How To Go Boating in a Hot Tub

Hot Tub Time Machine is terrible. But a hot tub boat? Now that’s cool!

Spot Cool Stuff loves unlikely hybrids of two travel products. Previously we’ve reviewed a scooter that doubles as a wheeled bag, a wheeled bag that’s also a backpack and a backpack that’s also a downhill bike, among other hybrid travel products.

In that spirit of Dr. Moreau-inspired travel ideas comes hot tub boating.

There are, surprisingly, at least two places on the planet where you can take a small boat out in the water whilst simultaneously lounging in a hot tub. One is in Seattle. The another in IJlst, Holland.

It might be the coolest travel hybrid experience we’ve found since the tent-hammock-treehouse. Our look at each:

Hot Tub Boats

Seattle, Washington USA

Putting around the waters of Lake Union and Portage Bay is a great Seattle travel activity. You get wonderful views of the city. And you get to people watch and to gawk at the house boats (including the one where Tom Hanks lived in Sleepless in Seattle).

There are several companies that will rent you a boat for little tour. But there’s only one Hot Tub Boats. At $139 an hour ($159 on weekends) with a two hour minimum it isn’t cheap. But a hot tub boat does hold up to six people and you can steer it yourself — no special hot tub license required.

In case you are wondering: The water in the hot tub is kept warm by a diesel fired boiler. There is a deck area where you can sit if the water gets too hot. Hot Tub Boats is open year round and their vessels can be operated in any weather other than lightening storms.

LEARN MORE & BOOK | SEATTLE GUIDEBOOKS |

Reviews of two cool Seattle-area places to stay: The Hotel Max, Treehouse Point

Hot Tug

IJlst, Holland

Unlike Seattle’s Hot Tub Boat (reviewed above), Holland’s Hot Tug company is oriented mostly towards selling their floating hot tub vessels. But starting this month you can rent one — kind of. What you are really renting is a cool Sinnehúske water-side villa in the town of IJlst, which is near the city of Sneek in northern Holland. Every Sinnehúske villa comes with a boat. And one of the boats you can choose is a hot tug.

The model of hot tug for rent in IJlst is technically called a HotTugboat. It’s made of glass fiber reinforced polyester. The boat is powered by a small electric motor. However, the water inside the boat is somewhat inconveniently heated by wood. It takes about 2 hours to fill the tub with 1800 litres of water and then another 2.5 hours heat it to hot tub temperature, making your hot tub voyage a less-than-spontaneous affair. If that doesn’t deter you, a HotTugboat can be yours for a mere €11,450.

LEARN MORE & BOOK | HOLLAND GUIDEBOOKS |

Reviews of unusual Dutch hotels: Sleep in a wine cask at the Hotel de Vrouwe van Stavoren, Controversy Tram Inn: a hotel made from recycled objects

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