How You Know a Bay Boat is the Boat for You

Ah, a bay boat. Tucked in that niche between flat-bottom shallow water boats and center consoles engineered for the open seas, a bay boat does a little bit of both. This versatility, and the affordability that comes with it, make bay boats a popular choice for many boaters.

So how do you know if a Bay Boat is the boat for you? Here are some of the advantages a bay boat has to offer. If these resonate with you, you might have realized that a Bay Boat is the boat for you. Once you’ve confirmed it, check out our vast bay boat inventory.  A popular boat style, we have hundreds of bay boats in our marketplace inventory at any given time. 

BAY BOATS HAVE ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR BOATING NICHES ALL TO THEMSELVES: MODEST SIZE, VERSATILE AND EASY TO RUN CLOSE TO SHORE.

Staying closer to shore? Bay boats love to hug the coastline.

Bay boats have a shoal draft, which means it’s shallower than other boats of comparable size. Bay Boats, like their namesake suggests, are designed to traverse the coastline with ease for fishing or light cruising. Because they’re also almost always designed as a center console, they’re also well-balanced, which gives passengers and anglers alike a sure-footed, comfortable ride that deeper-V hulled boats wouldn’t be able to traverse.

Be available to hit the water anywhere, anytime.

A trailerable boat is convenient because anglers can follow the catch or the weather. This also means no dock fees, which is a huge annual cost savings. Be sure when you buy your bay boat that you don’t forget the trailer.  Here’s a great resource we have on what to look for when you buy a trailer.

Bay boats’ modest size is big enough for a good time but small enough to be nimble.

These boats are always a manageable, storable, maneuverable size. Most bay boats fall within the 19 to 26-foot range, enough for your family or your fishing crew, plus enough space to store your gear without cluttering up the deck.

We already know bay boats are superior vessels for inland fishing. They can also take you out into deeper waters.

The bay boat’s center console design provides 360-degree water access, usually for up to four anglers, comfortably. They feature raised casting platforms at the bow and the stern, and low-slung gunwales that make it easy to remove fishhooks without taking your catch out of the water. Most bay boats are fishing-focused by design and feature multiple livewells, rod holders, raw water washdown, and tackle stowage, as well as fish finders and other electronics. So if you want to take your bay boat out into the ocean, go for it. While bay boats won’t have the smoother ride of a deeper-V hull or the range to go way offshore, it’s a nimble, versatile fisher.

So what do you think? Is a bay boat the boat for you? 

If you are still wondering is a bay boat is the boat for you its time to start searching. Bay boats are such a popular boat type, and we always have a variety to browse. Check out our bay boats page which features all the listings, or browse all boats for sale and select the bay boat filter, along with any other boat types you’re interested in. Get on the water in your new bay boat today.