Boat Show Info

[Want to sail]

We are still looking for OUR CAT and are planning on going to the Miami Boat shop. Since we have never been to one before we are not quite sure what to expect. Any tips? Do they have used boats there or only new? Paticular don't miss days? All info will be appreciated.
Want to sail

[Perithead]

Hello Want,

I went to the St. Pete boat show this past Decemeber and had a great time, it was my first boat show.

On days to miss, you should try to miss Saturday and Sunday if at all possible. The shows get pretty crowded and its tough to go on all the boats without other people getting in your way. We went on Friday and Saturday and Friday was definately the best.

Wear some good walking shoes, my girlfriend didn't (even though I told her many times) bring comfortable shoes and it effected the experience some.

The food is a little expensive if you are planning on eating there. I brought some health bars and bottles of water to hold us over throught the day.

If you can, bring some spending money because there are alot of cool vendors with some really interesting stuff.

Do some research on parking to find the best parking spots. Some you may have to pay for and some you may not, depending on the location of the show.

Have fun!

[David M]

Make sure its the sail only show in Florida. Otherwise you might end up rubbing elbows with guys in gold chains, greased hair and buttoned down aloha shirts.

[GordMay]

Boat Shows might be one place to see what’s currently availble, particularily in NEW boats (tho’ they will have some used brokerage boats); but you could have a more concentrated experience with a Catamaran Broker, such as
Catamarans for Sale, Sailing Vacations and Catamaran services

[Want to sail]

Thanks to everyone,
We are definately looking at the All Sail show. I am glad to hear that thee may be some used boats as that is where our real interest is. Thanks Gord for the extra web sites. i believe that i almost have Yachtworld memorised. We are looking forward to getting a first hand look at a variety of Cats.
Want to Sail

[Rock]

My first boat show was Miami a couple of years ago and I did not know what to expect either.
When I was in at the Miami show it was actually three seperate shows. It took me a couple of days to realize there were three areas, even though I had asked many people. People at one show seem to be oblivious to the other shows. There was a power/trawler show at one marine and a strictly sail at another marine and a used boat area 3 or 4 blocks from the new power/trawler boats. The used boat area did contain some new boat vendors also.
There were not many if any used catamarans in the used boat area. Most were larger "puff daddy" boats. The strictly sail area had alot of catamarans, but mostly new.
One thing to remember is to wear something on your feet you can take on and off easily as many boat owners require you to remove your shoes. Many times you will also have to register to get on some of the more expensive boats. Registering is just a way to get your email address and to make sure you get the salesmen who services your area.
Hope that is of some help.

[Adaero]

I was at Miami last year and I don't remember seeing any 2nd hand boats?
All the big boys are there, Lagoon, Leopard, FP, Voyage, Admiral, Dolphin, St Francis, Dean, Broadblue, PDQ plus a few more I can't remember.
Even if you are only looking second hand it will help you imensely to get on board all of the above and look at the way each manufacturer uses the space they have and how they are finished. It might help you to start to reduce your list of potential boats making your hunt a lot easier.

[kevingy]

Originally Posted by Perithead

I went to the St. Pete boat show this past Decemeber and had a great time, it was my first boat show.

It was an OK show. I was disappointed in the catamaran selection, though. There wasn't I catamaran I wanted to so much as go aboard, much less consider buying. As I recall, there were three: a Gemini 105, a Seawind 1000XL, and one that looked very Polynesian, but was more of a beach cat than a cruiser. I don't know why I expected much more, though. The 2007 St. Pete catamarn selection was as lean, with the exception of the Seawind 1160 in attendance.

Strictly Sail Miami is much better, IMO.

Originally Posted by Perithead

Wear some good walking shoes, my girlfriend didn't (even though I told her many times) bring comfortable shoes and it effected the experience some.

In addition to comfortable, it's best if you wear shoes that are easy to take off and slip on. You will be expected (if not required) to remove your shoes before boarding boats.

When I went to my first boat show, my tennis shoes were comfortable, but were a real pain to tie and untie between boats. It's also a good idea to wear shoes on the docks or nasty, painful splinters will get you.

[Want to sail]

Thanks for all the info. We are Looking at Thursday and Friday at the Strictly Sail show. We have been visiting the local docks and looking at the different models. Hope to learn a lot.
Want to Sail

[BadFish]

COME TO THE PITTSBURGH BOAT SHOW!!!!

Hahahaha, they sell plenty o' fishing rods!

Cheers

Bill

[Sea Wolf]

Miami boat show is great. We live here and go every year. There are a couple of used boats at Strictly Sail at Bayside, but they're usually the big boys with big prices. There is, however, a used boat show on Collins Ave on the beach at the same time. The show buses have put the used show on the trip in the past, so I imagine they will do so again. If you're interested in cats, there are generally at least 2 full docks of catamarans/multihulls. The multihull docks are always close to the HardRick so you can't miss them.

If we can help while you're here, let me know and we'll try to get together with you at the show.

Loree
Aboard SeaWolf
CruisersLife.com

[CarlF]

Quite surprising that less than a week before the show the Strictly Sail web site doesn't have a list of exhibitors available.

Not a good sign given the economy.

Carl

[Gudgeon]

Contact one of the brokers in advance and tell them you are interested in model X. Make an appointment to see him and he may set you up with a set of tickets for one of the days. Avoid the weekends

[marc]

Been to the Miami Show about 4 times. Love it. The best place to park is at the Strictly Sail show, at Miamarina. There is a constant flow of shuttle buses to all the venues. I don't know of any used boats being sold at the show' but since you're driving, head up to Ft. Laud., on Las Olas Blvd. & Isle of Venice. A broker usually has 8-10 nice cats on display. You can't miss them as you drive by on Las Olas.
Marc

[Sea Wolf]

Carl,
I had the same problem you did last week. I don't know what happened but there's obviously some kind of a foul up with the Boat Show website. I found it by googling Miami Boat Show Exhibitors. Here's the link: Exhibitor Marketplace

Good luck and have fun at the boat show.

Loree
Aboard SeaWolf
CruisersLife.com