15 Nov, 2009
California’s Preferred Parking Spots–Boat Slips
Posted by: Beach Reporter In: beaches| california
California yachting and boating is huge! It is so popular in fact, that restaurants and shops have gotten wise. Since some of their best customers come to dine and shop by boat and yacht, so you better give them a place to park. Shown in the photo above is one such spot at a restaurant in Long Beach, California, home to the nation’s largest municipal marina.
How big is the boating craze in California? There are close to 1 million registered boaters in the state, outranked only by Florida which has slightly more registered boats and yachts.
When the economy softens and people lose their jobs, we’ve seen a trend of more people living on their boats recently. For example, a job recruiter’s business neared collapse during this economic downtown. The Southern Californian’s business was failing and money wasn’t coming in. He was about to lose his home as he couldn’t afford the payments. Thanks to a good friend with a yacht, he moved onto the boat and collected rent on his house so the payments on his own property were covered. A craft can become not only a form of entertainment traveling the seas, but also a home on water.
Owning a boat or yacht isn’t limited to wealthy. There are many launch ramps the public can access, and there are craft you can rent for an hour, a day, or a week. The houseboat capital of the world in northern California’s Shasta Lake rents boats that are floating homes complete with high definition television, upper deck spas, blasphemous sound systems and room to sleep 10 - 15 people.
