Houseboat rentals are seeking niche

FLOAT ON: Danielle Bolender, manager at Lilypad in Newport Harbor, says the houseboat business has grown into a year-round operation. Lilypad is joined in Rhode Island waters by new arrivals to the Fox Point area in Providence. / PBN PHOTO/TRACY JENKINS
FLOAT ON: Danielle Bolender, manager at Lilypad in Newport Harbor, says the houseboat business has grown into a year-round operation. Lilypad is joined in Rhode Island waters by new arrivals to the Fox Point area in Providence. / PBN PHOTO/TRACY JENKINS

From the family-owned Lilypad moored in Newport Harbor to six arrivals at Fox Point Marina in Providence this summer operated by Boston-based SleepAfloat, houseboats are among the newest entrants to the state’s hospitality industry.
“We’ve become a year-round business. It’s kind of a niche,” said Danielle Bolender, who manages the rental of the Lilypad, which they began offering to guests in 2006.
The houseboat is moored a very short distance offshore from Fort Adams, giving the complete 360-degrees, on-the-water experience, said Bolender, whose family owns Brenton Cove Moorings.
Beautiful though it may be, being on the water can be a new experience for some people, so Bolender greets all her guests, familiarizes them with the boat and surroundings and is available by phone or text around the clock.
To maximize the houseboat experience, she offers catering, which she does herself.
The business has been growing slowly, but steadily, she said. It began with word-of-mouth and now the houseboat is listed on VRBO, which is Vacation Rentals By Owner, and HomeAway.
According to R.I. Hospitality Association President and CEO Dale Venturini, the houseboat rental market is a new concept in the state.
“It is a novel idea and provides visitors with a unique lodging option,” she said, adding that it is too early to tell what impact it will have on hotels.
“We … look forward to continuing to monitor this growing trend,” she said.
Online sites helped David Barnes, a resident of Cheshire, Conn., find the Lilypad after he saw it, with a ‘for rent’ sign, while he was jet skiing on an earlier visit to Newport.
“I’ve stayed in a condo and I’ve stayed at my brother’s house in Newport and they’re fine, but I was looking for something a little bit different,” said Barnes, who works in commercial real estate. For his July vacation, Barnes booked the Lilypad for a Monday-through-Thursday stay. It was his first houseboat experience and he quickly got into a vacation routine.
“In the morning, it’s quiet, so I get some exercise. I took a swim. It’s great. You can jump right off the houseboat. It’s only about 50 feet from shore, so I could swim a lap in and back,” said Barnes. “And it’s right near this little sailing school. It’s really nice.”
He didn’t have to worry about driving into Newport for dinner and trying to find a place to park on the crowded summer streets.
“The water taxi will come pick you up and take you into town. You can go to a restaurant, then you call and have the guy pick you up,” said Barnes.
Water-taxi service comes with the houseboat rental, which is $300 per night on weekdays, $350 per night on weekends with a two-night minimum and $400 per night on event weekends, such as the Newport Jazz Festival, with a three-night minimum.
In the fall, Lilypad is moved dockside to a marina in Newport, where houseboat guests rent for a longer term and have the use of onshore facilities, like a pool.
On warm, summer nights, Barnes was moored offshore and liked the fact that evenings didn’t end when he got back to the houseboat.
“It’s not like going back to a hotel room where you have four walls and one window,” said Barnes. “The night is beautiful. You can sit out on the top deck and listen to music.”
Houseboat ambiance also won over education consultant Judith Petersen, who lives in Wellfleet, Mass., and frequently comes to Providence for work.
For a three-week work trip that ran from July into August, Petersen booked a stay aboard Sagittarius, one of the SleepAfloat houseboats docked at Fox Point Marina.
“I wake up in the morning, open the curtains and then take my coffee out on the deck. Today I watched a guy in a kayak,” Petersen said halfway through her stay. “This is the way I like to start my day.” Petersen stayed in hotels for her previous work trips, usually for a night or two, and while it was comfortable enough, she was ready for a change and heard about the houseboat from a friend.
“People have to have a sense of adventure if they’re going to stay in a houseboat,” said Petersen. “SleepAfloat told me the houseboat was near some clubs that stay open late, and they’re not the kind of places that work for me, but it hasn’t turned out to be an issue. It’s kind of lively and it’s fine.”
SleepAfloat spokeswoman Marcia Nguyen, who is based in Boston, said she tells potential guests about the 2 a.m. closing time of Hot Club and a couple of other bars and restaurants on South Water Street, where the houseboats are docked.
“We want people to enjoy their stay and at this location, we get mostly adults. At our other locations, we get lots of families with kids,” said Nguyen.
The company operates about 40 houseboats located in Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Annapolis, Washington, D.C., and Key West and Hollywood, Fla.
In Providence, SleepAfloat houseboats cost $200 per night weekdays and $250 per night on Friday and Saturday, with a $25 fee for each extra person, accommodating up to six, including a queen bed, a loft with twin beds and a sleep-sofa in 580 square feet.
“It’s a small space. It’s not for everyone,” said Petersen. “It’s good for me because I wanted a peaceful place to work. It’s got good Wi-Fi and it’s secure. Each houseboat has a different log-in. I set up my laptop and open the blinds and water, water everywhere.
“In the evening, I push back the sliding glass doors and gaze at the sunset,” said Petersen. “When I travel to Providence, I’m done with hotels. It will always be a houseboat for me.” •

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