The pontoon
Flat deck, rails the whole way round, shade over the middle and a swim ladder off the back. It sits steady when everybody stands on the same side to look at something, which is most of the day.
Boat rentals
Boat rentals in Georgetown
The rental fleet is pontoons, tritoons and deck boats. Tell us the dates and the head count for Georgetown and we route it to operators who have one free, instead of you calling round every marina on the coast.
- Free to send
- No obligation
- Local operators only
Boat club membership
Going out more than ten times a year?
Then dues usually beat paying a day rate every time you go. Answer eleven questions about how you actually use a boat and a rep comes back with the clubs near Georgetown worth your time, not all of them.
Under ten times a year? Renting is almost certainly cheaper, and we will tell you so.
Quiet rivers, then a very big bay
Georgetown sits at the point where the Waccamaw, the Pee Dee, the Black and the Sampit rivers come together and empty into Winyah Bay. That makes it the most varied water on this coast: dark, quiet river above the town, and wide open bay below it.
Run north up the Waccamaw and the character changes completely. The water goes tea coloured under cypress, the banks close in, and the whole thing feels a very long way from the beach an hour behind you. It is the best answer on the Grand Strand to anyone who thinks boating here means crowds.
Georgetown is one of the oldest towns in South Carolina and its Front Street harbourwalk faces the water, so arriving by boat is a genuine way to see the place. Out at the mouth of the bay, the Georgetown Light stands on North Island.
Planning it
Bay water is not Waterway water
A rental day here goes better when it is planned around the water rather than the clock. These are the things worth knowing before you pick a start time.
Winyah Bay is big, open and can get lumpy when wind runs against the tide. It is not the same proposition as the sheltered Waterway further north, and a small boat that is fine at Barefoot Landing can be an uncomfortable ride out here. Ask your operator plainly where their boat is suited to going.
If the goal is the quiet river rather than the bay, say so. Heading up the Waccamaw is a different day out with different requirements, and it suits a slower boat and a longer window than a quick loop does.
Before you book
- Ask how fuel is billed. Top off on return, flat fee, or by the hour. All three exist locally.
- Ask for the damage deductible in writing. The number you personally owe, not the coverage.
- Ask where the boat may go. Inside water only is the norm for rental pontoons.
- Ask who calls a weather cancellation, and whether you get a refund or a credit.
The rental fleet
Pontoons and tritoons only
Two aluminium tubes or three. That is the whole decision on the rental side, and the right answer usually comes down to how many people you are taking and what the forecast is doing.
The tritoon
Same deck, third tube underneath. More power, a firmer turn and a noticeably better ride once the water chops up behind a passing boat. Ask for one if your group is large or the forecast is breezy.
Want a center console instead? That does not sit in the rental fleet. Regular access to one means a club membership in Georgetown.
Read this before you pack rods
Can you fish from a rental?
Sometimes, and it depends entirely on the operator. It is the single question people forget to ask until they are standing on the dock with a tackle box.
Why some operators say no
Hooks, bait and fish do real damage to a rental pontoon. Treble hooks tear vinyl seating, cut bait soaks into carpet and never fully leaves, and scales and blood turn a same day turnaround into a deep clean. Plenty of operators solve that by banning fishing outright on their rental fleet.
Others allow it with conditions. Common ones are no live bait, no cast nets, no bottom fishing, rods kept in holders under way, and a cleaning charge if the boat comes back messy. None of that is unreasonable. It just needs agreeing before you book rather than discovering after.
Ask it exactly like this
"Is fishing permitted from this boat, and if so what are the restrictions, and is there a cleaning fee?" Get the answer in writing. If fishing is the whole point of the day, say so in your request and we will route you to operators who allow it rather than ones who turn you away at the dock.
Worth knowing too: the rental fleet is pontoons, tritoons and deck boats. If you want a proper fishing platform with a live well and rod holders, that is a center console, and regular access to one comes through a club membership rather than a rental.
Where people fish near Georgetown
- Winyah Bay. Big open water where four rivers meet the sea. It builds a real chop when wind runs against tide.
- The Waccamaw above the town. Dark, quiet blackwater under cypress. A completely different day from the bay below it.
- The river confluence, Mile 403.9. Where the Waccamaw, Great Pee Dee and Sampit come together. Note that aids to navigation change to green on the right through here.
Locations from NOAA Coast Pilot 4. A South Carolina saltwater fishing licence is required for saltwater fishing, and size and catch limits apply and change through the year. Check the current rules with SCDNR before you go, and confirm with your operator where that particular boat is permitted to run.
Straight answers
Questions about Georgetown
Anything else, put it in the message box on the form and we will answer it before we route your request.
It is the southern end of the region we cover and it is a drive, so treat it as a destination rather than a convenience. What you get for that drive is the least crowded and most varied water on this coast, which for a lot of people is the whole point.
Almost everything. The rivers above Georgetown are narrow, dark and sheltered, and they suit a slow cruise. Winyah Bay below the town is wide open and exposed, and it can build a real chop. Decide which one you actually want before you pick a boat.
Request quotes
Check dates in Georgetown
One form, about a minute. The more you tell us about the day you have in mind, the fewer back and forth emails you get from operators.
- Free, with no obligation to book anything
- Goes only to operators who can serve your dates
- You deal with the operator directly on price and terms
Nearby on the Grand Strand
North Myrtle Beach boat rentals
Boating out of North Myrtle Beach, the north end of the Grand Strand.
Myrtle Beach boat rentals
Boating out of Myrtle Beach, the middle of the Grand Strand.
Little River boat rentals
Boating out of Little River, the top of the South Carolina coast.