Bestway Hydro-Force Inflatable Raft Set | Inflatable Boat for Kids and Adults | Great for Ponds, Lakes, Rivers

This boat is one of the best purchases I’ve made in a while!I got this for a camping trip on the lake, and since returning we have also used it in our local marina and have had great success.This boat is no kid’s pool floaty! The boat feels well made; the material feels thick, sturdy, and abrasion resistant. It inflates and deflates quickly and easily (It comes with a hand pump, but we have used our rechargeable air mattress inflator instead, takes about 3 minutes in total). I appreciate that the inflation is separated into three sections, so in the hypothetical instance of a rip or puncture, the whole thing won’t deflate on you. It also comes with a storage bag and packs into it easily, paddles included.There is plenty of room in the boat for two, plus a cooler and other items; without bringing any extra items on board, you could easily fit three people. It is also is equipped with the needed bits for holding a fishing pole, attaching a sun shade, or fastening a small motor (look into your local watercraft laws before you do this one).My only complaints would be that the paddles are a bit stumpy and not very hydrodynamic; they certainly work, but I may invest in some better ones down the line. Additionally, if it’s a hot and sunny day, the material of the boat heats up to the touch, so I reccomend laying down a beach towel to avoid any discomfort.I wouldn’t recommend using this boat on open/choppy water or on days of less than perfect weather, but if it’s a calm day and you have a lake, river, or marina near by, this boat is a great investment!

Why did you pick this product vs others?:it is pretty sturdy and a little heavy but when you roll it up its not too bad. The pump is a little work but it also can be used to draw the air out. Someone didnt figure that out

Haven't put it on the water yet, but damn this thing is heavy. Do yourself a favor and get an electric air pump to inflate it. And on another note, one that will reverse and pull the air out or get a cheap 20 dollar walmart shop vac to pull the air out. Will take you hours to try to "roll " the air out otherwise It will never fit into the carry bag.

Works pretty good. Able to float out in the bay

I got the X3 for small lake fishing and equipped it with a 30lb thrust trolling motor. The raft is decent, but it has some issues:- weak material. I put a hole in the bottom just by leaning on in while it was on concrete. I patched it and it's good, but that showed how weak the material is. I would strongly advise against using it on a river. The first rock will put a hole in it.- I had a hard time understanding how much to inflate using their inflation scale, and contacted Customer service 2 times. 2 months later, haven't gotten an answer. Their scale is very counter intuitive. You need to inflate the outer chamber so that the 10 cm line on the boat matches the 11.3 cm line on the scale. Uselessly complicated. This could have been easily done like Intex does: inflate until the line on the boat matches the line on the scale.- Even with an added plywood floor, and just me and my petite wife in the boat, it is very unstable. Do not try to stand up in it. No way this is for 3 people.- I would not leave the oars on the sides. The holding rubberized plastic is weak and loose. They will easily fall in the water.Overall, I'll use it in small mountain lakes and pounds and try to adapt to it, but I regret buying it and I would probably get a Mariner 3 next time, with a 3 ply vinyl cover.UPDATE: 2 weeks after my initial update, I came back from the lake with 2 leaks and the floor valve leaking. I used it a total of 4 times, and I lost the money because I am out of the return window.

Used a few times, hard to row as it is large. Had to kneel and use 1 paddle and switch side to side. Very hard work getting to where you want to go on lake or pond.

Durable, sturdy, and so much fun!

I bought a "used like new" for a steal for my son's 18th birthday gift. There is an island in the lake where we celebrate his birthday and the year prior the boys ran back to town to hit Walmart for an air mattress. I wanted them to have a proper boat for the weekend. For the price I was just hoping it wouldn't take a few hours to inflate and die midway out to the island. I was preparing for the 5 boys (again 18 year olds) having to make multiple trips to get all 5 of them out to the island. Well, it took less than 15 min for them to get the thing inflated and all 5 of them rowed out, in jeans, and stayed dry the whole voyage. The boat even survived the weekend, was dried, deflated and packed away...I imagine it will gets lots of use as he goes off to college.