Top 10 Boat Types Every Boater Can Enjoy
If you’re just getting into boating, you might be struggling with finding the best boat. With plenty of lakes and open waters to ride through, the US is brimming with life and numerous boating possibilities.
However, being new to boating, you might not know which type of boat you should get. Luckily, in this guide, we’ll go over all of the best boat types you can buy to go boating this season.
Best 10 Boat Types
Before buying a boat, you will need to know what kinds of activities you will want to do when you’re on the water. Depending on what you’ll be doing, there are different types of boats that you can choose from.
Water Sports Boats
Water sports boats are a popular choice amongst many buyers, simply for how fun they can be. As the name implies, they are designed to be good for all sorts of water sports, including wakesurfing, waterskiing, and wakeboarding, and more. Each boat comes with a transom that holds the towing point. You can usually find the towing point on a high arch or a pole. Furthermore, some more expensive options, like the Super Air Nautique G25, come equipped with special trim tabs. These tabs can create bigger waves, allowing for an even better boarding or surfing experience.
While certainly fun to use when out on the beach or the lake, these boats tend to serve a very specific niche. Therefore, staying on the boat overnight, taking it out to fish, or even trying to beach this boat may feel very odd.
Trawlers
Trawlers are often bigger and more massive boats that offer plenty of space for all of their passengers. They are for cruising the open seas, as their engines have very good fuel efficiency compared to other boats.
Of course, you can increase their speed to up to 20 knots, but this will quickly dry up your fuel supply. Another great thing about trawlers is the sheer number of models. There are smaller boats or larger yachts, like the Nordhavn 52.
Pontoon Boats
Pontoon boats were once the slowest and generally the “worst-looking” boats that you could find at a dock. However, over the years, improvements have allowed them to be faster, more comfortable, and much better looking.
Even though they are not very versatile in different types of waters, they have a lot of deck space and modular seating. If you’re looking to have a small party on the water or great family time, pontoons are perfect for hosting and having fun while boating.
Speedboats
Speedboats also fill a very specific niche and when you’re out on the open blue waters, they’ll certainly become your favorite. With each boat being capable of reaching breakneck speeds, speed junkies will enjoy the rush that comes with taking these beasts out on the water.
Of course, they do come with a few drawbacks. Specifically, speedboats usually have fewer seats and don’t come equipped with many storage compartments. They also tend to be very loud. Although, for boaters who love speed, roaring engines are never really a bad thing.
Saltwater Fishing Boats
If you’re someone who likes to spend their time putting out a line and patiently waiting for a game, a saltwater fishing boat just might be what you’re looking for. However, different types of saltwater fishing boats can fall into the categories of walkarounds, expresses, convertibles, center consoles, and bay boats.
Each of these boats offers very specific benefits, like bay boats being cheaper but unable to go far offshore. Center consoles can also be a good choice if you’re looking to bring in a lot of game and even family and friends on board, as they usually have seating in the front and back of the boat.
Sailboats
Sailboats happen to be the most difficult type of boat to ride in this list since they require a lot of knowledge about steering with the wind and setting the sails. Still, they can offer a very rewarding experience for people who want to have a good time on the open seas. For those whom the journey is just as important as the destination, sailboats will surely be an excellent choice.
You can also find different subtypes of sailboats with performance/racers, cruisers, and daysailers being the most popular ones. Cruisers can be massive and very comfortable to ride in, whereas the performance models are lightweight and better for racing.
Runabouts
Runabouts are possibly one of the most diverse types of boats you can find, as they can be just about any type of boat. Whether you want something that you can take on a speed trip through the lake or a freshwater stream to fish, runabouts could be a good pick.
The name itself is a catch-all term that refers to smaller boats that can do multiple things. The only downside is that these boats can only work in fair weather during the day, making them the perfect vessels to use on lakes.
Freshwater Fishing Boats
Freshwater fishing boats are a must-have if you’re looking to ride out and fish for bass or trout. In fact, many of these boats come with specific features that make them more effective for catching specific types of fish. Aluminum, multispecies, and bass fishing boats are subtypes of Freshwater Fishing Boats.
Bass boats, for example, tend to be equipped with various features to catch big-mouth bass specifically. At the back, you can find electric trolling motors and high-end fish finders. All of this high tech also makes it one of the more expensive boats to ride in freshwater. On the other hand, aluminum fishing boats tend to be the cheapest option in the market, with the multispecies one being the jack of all trades of fishing boats.
Cruisers
While you can find a variety of cruiser types, they all check a few boxes. They tend to have living accommodations, a galley, and an efficient motor that can take you some distance. Different types of cruisers include pocket cruisers, motor yachts, express cruisers, convertibles, and aft cabin cruisers.
Cruisers make for a great boat purchase, mainly because you can travel to different parts of the country without having to step on dry land.
Bowriders
Bowriders are possibly the most advanced types of boats you may see on the water, with each one equipped with many features. They are often fast and mobile, while also equipped with a backspace designed for fishing and even water skiing.
Some of them can even be big enough to have cabins inside, making them more akin to cruisers. The major downside of bowriders is that they are often very expensive. Still, while those features don’t come cheap, this type of boat is well worth the price.
Source - magazine.boatim.com
