Much of the Seaside of Virginia’s Eastern Shore is a remote coastal wilderness with difficult access requiring transportation by boat and a working knowledge of local waterways. Several local vendors offer guided tours of the Seaside providing options for visitors to experience this unique area. Many of these vendors have been certified under the Virginia Ecotour Guide Certification Program which provides training in wildlife and habitat protection, customer service, interpretation and planning. For more information about the Certification Program and a list of Certified Ecotour Guides on the Eastern Shore and throughout coastal Virginia, visit the Virginia Water Trails website.
You may also visit the Virginia Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce to see a complete list of ecotour guides in the area who are registered with the Chamber.
Please remember that the seaside of Virginia’s Eastern Shore is almost entirely owned and managed by non-profit, state and federal agencies. Guided commercial tours are not permitted on many properties but several programs are in place to permit or license guided trips at certain locations. When booking a trip, please be sure to ask your guide about specific permits or licenses in place.
For those who may not be looking for a boat-based tour, Fisherman Island National Wildlife Refuge offers guided tours (accessible by vehicle) during the months of October through February. Reservations for the tours are made by calling the refuge office at (757) 331-2760.
This project was funded by The Nature Conservancy with support from The Volgenau Foundation and by the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program led by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality through Grant #NA17NOS4190152 of the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, under the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended. All Explore Our Seaside partners also contributed significant time and effort to the project.