Naples Bay Resort Marina gives facelift to rental boats

The marina at the Naples Bay Resort recently gave six of their rental deck boats a complete makeover and power boost.

Naples Bay Resort, located on Fifth Ave. in downtown Naples, houses the fully operational 97- wet slip marina that also offers 16 boat rentals year-round.

“The boats were just a little bit older and needed some attention,” said Jason Oglesby, the marina’s manager.

The six 24’ Hurricane Bowrider deck boats, which can hold up to 10 people, were purchased in 2014 and have spent more than 2,000 hours on the water, according to Oglesby.

“In the boating world, when an engine starts to get up around 1,500-2,000 hours, that’s essentially like a car having 150,000-200,000 miles on it,” Oglesby said. 

Wear and tear are expected when the boats are being used every day but Oglesby said the more than $100,000 upgrades only need to be done every couple of years.

The facelift, which took several months and finished at the end of January, included all new upholstery, new electric wiring, and new 225 Mercury 4 Stroke Verado engines.

"The biggest difference is the size of our boats and the size of the engines we have on our boats," said Oglesby.

According to Oglesby, most rental fleets have boats with 90 - 200 horsepower engines.

Some of the rentals have 250 Yamaha 4 Stroke engines, Oglesby said, which are considered "over-sized" for the 24' boats. 

All 16 boats, which includes four center console boats, now have the highest quality equipment including large Touch Screen GPS, VHF and Bluetooth radios, Oglesby added.

But it's not all about size and aesthetics for boaters. 

"Safety is a real key factor on the water," said Gene Morgan, long time boater and customer at the marina. 

Morgan, who has lived in Naples for 30 years, said its important for proper maintenance of the boats so renters don't find themselves in an unsafe situation or a failure on the water. 

"When you get out there, you sure would like to come back," he said.

Oglesby assured the makeover wasn't a result of Hurricane Irma effects.

During Irma, he stayed on the third floor of the Naples Bay Resort with his family and dogs so he could oversee the marina.

“We all piled in and hunkered down,” he said. “We lost a few power pedestals and one or two windshields were broken on one of the boats. Overall we did really well.”

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The marina has direct access to the Gulf of Mexico and customers frequently use the rentals to visit nearby islands, and to experience the wildlife and sunsets of Southwest Florida.  

Oglesby, who has been with the marina for five years, said in season, between December and April, they average about 14-16 boat rentals per day and in offseason, they have about 6-10 boat rentals per day.

The makeover comes with an increased price of about $30 for the rentals, though..