American Boat Club

[upthesaukee]

Thanks for the update Kurt.

Just curious: Do you have a no-show cancellation clause in your reservation policy? I can see allowing a cancellation up to say 48 hours before pickup time. People could reserve the boat a couple of weeks in advance, and then on Wednesday find the weather forecast is 100% chance of rain on Fri, Sat, and Sun.

What must be frustrating, especially without a clause, is to have a good boating weekend, and have someone no show, making the rental that time period difficult.

Thanks, and best wishes for continued success.

[AmericanBoatClub]

We do have a clause but we never enforce it.
The cancelation can happen right up to the minute before the boat is supposed to go out. We also have many many no shows where the boat shows up as checked out but the person never shows. Or they go out for 20 minute cruise and come right back.
I don't consider any of these situations a problem.
What ends up happening is dock hands will attempt to reach the no show, and see if they are coming via cell phone. If no response after a reasonable amount of time we let the boat go out on a walk in bases. We have many members who come up to just hang out at akwa marina for the day, so they are sitting by the pool and look at there phone and see a particular boat is supposed to be out but it is actually sitting in the Marina. So they go and ask to take the boat and away they go, without having to book a reservation. So they could actually have all there reservation booked for the next weekend but still a joy boats all week.
The walk ins are what create spotinuty (sp ?) in the club and are actually one of the most over looked features when signing up.
Great question

[pjard]

Interesting observations Kurt...you are so spot on regarding the pontoon boats. They quickly became our favorites...so much so we went out and bought our own last year. Not a good business model for you! LOL You guys are great and we LOVED our time with American Boat Club. One year we went out of the lake 46 times with your boats. I HIGHLY recommend the club to anyone.

[Happy Gourmand]

Originally Posted by pjard

Interesting observations Kurt...you are so spot on regarding the pontoon boats. They quickly became our favorites...so much so we went out and bought our own last year. Not a good business model for you! LOL You guys are great and we LOVED our time with American Boat Club. One year we went out of the lake 46 times with your boats. I HIGHLY recommend the club to anyone.

We did the same thing..members for a year and had the opportunity to enjoy every boat. We too favored the pontoon boats and we also bought our own but with a bit more HP (200). We've owned fiberglass hulled boats in the past and would never go back. We love our pontoon boat and are grateful to ABC for the introduction to them.

[AmericanBoatClub]

It has been a long time since this thread was updated but it still comes up in conversation with people thinking of joining the boat club, so I wanted to up date it.

The boats are always changing but right now they are:

240 Berkshire Tri-toon

210 Berkshire Pontoon

22' StingRay Deck Boat

210 SLX Wakeboard SeaRay

210 SLX SeaRay

THIS LIST IS NO LONGER UP TO DATE!!!


We have also gone through several up grades to the cloud based reservation system.

Additional details can be found here https://www.akwamarina.com/page/american-boat-club

Cheers
Kurt
603.231.6002
Kurt@akwamarina.com

[Biggd]

Originally Posted by AmericanBoatClub

It has been a long time since this thread was updated but it still comes up in conversation with people thinking of joining the boat club, so I wanted to up date it.

The boats are always changing but right now they are:

240 Berkshire Tri-toon

210 Berkshire Pontoon

22' StingRay Deck Boat

210 SLX Wakeboard SeaRay

210 SLX SeaRay

The price is a one time signing fee of $1200, then $3900 per year. It really is the best boating deal in the area.

To make things even better we are currently waving the $1200 signing fee for new Members till 2/15/19

We have also gone through several up grades to the cloud based reservation system.

Additional details can be found here https://www.akwamarina.com/page/american-boat-club

Cheers
Kurt
603.231.6002
Kurt@akwamarina.com

How many members are vying for these 5 boats?
What are the odds of having a boat every weekend through out the summer?
Is there a guarantee on a certain number of reservations through out the boating season?
The advantage of having your own boat is it's availability any time you want it.
If availability is limited due to too many reservations and not enough boats then that's a big negative.

Just looking to see if you can provide more information on the forum.

[AmericanBoatClub]

Originally Posted by Biggd

How many members are vying for these 5 boats?
What are the odds of having a boat every weekend through out the summer?
Is there a guarantee on a certain number of reservations through out the boating season?
The advantage of having your own boat is it's availability any time you want it.
If availability is limited due to too many reservations and not enough boats then that's a big negative.

Just looking to see if you can provide more information on the forum.

We aim for a 5:1 ratio, 5 members to 1 boat, depending on the membership this sometimes is closer to 4:1.

The boat club plays into peoples behaviors. If you plan to use a boat all day every weekend, then you are someone who should buy a boat. Most people like to think they will get out on a boat that much but we all know it never happens. Life happens. Kids games, family commitments, choirs around the house, etc, etc. Not to say you can't get a boat every weekend, but getting a boat on a Saturday every other weekend is pretty easy to do. Monday through Friday we are lucky if more than one boat leaves the marina. Saturdays book up about 10 days in advance. Sundays can book up depending on the weather. We do have a 40% no show/cancellation rate. This creates a big opportunity for walk-ins. People hanging out at the beach club who don't have a boat booked can take an unreserved boat (or no show, cancellation) without booking a boat. The cloud-based reservation system is completely transparent so our members can see what is available at any moment. Our average user take a boat out 40 times per season, we have had a few go getters get up to the 70s and we don't track walk ins.
I can not stress enough how good a deal the boat club is, to rent a slip on the lake right now is going to be ~5k and you supply the boat and the headache

[Garcia]

Boat clubs make a lot of sense for many people. Show up with your stuff, load and go. No trailering, no maintence, any problems are someone else’s...

I know people with memberships in Florida. One really nice feature is they can use the boat that fits their needs for the day. Scenic trip? Take a pontoon boat. Headed out to fish - center console is ready to go...

[Biggd]

It sounds like a pretty good deal for the right person, esp now where they are waiving the $1200 sign on fee. It gives you the option to try it out for a season to see if it's right for you.

[joey2665]

Originally Posted by Biggd

It sounds like a pretty good deal for the right person, esp now where they are waiving the $1200 sign on fee. It gives you the option to try it out for a season to see if it's right for you.

It is especially when a slip alone at Akwa Vista is about 4k

[Biggd]

I'm a mechanic so I do service and winterize my own boat which is a chore. But for the average boat owner that relies on a marina to do these things and the cost of the boat it's a good deal. Like I said, esp with the fee being waived.

[TriDad]

Originally Posted by AmericanBoatClub

We aim for a 5:1 ratio, 5 members to 1 boat, depending on the membership this sometimes is closer to 4:1.


I can not stress enough how good a deal the boat club is, to rent a slip on the lake right now is going to be ~5k and you supply the boat and the headache

What hours can a member have the boat for? I prefer to go out early (6am+-) and late in the day for sunset or night rides.

[AmericanBoatClub]

Originally Posted by TriDad

What hours can a member have the boat for? I prefer to go out early (6am+-) and late in the day for sunset or night rides.

The reservation run 8 AM to 1 pm and 2 pm to 7 pm. You can string reservations together so you could book the pm slot for your evening cruise and the next days AM slot and the boat would only be due back at 1 pm that day. So you would have the boat from 2 pm till 1 pm the next day. This is just one example, only using two reservations.



Great question

[AmericanBoatClub]

Just to keep this thread updated since it seems to still answer a lot of new members' questions:

Current Boat list: The boats change on a regular basis please check the website or ask for the current list.

The season is May 15th to Oct 15th

Still the best deal in the lakes region, and no hassle. Also given how finding a boat slip is impossible, it may be one of your only options

Cheers
Kurt
kurt@akwamarina.com
603-231-6002

[AmericanBoatClub]

This thread still comes up a lot when people are researching joining the boat club so I just wanted to give it a quick update.

The boat club has come a long way. However, the reservations system still works the same.

The fleet of boats however has grown a bit (and is always changing):

As of the end of 2024, there are 16 boats to choose from.

[bigdog]

Originally Posted by AmericanBoatClub

Just to keep this thread updated since it seems to still answer a lot of new members questions:

Current Boat list: The boats change on a regular basis and please check website or ask for current list.

Price is $7000 signing fee and $350 per month (year-round)

The season is May 15th to Oct 15th

Still the best deal in the lakes region, and no hassle. Also given how finding a boat slip is impossible, it may be one of your only options

Cheers
Kurt
kurt@akwamarina.com
603-231-6002

And a given is that you pay for your own gas, so add-on that cost.