LOCAL SPOTLIGHT: Keewaydin Express

By Samantha Husted

The Keewaydin Express is a locally owned water taxi service that provides transportation to and from Keewaydin Island and surrounding areas. Each trip is completely customizable. Customers are able to choose which bars, restaurants and waterfronts they’d like to visit. The Keewaydin Express takes the stress out of renting a boat, and makes it easier to enjoy and explore Marco Island. The standard fare is $40 round-trip per person, and the 20-foot pontoon boat can hold up to 6 people. They also offer group discounts.

The company has been open and operating for about a year. The owner, Jordan Cabot, a New Orleans native, says that

the idea for the business came about when he was out on the boat with a couple of friends. “I saw all these beautiful islands that people were hanging out on boats and realized that there was no real dependable or affordable way to get back and forth to Keewaydin,” he said. “There was no way to visit the waterfront restaurants and bars and to enjoy the beautiful sunsets out on the Gulf of Mexico unless you had a boat or a ton of money to rent one.” This thought led to the creation of the Keewaydin Express, a service that he felt Marco desperately needed. He wanted to be able to share the beauty of our island and surrounding areas without putting a huge dent into peoples’ pockets.

As most Marco Island residents know, the month of September is a slow one. So Jordan thought he’d give everyone a little break. Residents (and tourists, too) will be able to have their own little vacation, even if it is local, at a discounted price before season rolls around again.

“It’s something that I wanted to have available to me,” he said in regards to the company, “when I wanted to take a day off and go spend it in the sand.”

For more information, call 239-207-0403 or check out www.keewaydinexpress.com.