impressive
Good time
Joel D,,Nov 14, 2025
- Review from Viator
4.00Nice to go out and be on kayaks as the sun went down, but not as many bats as expected, overall, would do it again.
From US$59.00
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