Did you know you can see manatees four different ways in Florida? Yeah… neither did we until like a week ago. In this video, we tested three of them (boardwalk, glass-bottom boat, and a clear kayak/clear-bottom paddle boat situation) to figure out which one is actually worth it—especially if you’re trying to be responsible and not mess with wildlife. And just to be crystal clear: swimming with them is where I draw the line. We started in Crystal River at Three Sisters Springs, where parking was honestly a pain in the butt, but the visitor center lady saved us with all the info. From the boardwalk we got to see manatees in that 72-degree spring water (they can’t handle water colder than 68°), and it’s a great option if you don’t want to get on the water. Then we headed to Silver Springs State Park for the glass-bottom boat tour—$17 a person, 30 minutes, tons of history (movies were filmed there, and those tours go way back). Finally, for science (and my fear of deep water + “what’s under me”), we rented a clear-bottom kayak/boat for $68, got within a few feet of manatees in that unreal clear water, and I’ll admit it: it was kind of magical… even if my butt went numb.