African Queen Key Largo

Ditto everything Pam E wrote so well on 12/​20, except I didn’t do the dining experience, «just» the tour! My 1.5 hours on the African Queen is the unquestioned highlight of my time in the Keys with my hubby. (Sorry, hubby, that you went off fishing while I sat where Hepburn and Bogie once sat!) I can’t recommend this highly enough. Capt. Dave was a superb captain, imbuing his three passengers with fascinating history of this glorious old inglorious steamer. He set up photo ops for us like a pro, and the «golden hour» made our photos look fantastic. I still can’t believe I got to see this vessel, much less ride on her, much less take the helm briefly while in open water. (I’m a captain’s wife and boat-​crew-​qualified coast guard auxiliarist, so we weren’t going to end up in Cuba or anything.) If you love this old movie, treat yourself to a little trip on the African Queen!

If you are a fan of Bogart movies, then this cruise is a must do. The ship is pretty original to what you see in the movie. Our captain was great. He explained the ship and its history well. He had production stills from the movie. He took pictures of us with our camera so we could have them at home. He let us steer the ship while at sea. He also pointed out the houses of the rich and famous along the canals of Key Largo. All in all, a very enjoyable and worthwhile experience. Thank you, African Queen!

What a great attraction. My wife and I felt like Bogey and Hepburn, steaming out the canal and into the ocean. Well, we would have been steaming, but the little boat’s boiler needed a rebuild, so it outboard motor powered. But still, we were on the African Queen. The captain was knowledgeable, friendly, personable and really made the short trip interesting. When we got home to Michigan, we watched the movie (again), with a whole new interest.

Wow! What a piece of history and movie nostalgia setting right there in front of us. Just imagine Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn being there. The ship is small and looks to be in great condition. We didn’t take the cruise but just enjoyed the fact that we saw the ship.

A totally fun and unique experience.
This attraction may not be for everybody but I loved it. I liked how the boat was lovingly restored over the years. I liked our guide’s stories and the whole kitschy Florida-​attraction-​thing about how a working boat from Africa in 1912 became a movie prop, then passed from hand to hand down through the years to be restored into an attraction moored next to a Holiday Inn in Key Largo (a city made famous by another Humphrey Bogart movie that wasn’t even filmed there and for which the town was later renamed). One of the things I love about Florida is the way fact and fiction get tangled up in the name of tourism and development.
Mostly I loved that amazing Sisson steam engine! In fact, for me the engine made it all worthwhile. How often do you get to go out in a boat powered by a 19^th century steam engine? We putt putt-​ed out the channel and into the harbor where we had some engine trouble and the guide (dressed in Humphrey Bogart’s costume) had to get out his tools to get it going again while we bobbed helplessly around in the waves and drifted out to sea. I don’t know if they do that all the time on purpose or if these engines are always touchy but, that was actually my favorite part — watching him tinker with the engine and getting it going again. I only wish I could have been the one playing with it. I really wish I had one of those engines. I could just watch it for hours — it’s like a living thing! I got home and wanted to build one.
So the whole cruise is kind of romantic and kind of goofy. They only take about 6 – 8 people on each cruise which is nice — so it’s not too crowded. The guide lets you steer if you want to and has lots of good stories about Key Largo and the millionaire yachts and houses that you pass by. You can wave to the tourists on the fancy pants catamarans and pirate ships as you s-​l-​o-​w-​l-​y work your way up the channel and back.
It’s a little pricey, but it must cost a small fortune to restore it and run it. I’m really glad we took the cruise. I would recommend it for people who are old movie fans, steam engine fans or old boat fans. Is it history? Is it a reproduction of a movie prop that never really worked in the first place? What’s real? What’s not? And what do you care as long as you’re having fun? Welcome to Florida.

We didn’t get to go out, because the boat is limited to six pax and was already full, but I heard the lecture and watched the engine start and the boat leave. For engine buffs, it appears to be a single expansion true steam motor in beautiful shape. OSHA would have a fit: the connecting rods are exposed as is the crankshaft and live steam exits while the engine is being prepped for launch. Any engineer fool who puts a foot or hand wrong will live to regret it. As in the old days, the operator is responsible for his own safety. (The engine is safely out of the way of passengers.) This is the real thing, and worth a trip.

I couldn’t have imagined that one day I would take a sunset sail on a boat once used by Katherine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, but this weekend, that’s exactly what I did! We arrived for our sail 30 minutes early and were greeted by Chris who sets up the tours. We took pictures of the boat down by the bay and read up on the history of The African Queen. When the steamboat was ready, our captain welcomed us aboard. It was only two of us on the tour, along with the captain and someone he was training. We got a full history on how the African Queen ended up in key largo, and soon took off. They offered us refreshments, but like I mentioned on my tip, we brought our own wine. We were able to re-​enact scenes from the movie and even steer the boat ourselves. It was exciting to feel like we were a part of Hollywood history. The only reason why I don’t give this 5 stars is because the tour is very short. You just leave the bay and make a u-​turn right back. Since it’s a historic steamboat it takes about an hour for the boat to do that.