Pontoon Boat Rental

[u/27wally14]

Family of 4 looking to rent a pontoon boat for fishing and tubing. Should we stick to Lake George or look at others like Loon Lake which seem to have slightly less expensive boat options.

[u/Winter-Macaroon-4296]

Lake George can get wild. It gets pretty rough with boat traffic, weather, and inexperienced boaters. If you get a captain, you will enjoy your day. They'll show you Calves pen, take you for ice cream at the ranger station and let you jump off the rocks at West Dollar Island. They know the good fishing spots, too. If you decide to rent and pilot yourself, avoid Captain Bob's. And for the love of all that is good and holy, pay attention to the ten minute video the State of NY thinks is sufficient in teaching you how to drive a boat. There are lots of buoys, no wake zones, and boat traffic you will encounter.

[u/27wally14 → u/Winter-Macaroon-4296]

Thanks for the insight. Is there a rental place that also charters youd recommend?

[u/Winter-Macaroon-4296 → u/27wally14]

Unfortunately I don't. The one guy I know retired and moved to Florida. If you are staying at a hotel/motel, they may have suggestions. I've just heard about Captain Bob's unhinged customer service for years and this year there have been instances of stranded boaters because they aren't maintaining their fleet. There are outfits that do private tours but don't do boat rentals. There are several but I'm not familiar with them all. Daley's and True North are a couple I can think of off the top of my head. Good luck in your search. The Adirondacks are beautiful but none of the other lakes compare to the Queen.

[u/Buck-Stallion → u/27wally14]

I'd recommend True North boat tours - https://truenorthboattours.com. Vito is a great guy and knows the lake like the back of his hand. He also does wakeboarding trips if are in to that. They leave right from the village in front on The Beach club (which I'd also recommend).

Agree with the other folks who've said that Lake George is not the best lake for novice boaters. If what you really want is to take a boat out yourself for the day, I'd recommend one the smaller nearby lakes. At the very least, rent from one of the marinas up the lake (Chics Marina is great) and head north to the narrows and above.

Have fun - keep your head on a swivel!

[u/Pw78]

If you’re a novice I would suggest upper lake George. There’s a rental place north of of Bolton but before Hague. Less water traffic

[u/27wally14 → u/Pw78]

Thanks for this! We’ve been on pontoons and driven them but looking back I suppose the lakes were super tame.

[u/Proof_Bit_8746]

Please, if you don’t know how to boat, charter a boat

[u/squeebie23]

Lake George is easy enough to handle...as long as the weather is good. We had a nice day turn scary when a storm rolled in fron a different direction than expected.

That said, check out FR Smith & Sons or Yankee, we've had great experiences with both.

[u/Alert_War_696]

Lake George in my opinion is hyped up for nothing. It’s too dense with boaters. Obnoxious ones at that. Elitist playground, kids and adults. Absolutely horrible restaurants. Over priced, over hyped. Find a smaller more peaceful location.