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Boating With Children

Jan. 17 2020 Miscellaneous By ___

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One of the nicest ways you can create memories and enjoy time with your family is to take them out on your boat! You can teach kids new skills and take them to new places. But kids require you to do more planning and preparation before you embark on a boat trip so that they don’t get bored, hungry or cold. After all, you don’t want them to be miserable!

Bob Hewes Boats, with four locations in southern Florida, is your Sunshine State boat dealer. To help you have better boating trips with your family, here are some of our top tips for boating with children.

Teach Your Kids To Swim Early

The best way to make sure kids are comfortable in the water is to ensure that they know how to swim. Introductory courses can allow children as young as one year old to become comfortable with the water while playing with you. Formal swimming lessons can start around the age of four. Children should learn basic swimming strokes, as well as how to float on their stomachs and backs and tread water, along with the different risks presented by ocean tides and river currents.

Acclimate Kids To Wearing Life Jackets

Every child should wear a life jacket or personal flotation device (PFD) that is approved by the United States Coast Guard. PFDs designed for children have head flotation and crotch straps to keep them above the water’s surface and to prevent the life jacket from slipping off them. Try the PFDs out in a swimming pool or other shallow body of water so that you can see how they fit. Attach a marine whistle to each life jacket so that kids can whistle for help if they fall in the water or see something that they need to alert the operator about.

Have children wear their life jackets from dock to dock, just in case they fall into the water while trying to board the boat. Encourage teenage and adult passengers to wear their life jackets as well to model good behavior in the interest of safety. Kids are more likely to do something if the adults around them are doing it, too.

Establish Safety Rules

Your next task is to make sure that your children are well-versed in marine safety rules. Teach them to not run or jump around on the boat, to keep their hands and legs away from the edge, to always wear their life jackets, to avoid bothering or distracting the operator while the boat is in motion and to alert others to any dangers they see. Review these rules at home and at the dock before boarding the boat to make sure kids understand them fully.

Pack Well

You’ll need to pack more supplies for kids than you do adults because they’re more likely to become bored, cold or hungry on an afternoon trip. 

  • Pack some games, coloring books and a few toys that are practical for use on a boat.
  • Plan some activities like learning how to navigate with a map and compass or pointing out different types of marine life. 
  • Let kids create a playlist to listen to on the boat so that they can play their favorite songs.
  • Pack extra warm layers and some blankets in case the wind picks up, and encourage kids to change out of wet clothing or bathing suits promptly to prevent hypothermia from setting in.
  • Fill a cooler full of drinks like bottled water, milk cartons or juice boxes and snacks like sandwiches, cut-up fruit, string cheese and yogurt to keep them from getting hungry

Following these tips should help ensure that you and your family have a great time out on the water! Visit one of our three locations in North Miami or our location in Pompano Beach to take a look at our full selection of new and used boats for sale, including family-friendly models. You can also talk to our staff about our financing options if you need them. Bob Hewes Boats proudly serves the greater Miami area as well as the city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida!