Appeasing the Modern Boater

Today’s active consumers are seeking the same types of provisions, conveniences, and indulgences when they travel, whether by boat, automobile, or airplane—clean, functional service amenities, options for connected, remote, work/play, and a few luxury touches to make the experience feel special. These things don’t necessarily require a large budget; marinas can be as basic or extravagant as they please. Marina owners and operators simply need to offer a well-thought-out and executed suite of amenities and services that will satisfy the modern boater and keep them coming back.

Clean, Functional Service Amenities
Let’s begin with the basics. Today’s full-service marinas should have accessible restroom and shower facilities, ample parking, quality drinking water, laundry options, ice machines, water hook-ups, reliable Wi-Fi, sanitary pumpout services, on-site fueling stations, pet areas, and full electrical service. Public facilities should be clean, stocked with necessities, and always fully functional.

While it’s true that most marinas offer these foundational amenities, what can set a marina apart from competitors is how clean and attended-to these facilities are. Being tidy, sanitary, and well stocked provides guests a sense of comfort and will do wonders in advancing a marina’s reputation as an establishment that cares about the “little things.”

Beyond the basics, marinas can amplify their appeal by offering services that tend to all the needs of a boat’s lifecycle. Maintenance and full-service repair facilities, manufacturer-suggested service inspections, canvas repair, power washing, bottom painting, winterization services, shrink wrapping, and storage, provide customers with a true one-stop shop to keep their boats afloat and their investments cared for — a true necessity as the price of boats continues to climb.

Transient Travel Options
Today’s boaters are on the move. On the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ability to work or connect from anywhere, our world has witnessed a sea change in the number of people working remotely. According to monthly studies of workers conducted by researchers at Stanford University, remote work (and, to a degree, hybrid work) remains prevalent — accounting for over a quarter of paid full-time workdays in the United States in the first quarter of 2023. A similar study analyzed over 50 million job postings in February 2023. It found that postings explicitly mentioning remote work were at 12.2% — a fourfold increase since before the pandemic began.

No doubt, this impacts the recreational boating industry. People are taking advantage of the option to work from anywhere. This includes on a boat, traveling between marinas, or embarking upon longer tours such as the Great Lakes’ Great Loop or the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway — adventures where transient docking options are key.

This trend only seems to be gaining in popularity, so marinas looking to boost their marketability might consider implementing a transient slip rental program. There are several successful software programs on the market such as Snag-a-Slip, HarbaMaster, Dockwa, Scribble, and GetMolo that help manage slip reservations, accept online bookings, process payments, and assist marina owners with information about upcoming guests, reservation requests, and customer communications. Similar tools cater to specific regional destinations, while others can be utilized by boaters traveling across the country — or even internationally. The marina retains ownership of the slip while the software manages the rentals — at all hours of the day or night. This removes much of the hassle of management while still reaping the benefits of rental fees.

Whether managed by a third-party vendor or by the marina itself, offering transient rental slips can also be quite lucrative. This is particularly true if a marina is in a prime location or along a popular tour route, in which case, marinas often need to implement a waiting list. The pricing structure of a slip rental program generally assigns different fees to different sizes of boats (price per foot per hour/day/week), wet vs. dry slips, time of year, and location within the marina itself (more private, closer to amenities, etc.). Quality marina amenities can bump the rental price even higher and most all marinas collect a premium fee over holidays.

Luxury Touches
Finally, marinas should consider adding a few “extra-mile” indulgences for their guests. These can range from simple touches that make a visitor’s experience memorable to more deluxe initiatives that create a leisure lifestyle atmosphere.

Something easy and relatively inexpensive is to offer complimentary snacks, beverages, and personal care items. Consider working with nearby businesses, bakeries, coffee roasters or breweries/wineries to offer locally sourced treats; what’s good for the taste buds is also good for the local economy.

Concierge services are a great option for marinas in larger communities or those that receive a lot of transient boaters who may not be familiar with the area. A concierge can assist with providing recommendations for restaurants, sightseeing and other activities, or make reservations on behalf of the customer for those items. This person can also assist with handling luggage, arranging for transportation or booking hotels. Concierge or no concierge, the bottom line is quality customer service. Hiring the right people to interface with guests is key. Make sure these individuals are detail-oriented, friendly, and responsive. Top-tier customer service is memorable and will make even the simplest of marinas stand out from the crowd.

Transportation is also an important consideration. It is likely that marina guests may require a vehicle during their stay. Some marinas offer shuttle services or have invested in a dedicated vehicle (or multiple) for customers to use to run errands. Complimentary bicycles, e-bikes or scooters with cargo baskets/bags and helmets could be a great option for smaller communities or marinas near bike trails and safe transit routes. Golf carts are handy for getting around within the marina itself or transporting goods to and from the docks. They’re also a welcome addition for any patrons with mobility challenges.

Marinas looking to offer something more distinctive might consider a membership program. Customers either pay a fee to become a member or earn membership by purchasing an annual slip/storage lease with the marina. Membership programs can be custom branded with a name, logo, and all the accompanying swag such as branded clothing, boat decals, bags, boating supplies, stationary, barware, or gifts. Memberships can offer auxiliary perks as well, such as tickets to exclusive events, golf course greens fees, or discounts at local establishments and online retailers through the creation of a partnership program. Marinas can also host members-only events — at the marina or another waterfront destination of choice — where members socialize and get to know each other. Some other membership program perks might include a monthly newsletter, complimentary transient docking, marine fuel at a discount rate, and more.

The Competitive Edge
It can be challenging to appease the modern traveler who has a whole world of options and conveniences at their fingertips. Marinas can choose to dip their toes into the digital cloud or dive fully in, recognizing that there are a lot of great platforms out there to optimize workflow, decrease labor hours, and simplify reservation management. But marinas also know it’s all about personal interactions and the customer experience. Sometimes people just want a good clean restroom and a warm hello. Using those things as the foundation, supplemented with a few unexpected indulgences, marinas will earn the loyalty of their customers as well as the accolades of their peers — a win-win in anybody’s book.

Dan Williams, PLA, ASLA, AHLP is senior landscape architect at MSA. He can be reached at dwilliams@msa-ps.com