This Website Makes Owning and Renting a Boat Completely Worth It
A new company takes the Airbnb model to sea
By Lexi Bolton July 25, 2014
This article originally appeared in the August 2014 issue of Seattle magazine.
When August finally arrives in Seattle, owning a boat seems like a genius idea. Imagine it: tooling around Lake Washington every weekend, sailing up to the San Juans or just buzzing over to Bainbridge. The sun shines, the water sparkles…unfortunately, for most of the year the boat sits at the dock, racking up marina fees. This reality inspired last year’s online launch of Boatbound (boatbound.co), a San Francisco–based company that applies the Airbnb model of peer-to-peer (in this case, “pier-to-pier”) rentals to watercraft. Having expanded to Seattle, Boatbound makes it possible for boat owners to offset costs, and for those curious about the boating lifestyle to live it without the storage hassle. Owners set the prices, which in the Puget Sound area range from $110 for a full day on a classic inflatable-hull Zodiac to $1,100 for a full day on a Catana 472 luxury performance catamaran. Powerboats are a popular offering here (around $200–$400 per day), but mellow boaters may prefer a 17-foot canoe ($75/day). Renters and owners review each other online, and Boatbound screens renters (25 and older only) for driver’s licenses and previous DUIs, and provides boat insurance and round-the-clock water support (including towing, should your rental conk out). Boat shoes not included.
Follow Us
Studio Sessions: Jo Cosme
The Seattle-based multimedia artist and 2026 Neddy Award winner challenges the postcard version of Puerto Rico and centers the persistence of its people.
Jo Cosme knows how seductive a postcard can be. The Seattle-based Boricua (Puerto Rican) multimedia artist works across photography, installation, video, sound, and interactive elements to examine and pull apart how Puerto Rico is seen, sold, and misunderstood from the outside. Trained in photojournalism, with a BFA in photography from Puerto Rico School of Fine…
Seattle’s Drag Brunch Has History
The city’s Sunday shows started long before the mimosas got bottomless.
There was a time not too long ago, when drag performances—now a mainstay of Seattle’s queer scene—were kept under wraps. And when brunches, complete with singing and dancing queens dressed in dazzling drag as you sipped mimosas, weren’t a Sunday staple. During the 1940s and ‘50s, an era largely shaped by restrictive laws and bias…
Studio Sessions: Sangram Majumdar
Working at the confluence of history, culture, and various painting traditions, UW associate professor Sangram Majumdar is one of this year’s Neddy Artist Award winners.
Discover the art of UW professor Sangram Majumdar, a 2026 Neddy Artist Award winner. Learn about his inspiration and upcoming Seattle exhibition at Cornish.
Rearview Mirror: A Georgian Dinner, Sidewalk Sips, and One-of-a-Kind Clothing
Things I did, saw, ate, learned, or read in the past week (or so).
A new life for old clothes To celebrate one year in its current studio, the FXRY—a clothing repair service available via in-person appointments, home pickup, or mail-in drop off—is dropping its first collection. A small batch of reworked pieces, Second Mark will feature 13 vintage barn jackets, cropped, chain-stitched, and renewed into a completely unique, one-of-one…