When I was living in Seattle, if I walked around downtown I would get “duck bumps” every time I heard this quacking noise from hell. Legend says it’s the souls of 1000 Peking Ducks wandering around town looking for people who ate them to… Well, not really! It’s the sound coming from the vehicles of this tour company called Ride the Ducks, and everyone who goes to Seattle MUST ride the ducks. I actually didn’t do it the first time around, so I felt like I was missing some feathers, especially after being there for so many months. But the second time around, it had to be done.
Ride the Ducks - The Duck
To start with, I don’t think it’s a cheap tour (must be run by Scrooge McDuck). I paid around $24 a ticket, plus $22 for a photo (it was a really good photo, couldn’t let that one go), the quackers are around $2.50, and tipping is up to you, but you should leave some. If you are not in town for nesting, and you wanna have an overall tour with background history added, and some extra fun on top of it, then Ride the Ducks is exactly that. In the end I don’t regret the money spent on it, and if you take in consideration what your guide has to do (theatricals included), it is worth it – but it all depends on your budget.
The tour takes around an hour and a half. You go in this hybrid vehicle, hence the duck name. Most of it will take place on land, and then some on water. You won’t get wet, but for security measures there are life jackets for everyone just above your head. Each duck has a different captain. I don’t think there is a captain for each vehicle, but they have a large fleet. I got Captain “Greg Garyus” (you can check his profile on the website below). I don’t know about the other captains but if you get the chance, choose Greg – he really lives up to his name (Greg Garyus…gregarious…get it?). I checked out some others while walking around town later, and they were all lame ducks compared to him.
Ride the Ducks - Captain Greg Garyus and one of his many props
The tours are not standard. Naturally there are some common places to go, but it might happen that if you have a different captain he will take you somewhere else. The same goes for their script and historical fact checking. Your captain is the author (not the historical part though). It’s part of the deal and what makes these tours special. Captain Greg Garyus for example was a prop genius with a hat fetish. Did I mention that there is a lot of music? That’s right, music, quacking, jumping, etc. Except when you enter a “quack free zone” – then silence is golden.
The standard part of the ride will take you around downtown, to the main sights, and to Lake Union, that’s where the hybrid part comes in – the moment you’ve been waiting for. Once in the water, you’ll go around a small part of the lake while checking out the surroundings and getting some extra info on what you see. For someone who lived in Seattle, I gotta say that there was a lot more that I got to know on this part of the ride than the initial one, but if everything is new to you, no problem here.
Ride the Ducks - On water
So, you will be asked to dance, sing, clap, go wild, and have fun. I mean ridiculous fun, but you just have to go with the flow. Release your inner duck. Don’t feel embarrassed, because people in town already know the ducks, it’s a local symbol just like Starbucks and the Space Needle. If you need a push, have a couple of drinks before going in. To finish I’ll leave you with a sample video. Quack quack!
Ride the Ducks of Seattle
516 Broad Street
Seattle, WA 98109
USA
Phone: +1 (206) 441-DUCK (3825) / 1-800 817-1116
Email: ducks@ridetheducksofseattle.com
