In the state of Florida 18 years old is the minimum age to rent a boat, however, the renter must either have a boaters license from their state or complete a approved online boater saftey course in order to drive the boat. The renter may also allow someone in their party to drive the boat providing they meet Florida’s requirements. See next FAQ for the requirements to drive a boat/vessel.
- Age: Born on or after January 1, 1988.
- Vessel: Operating a motorboat with 10 horsepower or more.
- What to Carry: Your Boating Safety ID Card (or temporary certificate) and a state issued photo ID.
- Take a Course: Complete a National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) approved boating safety course.
- Pass the Exam: Pass the final exam for the course.
- Get Your Card: Receive your Boating Safety ID Card from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) or a temporary certificate.
- You hold a U.S. Coast Guard “Master of a Vessel” license.
- You’re a non-resident with proof of completing a boater safety course in another state.
- You’re born before January 1st, 1988.
In the event of inclement weather (storms with high winds, lightening and/or thunder) at the time of your reservation we reserve the right to cancel your reservation. Will extend one of the following offers:
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- The option of a reschedule the following day if we have availability.
- A gift card for equal value for the amount paid that never expires.
- A full refund back to card used to make reservation.
If there is inclement weather during your rental, we will call you back to the dock cancelling the rental, you will be refunded a prorated amount for the time unused. Due to Florida’s constant change of weather patterns, decisions to cancel are not made until one hour prior of the scheduled reservation and are solely at the discretion of Pensacola Beach Pontoon Boat Rentals.
Failure to show up for reservation forfiets your reservation and no refunds will be issued.
You may voluntarily cancel your reservation up to 14 days before your scheduled reservation with a 10% cancellation fee.
You may volunarily cancel your reservation up to 7 days before your scheduled reservation with a 50% cancelation fee.
You may voluntarily cancel your reservation up to 48 hours before your scheduled reservation with a Gift Card of equal value that never expires.
If you cancel day of reservation will forfiet all money paid for reservation and no refunds will be issued.
Florida law only requires general liability which we have in place of up to $1 million per occurance. This insurance only protects damage done to another boat, dock or pier. It is highly recomended you to obtain your own insurance for the rental boat. The oportunity to purchase the additional insurance will be made available for a quote when you receive your confirmation of reservation in a email.
No, each rental boat leaves the dock with a full tank of fuel. Upon return the renter is responsible for the amount of fuel consumed. You can return the boat full or we can fill it up for you for a additional $50 convience fee plus cost of fuel will be charged to the credit card on file.
Area highlighted in green is where you may take our boats while the area highlighted in red is restricted. No boats are allowed to go into the Pass (entrance to the Gulf of America). Any guests who attempts to do so will be charged a $500 idiot fee and furthermore will be on their own for safety and liability and would need to contact the US Coast Guard for assistance.
Yes, however, you must have a Florida fishing license that can be purchased from Walmart, Outcast Bait and Tackle, or Gulf Breeze Bait & Tackle. While you are at one of these locations don’t forget to ensure you have all the bait, tackle, ice, cooler, and/or poles you may need because we do not provide none of the above. There is only one Bait and Tackle store you can pull up to while on the boat, however it is inconvienently located on the far west side of our authorized boating area in Perdido Key, Entertainer Bait and Tackle. “Let’s go Fishing”!
No to all the above, however, you are most welcome to bring your own water toys, with the exception of pull behind tubes and/or water skiing. Unfortunately our Insurance provider prohibits any pull behind tubes, wakeboards, and/or water skiing while operating any of our boats/vessels.
Yes! Your fur babies are allowed aboard, however, your pet counts as one person allowed onboard not to exceed the max capacity of the vessel. Every heartbeat counts as a person rgardless if human or canine.
- Panic & Fatigue: Even great swimmers can panic or get exhausted in open water, especially if they fall unexpectedly.
- Easy Retrieval: Jackets with a bright color and a top handle make it much easier for you to spot and lift your pet back onto the boat.
- Breed Vulnerabilities: Some breeds, like Pugs or Bulldogs, struggle in water and need flotation aids.
- Preparation: A life jacket provides flotation, helping your pet stay above water until they can be rescued or guided to safety.
Absolutely yes!
- You can bring your own prepaird food and drinks. Our Tiki Hut party boats also has a propane grill so you can even cook burgers and hot dogs while out (we provide the propane at no additional charge).
- We do not provide ice or ice chest/coolers so please bring your own.
- You may also bring your favorite alcholic beverages providing at least one person onboard is 21 years or older in age and is not contributing to minors. The captain of the boat is prohibited from consuming any alcohol before and during the course of the schedued rental.
- Glass bottles are prohibited on any of our vessels. all beverages must be contained in aluminum or plastic containers. If found in violation of this condition subjects the renter to a a fine in upwards of $100.
The Tiki Hut Party boats have a large portable toilet with a privacy curtain.
Yes! If instruction is needed, please contact us in advance of booking and we will do our best to accommodate you. It takes upwards of a additional 30 minutes of on the water training. We go over an instructional presentation educating our customers on the detailed operating procedures, the local boating laws and regulations, Navigational markers, as well as Boater’s safety and etiquette. Also remember that, By Law, the renter and anyone operating a rental boat must take a boater safety course if born after 12/31/87.
Unfortunately a captain is not provided to drive pontoon boat rentals. Simular to when you rent a car from Enterprise or Avis, they do not provide a chauffeur, hence why we don’t provide a captain. The customer is responsible for obtaining a captain/driver for the boat and driver must demonstrate that they are an experienced boater in order to operate the vessel. Failure to request a Captain in advance and/or lack of experience will result in a non-refundable cancellation upon safety instruction and is solely at the discretion of Pensacola Beach Pontoon Boat Rentals. If requested, we are happy to provide you with a list of qualified captains whom know the area and waterways well.
Idealy 30 minutes prior to your rental scheduled departure time to ensure the entire rental time is used. This will allow time for check-in, loading onto the boat and going over the operation & safety presentation. Failure to arrive on time (30 min. prior to scheduled time) will result in a delay in your departure. Our boats are scheduled on a strict 30 minute tutorial schedule and your original scheduled end time will not be extended, nor will your rental be credited for tardiness.
If you are running late and we are aware of it, no problem, we will hold your reservation for one hour. However, you will not be allotted additional time to the end of your schedueled reservation and the boat must be returned at the original scheduled end time. If you are more than one hour late, your reservation will be cancelled without refund.
According to Florida Law, children 7 years old or younger, must wear a life jacket while the engine is running and or boat/vessel is in motion. Pensacola Beach Pontoon Boat Rentals requires any guest who is mentally or physically chalenged, the elderly, presciption medicated, legaly intoxicated or those who are not strong swimmers must wear a life jacket at all times.
Yes, All of our boats have GPS location maps. The electionincs also leaves a breadcrumb trail that makes it full proof to not be able to find your way back to our marina. We also have GPS trackers that report your location every 5 minutes. As a back a backup measure you can use Google Maps on your smart phone to furthere aid your exact location to assist in your navigation. Furthermore to ensure your awareness of the water depth our electonics has a depthfinder and if your are fishing has a added bonus of utilizing the fish finder that shows fish and obstructions under the boat where you cannot see.
Yes! We offer a 15% discount when you rent any of our boats for multiple days. If you do decide to make a multi-day reservation with us and you own/rent a private waterfront property, you are more than welcome to keep the boat at your location for the night providing the location is approved by Pensacola Beach Pontoon Boat Rentals. Please keep in mind that the rental agreement you will sign expressly prohibits the use of our boats for night operation. We require that you follow that requirement and only opperate the boat during daylight hours. We have GPS trackers on all of the boats that report back to us the vessels location every 5 minutes, therfore, your are subject to fines and/or potential reporting to local athorities of the unauthorized use if violated.
Yes, absolutley! Parent beware, Infants and todlers must wear a life jacket at all times, furthermore, we have seen it time and time again, babies hate life jakets and have a tendency throw crying fits of being uncomfortable. If you are a parent that has a tolerance of crying babies then by all means bring them along, however, if you can not tolerate seeing your child being uncomfortable, you may want to reconsider. Never the less we do provide infant and todler life jackets.
Yes! All the boats are equiped with a marine grade AM/FM Stereo that has Bluetooth capability.
If you are late returning the boat, you will be charged $50 for every 15 minutes you are late.
The boat is provided to you clean and you are required to return it as such, picked -up and all trash removed. If you return the boat dirty and it requires additional cleaning, you will be charged a minimum $50 cleaning fee. If the boat is returned “trashed”, you will be charged a minimum $100 cleaning fee.
All boats are locatede at a marina in the water with easy access, does not require to be trailered to a boat ramp. Plenty of free parking.
We have an abundance of FREE parking at our Marina. Most of our competitors have either paid or free parking blocks away from their location.
