The Types of Boats

Different types of boats that are available at great prices and deals.

Air Boats

Air boats offer an exciting opportunity to see and fish locations no other boat can reach and are most frequently used in marshes of the southeast, bogs of the upper Midwest and shallow river areas.

All-Purpose Fishing Boats

Built for many activities, such as freshwater fishing and salt-water fishing, these family fishing boats are capable of pursuing many species, including bass. They tend to have higher freeboard than bass boats because they spend more time in rough water.

Bass Boat

Bass boats have low, sleek profiles and are built to fish with two or three anglers on board. The minimum length of bass boats starts with 16 feet and can go up to 26 feet.

Bowrider Boats

These family boats are the most popular in the runabout/spotboat category and are equipped with extra seats and forward access to the bow, a convenient spot to relax and sun.

Center Console Boats

These open fishing boats are built to take rough offshore waters in pursuit of ocean fish. Rod holders, outriggers and other gear are common fittings onboard.

Closed Bow Runabout Boats

Closed Bow Runabouts are fast and ideal for smaller crews who enjoy the sleek sports car look. These boats are great for watersports activities.

Cruising Sailboat Boats

Cruisers provide the fun of living on the water with the convenience of sleeping, cooking and plumbing facilities. Large enough to serve as a second home at sea, they are popular choices for weekend vacationers.

Cuddy Cabin Boats

These are great day cruisers and overnighters for small groups and family boating. Ideal for skiing, tubing and wakeboarding, they are most often powered with sterndrive engines, but outboard power is becoming popular, too.

Day Sailer Boats

Smaller in size they are designed for short trips on the water to nearby destinations. Many sail them just for the fun of using the wind’s power for propulsion. At about 20 ft., day sailers often include a small cabin or "below decks" area for dry storage.

Deck Boats

Deck boats have wide deck to carry 8 to 12 or more passengers (like pontoons) but look and perform more like runabouts. They are powerful, too, making them excellent boats for skiing, tubing and wakeboarding.

Dinghy Boats

These small crafts are usually less than 10 feet in length, easy to carry on a car top or light enough to carry on board a cruiser. Great for use off the beach, or around the harbor.

Dinghy Sailboats

Built to carry one to two boaters, dinghies can offer wet rides and are fun for learning to sail on smaller, less turbulent waters. Some allow the sail and mast to be stowed so they can be rowed as well.

Electric Boats

Electric boats are becoming more popular for easy cruising on smaller lakes. While some boats are built primarily for electric power, fishing boats and pontoon boats are increasingly propelled by electric motors.

Fish and Ski Boats

This craft allows boaters to enjoy the two most popular on-water activities; fishing and skiing. This family fishing and recreational boat has enough power to pull a skier or two, and to get to the fishing spot in short order.

Flat Boats

These boats are popular in costal areas where sea trout and redfish live. They can float and run in water less than two feet deep and are ideal for fishing with two to three people on board.

Folding Boats

These boats make ideal craft for strapping to a motor home, or sometimes, checking as airline luggage. They are nimble, inexpensive and built to provide a long life of boating fun in fishing and touring.

Heavy Welded Boats

Heavy welded boats are emerging as a new and more durable metal boat, it’s a good alternative for fishing boats, runabouts and even some cruisers. These lighter boats perform well with smaller engines, saving fuel.

Houseboats

Houseboats are designed to offer lake house living on the water complete with spacious floor plans and modern amenities for entertaining, dining and sleeping.

Inboard Cruiser Boats

Inboard cruisers are powered by inboard engine, these boats "throw" a perfect wake for very serious wake boarders. With the engine set back against the transom, seating is more comfortable and open like a bowrider.

Inflatable Boats

Inflatable boats range in size from 8-foot dinghies for tenders to 30-foot high performance boats. These boats are suitable for saltwater and freshwater fishing, watersports and more.

Jet Boats

Jet Boats are like bow riders and deck boats, they offer comfortable seating and sunning areas, plus a speedy and exciting ride. They are distinguished from runabouts by their propulsion system, which is enclosed inside the hull.

Jon Boats

A Jon Boat is a multi-purpose camping, freshwater fishing and hunting craft, typically aluminum and powered by a small to moderate outboard. They may be customized with added fishing features like trolling motors and driver consoles.

Motor Yachts

Motor yachts are ideal for ocean cruising or navigating large rivers or the Great Lakes, as well as entertaining at the dock. Two engines, usually fueled with diesel and a generator for electricity make them self-sufficient in terms of living accommodations.

Multi-Hull Cruiser Boats

Multi-hull cruisers, also known as catamarans, a wide, airy main cabin is the trademark of these cruisers along with lots of deck space for sunning. They are fuel-efficient and are excellent for long-range cruising and island hopping.

Multi-Hull Cruising Sailboats

Multi-hull cruising sailboats are like cruising sailboats, these are designed for long-range travel and offer spacious accommodations. Their stability and easy sailing characteristics make them popular as rental or charter boats.

Multi-Hull Day Sailer Boats

Multi-hull day sailers, also Called "catamarans" when they have two hulls and "trimarans" if they have three, these boats come in a variety of sizes. They are light and fast, and some styles have popular racing circuits.

Multi-Hull Power Boats

Multi-hull power boats (Catamarans) are the most popular multi-hull boats and are usually offered as an alternative to center consoles. Most catamarans are designed for hardcore angling, but some models offer recreational and cruising amenities.

Performance Boats

Performance boats are the sleek sports cars of the boating world, offering high speeds and precise handling to boaters who prefer their thrills full throttle. Marrying big horsepower with sleek hulls results in boats that are equally at home slicing through ocean swells or tearing up inland lakes. Cranking offshore or simply relaxing in a cove, performance boats deliver lots of smiles per hour.

Pontoon Boats

Pontoon boats give families with younger boaters a secure place to enjoy the ride or toddle about when at anchor, thanks to wide decks and "lay pen-like" side rails and gates. When equipped with larger engines they can be as quick as runabouts.

Racing Sailboats

Racing Sailboats are usually 20- feet in length with sleek hulls, an open cockpit with sparse seating. They usually lack living quarters because they are built as light as possible for maximum speed and offer an exciting sailing experience.

Sedan Bridge Boats

Sedan Bridge has all the style of a sport fishing yacht, but exchanges a tuna lookout tower and fishing amenities for more deck space and swim platform. They have ample living accommodations including an electrical generator, AC and plumbing.

Sportfishing Boats

Sportfishing boats are great for pursuing large fish. Often equipped with sleeping berths, a galley for cooking and plumbing for convenience, they have the capacity to stay on the water for days.

Stern Drive Cruiser Boats

Stern drive cruiser boats are great for freshwater fishing, watersports, cruising and much more, these boats have all the comforts expected from recreational cruising boats including sleeping, cooking and plumbing equipment.

Trawler Boats

Trawlers have facilities for sleeping, cooking and plumbing provide boating fun for weekends on the water with family and friends. They can handle big rivers, lakes and oceans on moderate days.

Walkaround Boats

Walkaround boats may be the ultimate family fishing boats and are most popular in coastal waters, large bays and the Great Lakes where anglers pursue salmon or offshore ocean species. They are equipped with rod holders, livewells and steps to the forward deck to make it easy to follow a big fish around the boat.

source Discover Boating