Living on a lake now and debating trading in my 2020 Yamaha for a very nice 23 ft pontoon (approx. 150 hp) or keeping the Yamaha and purchasing a used pontoon with smaller motor (approx. 45 hp) and less bells and whistles. I live on a small lake on a chain and mostly use the Yamaha to cruise and hang out, with some tubing. Not sure if it is worth the upkeep and money of having two boats or just get a new pontoon with larger motor and sound system. Most of the boats on our lake are pontoons. There are some wakeboats but that is not our interest. Thoughts guys?
We had a 2011 Bennington 24 we bought new in 2011 and sold it last year when we bought our 2024 AR220.
There are pro's and con's to 2 boats vs 1 and a pontoon vs a jet boat.
Obviously if you choose 2 boats, insurance, storage, etc doubles. The reason we went to a jet boat was for 2 reasons. Water levels were dropping and we can get into much shallower water with the jet boat and the kids are of age where they want to tube and do motor watersports. We could tube and ski behind the Benny, but the AR220 wins hands down in the thrill factor for watersports.
You don't say how many people you typically take out or if you have kids etc, but when you put 6 or so people on the 22 or 21 foot jet boats, it feels cramped. Its only 8'6 wide at midship where a pontoon is 8'6 the whole length of the boat and putting 10 or so on still feels like you have to yell to talk to people from the bow to the stern.
They are very comfortable in rough water as well if you go tri-toon. I think the ride is a toss up between the AR220 and our Bennington. Maybe its because the Benny had an extra 2 feet in length and was about the same weight by the time you added the outboard motor..
Anybody who tells ya pontoons are floating pieces of plywood and aluminum probably haven't been on a modern day pontoon. They are / can be luxurious and fast and the options are endless. Just depends on how much you want to spend $$$$.
Ours had underwater lighting, wrap around side lighting, interior LED lighting, Bimini top lighting, teak flooring,, decent stereo, and the list goes on and on. Ours hit just over 40mph with a 150 Merc Pro XS. Our friend has a 25' Manitou with a single 350 Yamaha and he's 50+mph. On the downside, his was close to $90K when new a few years ago.
it all comes down to what you want to do with the boat / boats. They both have their pro's and con's. The watesports are much better but its much more stressful to do long canal cruises on our waterways because of the floating seaweed and problems when you suck them up. The family loves the swim deck seating which you'll never get on a pontoon. I miss the rear facing loungers on the pontoon for stretching out and relaxing at the sandbar.
Good luck with your decision!
I may need professional help. I can say being familiar with different means of propulsion has come in handy at my new job at West Marine. Helping people with their boating needs is rewarding and the 40% employee discount ain't bad either. I do need boat parts.
