Gulf Coast Boat Rentals is a family-owned business offering pontoon boat rentals in the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach area of Alabama. Rentals range from half-day to full-day excursions, and every boat comes equipped with safety gear including life jackets, a fire extinguisher, and a first aid kit. It is a Gulf Shores operation, so from Perdido Key it is a drive west, but the water it puts you on — the Intracoastal Waterway and the back bays — is the same water the Orange Beach boats use.
What you get
Pontoons and tritoons — their featured boat is a 2023 Bentley 24-foot tritoon, which is a comfortable size for a family or a group of friends who want to anchor off a sandbar and swim. Beyond the life jackets and extinguisher, the boat goes out with a throwable flotation device, flares, a horn, registration documents, and area maps, which matters more than it sounds when the marine police pull alongside for a safety check. Taxes, fees, and fuel are extra; ask what a typical day burns.
Good to know
Alabama boater safety certification is not required to rent, though they encourage it — and you should read up on the basics before you take the wheel, because the ICW has real traffic. Military and law enforcement get a discount with valid ID. Check their site for current rates and how to reserve.
Where to take it
The islands in the Intracoastal — the sandbars and spoil islands where everyone rafts up on summer weekends — and dolphin spotting in the bays are the obvious day. Stay off the Gulf in a pontoon unless it is glassy; check beach today for wind. For the Orange Beach end of the same water, and the rest of the rental fleet, see on the water, and the Gulf Shores page for the town itself.
