BAY CITY BOAT RENTAL

 PROVIDING TIPS FOR SAFE BOATING IN BAY CITY 

Boating in Bay City can be a very fun experience, but with it comes plenty of dangers and risks. The best way to minimize potential dangers and maximize your fun is to be prepared and knowledgeable before setting sail. To help boaters of all experience levels, we built this web page with tons of helpful resources to build your confidence before hitting the water. Scroll through this page and soak it all in, or select the topic you want to look at to jump to that section!

Weather

Saginaw River Wake Zone Map

Boaters Safety

Summertime Activities in Bay City

General Rules of the Water

Frequently Asked Questions

 

BAY CITY WEATHER

We understand that a safe and enjoyable boating experience is very weather dependent, and the last thing we want to do is cut your reservation short due to inclement weather. This is why we included a couple links to our favorite weather services to help you plan your outing. Be sure to review our cancellation and weather policies when selecting a reservation date. 

 

Bay City Wind
CLICK FOR WIND DIRECTION RADAR
CLICK FOR ACCUWEATHER RADAR

SAGINAW RIVER WAKE-ZONE MAP 

This map will also be posted on your vessel

BOATER SAFETY IN BAY CITY

At Bay City Boat Rental, we care about your safety! Please review the Boater Safety Handbook and our customized bulletin before your reservation date.

BoatUS.com is another great resource which provides endless articles with boating advice and tips for everyone, from the experienced boater to the first-timer. Below is a handful of articles hand-selected by the owners of Bay City Boat Rental with information and guidelines best suited for boating in Bay City, MI.

 

Select the description of each article to read it!

THINGS TO DO IN BAY CITY

The Saginaw River flows right through downtown Bay City which hosts many summer-time events, including a number of concerts at Wenonah park – anchor our boats next to the sea wall to get VIP seats to any of these concerts! Click the link below to learn about all the downtown events.

GENERAL RULES WHEN RENTING WITH BAY CITY BOAT RENTAL

AND, OF COURSE, HAVE FUN AND BE SAFE!

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

We do not currently have an option to provide a captain. But if this is something that you are interested in, give us a call and voice your opinion. If the demand is there, this is something that we could offer in the future!

We will provide enough life jackets on your vessel for everyone in your party. However, you are free to bring your own if you want a more comfortable jacket to wear. If children or toddlers are part of your group, we do suggest that you bring a properly fitted USCG approved life vest for each child. 

** KEEP IN MIND: all children under 6 years old must wear a USCG approved life vest at all times while aboard a vessel in Michigan.

Yes, there will be a map aboard your vessel detailing the “no-wake” zones, common landmarks, channel markers, restaurants, and areas of interest. We also have maps available on our website.

We are headquartered at Scotty’s Sandbar on the Middle Grounds in Bay City, Michigan. 1201 Evergreen Drive, Bay City, MI 48706

Weekends and holidays always fill up fast. The best bet is to book a month or more in advance to guarantee a spot.

Our standard offering is 4 hour and 8 hour rental durations and can be started at half hour increments beginning at 9am. We also offer a 2 hour “sunset” cruise which only has one start time – 2 hours before sunset.

You must be 25 years old to rent our boats. You can bring younger passengers aboard. Anyone under 18 is the renter’s responsibility.

Yes. After checking out, a waiver will be sent to the email provided and can be signed on the internet. On the day of the reservation, all passengers must sign a liability release prior to boarding the vessel.

Yes! However, it is limited to 1 mile past Channel Island for your safety (and insurance reasons). The onboard GPS will siren if you go too far out. You also have access to the Kawkawlin River, and boater’s beach in front of Bay City State Park.

Absolutely! The Saginaw Bay area is known for its amazing Walleye fishing, no way would we limit your ability to fish!

In the off-chance that this does happen, remain calm, drop anchor, and give us a call on our personal phone (listed on the boats). We will arrange a tow boat to come out and bring you back to the dock

Available dates for online rentals are from May 1st to September 30th. However, if you would like to rent a boat outside of this season, give us a call and if we still have a boat in the water we can set you up over the phone!

Normally, we will charge the card on file for the fuel used after your reservation has ended. However, you do have the option to choose the “fuel” add-on at checkout to pay a flat rate for fuel up front, in which case there will not be an extra fuel charge at the end of your reservation.

Yes you can! You will need to call and book over the phone to do this. The earliest start time we offer for online bookings is 9am, but if you call we can enter you in for an earlier start time! However, due to insurance policies, your start time must be at or after sun rise.

Find our contact info here: Contact Us

The day of your reservation, a temporary hold of $350 will go onto the card used to pay for the booking. This is used to cover low-cost incidentals, fuel charges, late fees, cleaning fees, etc. If fuel is pre-paid and the boat is returned on time in an acceptable condition, the full amount will be released back to your card. More details can be found in the waiver sent to your email after booking!

Bay City Boat Rental