Where is the boating in Florida?
Florida registers more boats than any other state and the sheltered water is why.
Read the answer →Ask 1stFlorida
Can I rent a boat in Florida, and what do I need?
Yes. Marinas and boat liveries rent boats, pontoons and personal watercraft, and many Florida state parks rent canoes and kayaks.
To ask about a rental in a particular county, put the county in your question, for example "boat rental in Brevard County."
To run a boat with a motor of 10 horsepower or more, anyone born on or after January 1, 1988, must carry a Boating Safety Education ID card. To rent without one, take the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's temporary certificate exam online, 25 questions with 19 right to pass, and carry the certificate, good for 90 days, with a photo ID. A livery may not rent anything but a canoe, kayak or other boat you power yourself to anyone under 18. Before you leave the dock it must give you instruction on the boat, safe operation and right-of-way, the local waterway and what to do in an emergency, and the boat must carry the safety equipment the law requires, starting with a life jacket for each person. If you are more than 4 hours late coming back, the livery must call law enforcement.
Personal watercraft, often called jet skis, may not be run from half an hour after sunset to half an hour before sunrise, nobody under 14 may drive one, and everyone aboard must wear a Coast Guard-approved life jacket that is not an inflatable one.
Where to go from here.
When is high tide in Florida?
It depends on where you are and what day it is: the times differ from one beach, inlet and bay to the next, and high tide comes about 50 minutes later each day.
Read the answer →Where are the public boat ramps in Florida?
Nearly every coastal county runs free or low-cost public ramps, and the ones attached to a park are the easiest because they have parking for a truck and trailer.
Read the answer →Where this comes from.
- The Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes, section 327.395 (boating safety education) ↗ Read October 23, 2026
- The Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes, section 327.54 (liveries) ↗ Read October 23, 2026
- The Florida Senate, 2026 Florida Statutes, section 327.39 (personal watercraft) ↗ Read October 23, 2026
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, temporary certificate ↗ Read October 23, 2026
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, boating safety education questions ↗ Read October 23, 2026
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, required equipment, vessels under 16 feet ↗ Read October 23, 2026
- Florida State Parks, paddling trails ↗ Read October 23, 2026
More questions like this.
Where is the surfing in Florida?
The surf is on the Atlantic side. The Gulf is flat most of the year and only breaks in a storm.
Where can you kiteboard or windsurf in Florida?
You want steady side-on wind and shallow, flat water, which means the sound and bay sides rather than the open ocean.
Where can you paddleboard in Florida?
Flat water and something to look at. The springs and spring runs are the clearest paddling in the state - Weeki Wachee in Hernando County, Rainbow Springs in Marion, and the Wekiva at Wekiva Island in Seminole County.
Have a different question? Ask 1stFlorida →