Vacationers charting new waters with houseboats

The production of houseboats has tripled since 1990

June 6, 2000
Web posted at: 2:40 p.m. EDT (1840 GMT)

From Carolyn O'Neil
CNN Travel Now Senior Correspondent

(CNN) -- When placed hull-to-hull against a sleek sailboat or elegant yacht, the houseboat traditionally has run a distant third in the race for weekend boaters and part-time sailors.

But in recent years, the houseboat's image has been overhauled, and now it's cutting a new wake in the boating industry.

"They really have evolved to become these luxury palaces floating on water," said Mike Harris, publisher of Houseboat Magazine.

The boats' popularity has grown accordingly, and their production has tripled since 1990. "Basically anything you can get in a house you can get in a houseboat," Harris said.

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The new boats are bigger and more comfortable, with amenities such as roomier bedrooms, hot tubs and entertainment systems. With improvements like that, the houseboat has become an increasingly popular vacation choice, Harris said.

Meeting that demand are 300 houseboat rental operators in the United States and Canada. Lake Lanier Islands Resort near Atlanta, for example, has added 14 new rental houseboats to its fleet, many with four staterooms and two bathrooms. Some even have a water slide on their top deck.

"Before, it was bunk beds and a microwave," said Ray Williams, president and CEO of the Lake Lanier resort. "Now it is sofas and other things we are doing on them, and we have made them a lot bigger and made the bedrooms private."

Lake Lanier Islands Resort near Atlanta has added 14 new rental houseboats to its fleet

Lake Lanier's boats, which accommodate 10 people, rent for $1,699 for a three-night, non-holiday weekend, not including taxes and gas.

At Holiday Harbor Resort and Marina in Northern California, rates range from $855 per weekend for a boat that sleeps six to $2,185 for a top-of-the-line vessel --complete with flybridge, penthouse, two refrigerators and even a trash compactor.

But what if you don't have much experience piloting a houseboat? Jeremy Vachon of the Lake Lanier resort says renters go through a quick but thorough training program before heading out on the water on their own.

"We go through everything in the boat," he said. "We go through every switch. We are very thorough.

"As far as the controls go, it is very simple," said Vachon, grasping a boat's wheel and gesturing toward its throttle. "Steering the wheel like a car right and left; forward and reverse with this thing. It is not complicated at all."

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Houseboat Magazine
Lake Lanier Islands Resort
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