The Airbnb of boats: This app lets you cruise to a boat rental on your phone
For water-lovers interested in renting jet skis, pontoon boats, fishing charters and yachts, the GetMyBoat app is available in Alberta.
Launched in 2013 in San Francisco, the boat rental app has expanded across North America -- with significant growth in Canada in 2020.
Through the app, renters can choose their water experience and location. An inquiry is then sent directly to the boat owner who responds with availability and pricing. Bookings and payments are done online.
“With an app you are going to see lots of price transparency, lots of different options. Sometimes you travel to a marina and they tell you they have one pontoon and its going to be a $1,000,” said GetMyBoat marketing manager Val Streif.
Josh Frick, a local boat owner, uses the GetMyBoat app to rent his wake-surf boat which can cost anywhere from $100,000 to $200,000.
“We’ve rented our boat out probably six or seven times now through GetMyBoat and it’s worked quite well,” said Frick.
His boat is rented with a captain who launches and drives the boat. Frick’s boat is supplied with water-sport equipment such as tubes and wakeboards and rents for $300 an hour. The minimum to rent the boat is three hours. Boat owners set their own prices for rentals and a service fee of 8.5 per cent is included in the fee.
He says the app allows for him to break-even on his boat costs while providing summer fun for a family or group of friends.
“Other people may not get the opportunity to own a boat like this so we will rent it to them at a reduced cost of actual cost to run a boat,” he said.
More on the boat rentals can be found online.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
LeBlanc says he plans to run in next election, under Trudeau's leadership
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
U.S. vetoes a widely supported UN resolution backing full membership for Palestine
The United States has vetoed a widely backed UN resolution that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for the state of Palestine.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn’t over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball’s highest scorer Caitlin Clark’s first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
Bayer recalls hydraSense baby product over 'potential contamination'
Bayer announced Thursday it is recalling two lots of its hydraSense Baby Nasal Care Easydose due to a potential contamination.
N.L. gardening store revives 19th century seed-packing machine
Technology from the 19th century has been brought out of retirement at a Newfoundland gardening store, as staff look for all the help they can get to fill orders during a busy season.
Cat found on Toronto Pearson airport runway 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Grandparent scam suspects had ties to Italian organized crime, police allege
A group of suspects that allegedly defrauded seniors across Ontario and other parts of Canada using a so-called emergency grandparent scam appear to have ties to 'Italian traditional organized crime,' according to an investigator involved in the OPP-led probe.