Anyone got an inflatable Kayak ?

[Inspectorclueso]

Not quite sure where to post but thought I'd give this forum a try ! Off to Cornwall next week and thought about getting an inflatable Kayak to faff about on...Will be used on a few rivers, prefer a 3 man, or at least me and 2 kids, 10 and 13. (all can swim well)

Anyone got one ? Do I just go for the average stuff on ebay, or are these going to be rubbish, hence I need to get something different / better ?

Any info welcomed.

[DavePanda]

We had one a few years ago, was great fun, was an £80 impulse buy from Amazon, took it up the Thames then into Studland bay where it developed a leak, sent it back to Amazon. Lidl had some at £49 the other month, should have got another.

[smifffymoto]

3 man you say,you need a Hobie Fiesta.

[996Type]

Just spent the weekend on a friends decathalon inflatable one at the coast, packs down to a large suitcase sized bag.

Model is the controversially named I-TWIT which to be fair correctly matched my ability.

Think he paid around £400 for it and is really into using it.

Edited by 996Type on Tuesday 12th July 22:42

[Inspectorclueso]

thanks all, research on those mentioned underway !

[dudleybloke]

You get what you pay for, a cheap pvc one will be awful to paddle and easy to puncture, the more expensive ones have a lot better shape and will feel more like a proper kayak.

[djc206]

I’ve got seyvlor Madison. It’s pretty good, bit slow in the water vs a solid one but built pretty tough and tracks nicely. It’s probably a bit small for what you’re after, says it’s a 2 person but they tend to make the same ludicrous claims that tent manufacturers do. It’s a 1.5 in reality or in my case 1 plus some beers and a picnic.

As above you get what you pay for. The cheap and cheerful ones are not great but if you’re just playing around in the shallows or drifting along a calm stretch of river perfectly adequate.

[indigostr]

djc206 said:

I’ve got seyvlor Madison. It’s pretty good, bit slow in the water vs a solid one but built pretty tough and tracks nicely. It’s probably a bit small for what you’re after, says it’s a 2 person but they tend to make the same ludicrous claims that tent manufacturers do. It’s a 1.5 in reality or in my case 1 plus some beers and a picnic.

As above you get what you pay for. The cheap and cheerful ones are not great but if you’re just playing around in the shallows or drifting along a calm stretch of river perfectly adequate.

I bought a Madison about 4 years ago, used it in lakes and calm sea UK and Europe. As above its more for one adult and a child. It's not light which I guess helps with its water stability. I use a rechargeable pump and can have it fully inflated in about 5 minutes. Adjustable seats straps help to get the right seating position.

[Bill]

Sorry, I'm going to be that guy.... Make sure you have buoyancy aids and and understanding of tides (or upstream an understanding of where you can paddle plus other issues from weirs and overhanging branches etc...) and the effect of wind.

Depending on how big you and your kids are you'll struggle with 3 in a cheap inflatable, and are more likely to put them off unless it's just for cocking about on a beach.

[djc206]

Bill said:

Sorry, I'm going to be that guy.... Make sure you have buoyancy aids and and understanding of tides (or upstream an understanding of where you can paddle plus other issues from weirs and overhanging branches etc...) and the effect of wind.

Depending on how big you and your kids are you'll struggle with 3 in a cheap inflatable, and are more likely to put them off unless it's just for cocking about on a beach.

Totally fair points.

[boyse7en]

dudleybloke said:

You get what you pay for, a cheap pvc one will be awful to paddle and easy to puncture, the more expensive ones have a lot better shape and will feel more like a proper kayak.

Yep. I bought one of the Lidl £40 special a few years ago. Used it twice and it was not good in the water. Sat too low which made it draggy and hard to turn, and the high sides made it hard to paddle and also caught the wind which meant it went sideways almost as fast as it went forward.
The only good thing about it was that i managed to sell it for £50 a few weeks later.

The more expensive ones might be better, but i went and bought an old fibreglass kayak which was much better

[Bill]

Not that there's anything wrong with cocking about on a beach!

[Bill]

boyse7en said:

The more expensive ones might be better, but i went and bought an old fibreglass kayak which was much better

You definitely get what you pay for. We have a Gumotex Seawave which I prefer to our double sit on top and is good for "proper" kayaking. But it is expensive.

We started with a Sevylor and the effort involved paddling that Vs the Seawave is night and day. I'm itching to try one of the Decathlon efforts to see which side of the halfway point they sit. I suspect the Seawave isn't twice as good.

[Jamesgt]

I paid about £150 for mine. We’ve used it a couple of times on the canal here but to be honest, it’s slow and doesn’t take my kids without sinking even lower. I’ve just inflated it in the garden to get photos and I’m selling it this weekend.