Hiring a small boat (dinghy or similar) in south France

[norman156]

Off to the Riviera in July and I rather like the idea of hiring some sort of small tender with an outboard for one of the days we're there, whether it be inflatable/fibreglass or whatever (my knowledge on boats doesn't streach too far...) has anyone done this or could point me in the right direction? Have done a few google searches but haven't really found anything. I did think about buying something like this but I'll have 4 people's luggage in my boot so I doubt a folded up inflatable of that size and an outboard would fit.
Any advice would be great!
Cheers
Matt

[oilandwater]

If you are anywhere near Antibes, from the market area of the town, head for the harbour through the road arch and slightly to the right. You will see the notice board on the dock side near the fishing boats. You can hire any size boat there, be it large with crew or smaller self sail. Middle size boats, you may need a certificate of competence, (acquired in the UK.) A large deposit is required for obvious reasons.
HTH

[norman156]

Cheers, I'll give that a go when I'm there. Can you remember what the prices were like for the smaller stuff? Cheapest I've managed to find is €110 for this, so if I could hire something smaller for a fair bit less that'd be good
EDIT: Forgot to mention I am actually staying in Antibes so that should be pretty perfect

Edited by norman156 on Wednesday 25th February 13:03

[oilandwater]

I can't remember the prices sorry, but I do remember thinking that they weren't bad. I trailed a boat to the SoF one year, and it was fantastic, except going through the tolls cost double, an expense I was expecting, but it still stung! That's why I priced the hire of boats, and for an odd day or two sailing, it worked out very reasonable, price wise. I would suggest a full days hire, as Antibes harbour is one of the biggest in Europe, and very interesting too. Don't forget to look for the Super Yachts!

[norman156]

Sounds painful, tolls are enough on their own, especially with the crappy exchange rate. What sort of boat was it that you took? If I get on well with what we hire this year I might think about getting myself a decent inflatable and an outboard, so long as I could squeeze one in the boot along with everyone else's luggage. I assume this is the marina you were talking about? Can't be more than 5 minutes walk from where I'm staying. I thought the one in Cannes was rather sizable when we went a few years ago, but this one is massive!

Edited by norman156 on Thursday 26th February 01:04

[oilandwater]

Yes that's the one. The hire boats are located on the dock side where Avenue de Verdun meets Rue Aubernon. The big white marquee is just to the left on the map, this is on the car park and it usually holds exhibitions, antique shows etc. Parking is at a premium by the way if an exhibition is on, but there is another car park in the middle of the Market place.

We took a Quicksilver 650. It was a great trip, we toured all of the marinas on the SoF. We based the boat at Marina beas des Anges, (the pyramid flats)they launched it for us, it looked VERY small compared to the fantastic yachts there. Only took it for 3 weeks, but we motored to St Tropez, Cannes, Monaco, they allowed us to stay in the marina so we could go to lunch on the dockside at Stars n Bars. Memorable, but an inflatable and outboard is the way for us next time.

Edited by oilandwater on Thursday 26th February 13:58

[norman156]

That corner of the Marina is the closest bit to where we're staying, so shouldn't need to drive over there. Sounds like a great holiday, also that looks like a rather large boat. What did you use to tow it all the way down there?? If you do the whole taking an inflatable thing, how would that work logistically? Would you pump it up once and find somewhere to moor it, or just blow it up when it's needed? I'm starting to think it might just be worth buying an inflatable and outboard if there's quite large deposits involved in hiring one. Sure I can find the space to fit it in somewhere...

[oilandwater]

Hi,
We towed it behind a Land Rover, Dover/Calais to S of France. Two night stops, Riems then Avignon.
The best way, in my opinion, would be to inflate the dingy once down there, launch and moor it at Antibes, they will charge a small fee. We took charts so we didn't hit any growlers under the waves and checked the weather conditions everyday too. If you take a boat with you though, you can feel compelled to use it everyday, whereas if you hire one, if the weather is not so good you don't feel your missing anything not being on the water.
hth.