Inflatable Family Boat

jaredoconnor

jaredoconnor

Peabrain Chub
I want to get an inflatable boat, for paddling around local urban lakes with the family (two adults and two <5yo kids). I figured someone here might have some experience or wisdom to share.

Efficiency is not a priority; I just need to be able to get out into the middle of the lake and float around. I’ll most likely use a drogue, if we do any fishing. Stability is the main priority; I want the kids to be able to move around a bit.

My research has come up with three options.

1. Sea Eagle 9: I like that this is rowed from the front, because my wife and kids can sit together at the back. However, there’s no proper oar locks; all you get is a plastic loop to stick the oars through. I’m guessing the oars are just meant to be a backup, for a motor. I also like that the floor is inflatable and there’s no floor insert to mess around with.

www.seaeagle.com

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Boats
www.seaeagle.com www.seaeagle.com

2. Intex Mariner 3: I like that this has proper oar locks. However, it must be rowed from the middle. That means one of my kids will be at the back on their own. I also don’t like that you have to put a flooring insert in and Intex seems to be less reputable.

intexcorp.com

Mariner™ 3 Inflatable Boat Set - 3 Person

A leading brand in Above Ground Swimming Pools, Air Mattresses and PVC inflatable products. With over 50-year of history, we work hard to maintain the highest standards for safety, quality and value.
intexcorp.com intexcorp.com

3. Sea Eagle 420x: This is just a long and wide kayak, so it will be the easiest to paddle. I like that the flooring is drop stitched, like a SUP. It should be very rigid. This is by far the highest quality option. My wife and I would both have to paddle it though and the kids would have no space to move around. It’s also the least stable, but it should still be OK. The only real benefit I can see is that I can strap it to my roof racks, so I don’t have to pack it up every time we use it. That could make the difference between using it and not using it, though.

www.seaeagle.com

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Kayaks/Canoes
www.seaeagle.com www.seaeagle.com

So. Who has some wisdom to share? Any other products I missed?
 
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I won’t say I had the perfect boat for you, but it’s what I used with the kids on lakes. Unfortunately I don’t have it anymore, replaced it with a framed raft.

My advise is buy as much quality as you can afford.

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One needs to really understand how much room there is NOT in an inflatable. It may be 5'+ wide but is less than 3' wide in between the inflated sides.

I had a 10' Achilles. It was crowded with only 2 adults.

Good luck with your search...
 
Sam Roffe said:
I won’t say I had the perfect boat for you, but it’s what I used with the kids on lakes. Unfortunately I don’t have it anymore, replaced it with a framed raft.

My advise is buy as much quality as you can afford.

View attachment 149466
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What boat is this? Is the flooring part of the boat or is it an insert that you have to install, prior to inflation?
 
How nice/study does this boat need to be? It is for real lake traveling or just screwing around with kids? Costco seems to stock a couple of boats from a random brand called "Tobin sports" every summer. They aren't particularly fancy or tough, but I suspect they are on the same level as big box brands like Intex. I posted about them when I ran across them a few years back:

Josh

Thread 'Inflatable boat deals at Costco'

Costco has a couple inflatable boats on sale through the weekend. Just generic made-in-china stuff. But the reviews out there seem pretty positive generally. I talked to a guy at the lake who had the Mirovia one as a tender and he was stoked on it. I mean, you're not getting an NRS raft or a Zodiac for this price. But could be the ticket for some fun/fishing for your family. The brand is "Tobin Sports", but I've also seen them advertised as Hydro Force and Bestway. I wouldn't expect these to last a lifetime. But with care, they should last more than long enough to get your money out of...
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I actually own the "Canyon Pro" one. It's... fine? I haven't used it for much more than letting kids mess around in it at the local calm safe no-gas-motor swimming lake. I have a motor mount for it to use a little minn kota with, but haven't tried it our yet. I view it as more of a water toy than a proper boat. But it floats, has a drop stitch floor, etc. There's a guy on youtube who has some videos where he's fishing out of his.
 
I have the fish hunter HF360. It's not a bad inflatable. Decent swivel oar locks. Underside float chambers to help maintain balance. It has a motor mount and battery holder, of which I never use.
For casual lake use, it has lasted years. My wife and I float local moving water and it responds well.
 
when raising the kids our el cheapo raft from Big 5 spent as much time on the lakes as an upside down lounge floater and diving platform as it did being rowed and fished.
 
Josh said:
How nice/study does this boat need to be? It is for real lake traveling or just screwing around with kids? Costco seems to stock a couple of boats from a random brand called "Tobin sports" every summer. They aren't particularly fancy or tough, but I suspect they are on the same level as big box brands like Intex. I posted about them when I ran across them a few years back:

Josh

Thread 'Inflatable boat deals at Costco'

Costco has a couple inflatable boats on sale through the weekend. Just generic made-in-china stuff. But the reviews out there seem pretty positive generally. I talked to a guy at the lake who had the Mirovia one as a tender and he was stoked on it. I mean, you're not getting an NRS raft or a Zodiac for this price. But could be the ticket for some fun/fishing for your family. The brand is "Tobin Sports", but I've also seen them advertised as Hydro Force and Bestway. I wouldn't expect these to last a lifetime. But with care, they should last more than long enough to get your money out of...
  • Like

I actually own the "Canyon Pro" one. It's... fine? I haven't used it for much more than letting kids mess around in it at the local calm safe no-gas-motor swimming lake. I have a motor mount for it to use a little minn kota with, but haven't tried it our yet. I view it as more of a water toy than a proper boat. But it floats, has a drop stitch floor, etc. There's a guy on youtube who has some videos where he's fishing out of his.
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It’s just for screwing around. Could one of those fit two adults and two kids?
 
RCF said:
One needs to really understand how much room there is NOT in an inflatable. It may be 5'+ wide but is less than 3' wide in between the inflated sides.

I had a 10' Achilles. It was crowded with only 2 adults.

Good luck with your search...
Click to expand...
This is true, the descriptive word is cozy.
 
jaredoconnor said:
What boat is this? Is the flooring part of the boat or is it an insert that you have to install, prior to inflation?
Click to expand...
I bought it 20 some years ago at the Seattle boat show. It was marketed by Alaska Series by Gary King. He had them made in New Zealand. The floor is a high pressure inflatable floor, inserts in the bottom of the boat.
 
How will you be transporting it? I'm with Sam on go with as high of quality as you can. And having raised 2 boys, your kids are going to get bigger faster than you think. Sucks, but it's true. I bought and sold a lot of bicycles and dirt bikes over the years as they grew. The boats got bigger too.

Depending on your transport, the first thing that came to my mind was just buy a used 14-16' raft or cat. You can use it for years and will give you the most room and stability. And probably quality. I'd trust a 10 year old name brand raft off FB Marketplace more than those 3 options brand new. My Commander is a 2014 and I've used the crap out of it and it still doesn't leak. It uses Aire bladders.

If you don't have a truck or don't want to mess with a trailer, would 2 inflatable kayaks work? Lots of 2x2 options out there. It's going to be really hard to fit 4 people in a raft unless it's big. Even little kids.
Good luck!
 
skyriver said:
How will you be transporting it? I'm with Sam on go with as high of quality as you can. And having raised 2 boys, your kids are going to get bigger faster than you think. Sucks, but it's true. I bought and sold a lot of bicycles and dirt bikes over the years as they grew. The boats got bigger too.

Depending on your transport, the first thing that came to my mind was just buy a used 14-16' raft or cat. You can use it for years and will give you the most room and stability. And probably quality. I'd trust a 10 year old name brand raft off FB Marketplace more than those 3 options brand new. My Commander is a 2014 and I've used the crap out of it and it still doesn't leak. It uses Aire bladders.

If you don't have a truck or don't want to mess with a trailer, would 2 inflatable kayaks work? Lots of 2x2 options out there. It's going to be really hard to fit 4 people in a raft unless it's big. Even little kids.
Good luck!
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My roof racks can take something about 4ft wide. Anything wider will have to go in the trunk, unless I get overhanging roof racks and figure out a different way to strap it down. Having to pack it away, after every usage, could be a problem; if we are only going out for a few hours, I don't want to spend an hour screwing around with it.

I think our needs will change significantly, as the kids get older, so I don't want to plan too much for the future. If we can get 2-4 years out of a boat, before needing something different, that would be fine.

We already have one inflatable kayak; we bought a Sea Eagle 330, off Facebook. We figured it was sensible to test out something cheap first, before committing to something bigger and/or better. I took one of my kids out last weekend and she enjoyed it, but it was far too small and uncomfortable for my liking, hence this thread.
 
It looks like you're trying to avoid a boat that requires a trailer. If that's the case, I think the best boat for your 2 x 2 application is a canoe. I used a canoe for that purpose when my kids were small. As Skyriver points out, kids do grow fast. Really fast. So you're only going to be able to use it for this purpose for a few years. At least the canoe will have good resale value compared to a cheap inflatable. Another possibility is an "expedition" sea kayak. We used one on Ross Lake years ago. Two paddlers and room for a ton of cargo (i.e., kids) in between. Kind of a specialty item though, so there may not be many available.
 
Salmo_g said:
It looks like you're trying to avoid a boat that requires a trailer. If that's the case, I think the best boat for your 2 x 2 application is a canoe. I used a canoe for that purpose when my kids were small. As Skyriver points out, kids do grow fast. Really fast. So you're only going to be able to use it for this purpose for a few years. At least the canoe will have good resale value compared to a cheap inflatable. Another possibility is an "expedition" sea kayak. We used one on Ross Lake years ago. Two paddlers and room for a ton of cargo (i.e., kids) in between. Kind of a specialty item though, so there may not be many available.
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Funnily enough, there is a canoe sitting in my garage right now. It arrived damaged and is going back, but my wife doesn’t want it to be replaced; it takes up too much space.

The inflatable requirement is less about transport and more about storage, for the ~8 months of the year that we won’t use it.

Surprisingly, a trailer would probably be fine; there’s some cheap fold up trailers that folks seem happy with and that would not cause storage concerns. Storing the thing that sits on the trailer is the problem.
 
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Zak said:
These are pretty spendy (~$2500) but look like they'd meet your needs and fold flat:

portabote.com

Portabote | The Revolutionary Folding Boat

The worlds most portable boat ideal for fishing, water fowling and recreational activities. Folds flat in seconds for easy transportation. Made in the USA.
portabote.com portabote.com
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That’s awesome. Probably not something we want to jump into at the moment, but I could see us getting something like this when the kids are older.

One of these with a folding trailer would be amazing and totally wife compatible.
 
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Salmo_g said:
Jared, it looks like you need more space. Then you would have a lot more serviceable boat options.
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You see now the problems are reversed. My wife would love a larger house. I would not. 🤣

I am convinced that the greater Seattle area will be the Detroit of my generation, when AI takes all the tech jobs (ie. my job). It is coming. My bet is 5 years. I refuse to put more money into real estate!

If that means I have to live like a pleb with a rubber boat, I can accept that.
 
jaredoconnor said:
If that means I have to live like a pleb with a rubber boat, I can accept that.
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In that case, get a higher quality rubber boat!

Honestly though, for a family boat, size aside, is there a good reason you're not looking at something a little higher quality than something like an Intex? Personally, if I were after something to ferry the family around, I'd be looking at something a little higher end for safety purposes alone.
 
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