Stuart, Florida: The 2024 Best Coastal Small Town In The USA. But No Cruise Boats

Stuart, Florida was named the 2024 best coastal small town in the USA, and a big part of that has to do with it being a boater's paradise. Stuart is surrounded on three sides by the St. Lucie River, which flows into the nearby Indian River, which flows into the Atlantic Ocean. You would think with all that water, there would be cruise boats available year-round to take people on sightseeing tours, but right now there are none. Oh sure, you could book a charter to take you ocean fishing, or hire a boat for a private cruise, but that costs a fortune. There are also eco tours, but the focus there is on nature, not sightseeing. You could also rent a boat and pilot it yourself, but then you might wind up on one of the numerous sandbars in the middle of the river, and be stuck there for hours, if not days. One other alternative is the Tiki Taxi, which operates Thursday thru Sunday from a pier, seen in the photograph on the left, located in downtown Stuart

The Tiki Taxi, seen in the photograph on the right, leaves on the hour from that pier in front of Waterfront Sailfish Lounge and Grill. Years ago, that restaurant was the location of Huckleberry's, which was a great place to dine. I remember going there many times for Sunday brunch with my father Nelson, mother Mary, and sister Susan. The good old days. But I digress. The Tiki Taxi features music and a bar, cruising directly across the St. Lucie River to the Tidehouse Restaurant, where it leaves every hour on the half hour. For $10 you can ride all day, but I imagine after cruising back and forth across the river 5 or 6 times, sitting at the bar, it might get a bit monotonous. And if you stay too long at the bar, after getting off the boat you might wind up getting up close and personal with the St. Lucie River.

There is a cruise boat called the Island Princess, seen in the photograph on the left, that has cruised the St. Lucie and Indian Rivers for many years. However, when my sister Susan and I came down to Stuart last February, it was undergoing a major renovation and did not begin taking on passengers until just before we left to go back to Denver. And when we came back in July, the Island Princess had gone up to Annapolis to cruise the Severn River during the spring and summer. Their web site says they hope to be back in Stuart for the fall and winter, pending a marina to sail out of, but so far, they are still up in Maryland. Hopefully they will find a place to dock and be back in Stuart soon. I have a sneaking suspicion there will not be much interest in cruising the Severn River in a month or two. Although if they were offering free beer...