Windermere Boat Hire (Bowness) - Windermere Lake Cruises Reviews Summary

Booking Process

Pros:

• "Most reviews mention it but it’s truly the easiest experience to book either in the hut by friendly staff, or online using the site & QR code."
• "Easy to follow online booking system, we booked the 1 hour session and it flew by!"
• "Easy booking process online. When we arrived for our scheduled slot, we were given a boat that we had seen being cleaned for a good 10+ minutes."
• "Booked a 1 hour session the other day, an absolutely essential part of any Lake Windermere visit."
• "Would highly recommend. We went in one boat, as 3 Adults, 1 Child and 2 Dogs (Dogs are allowed), and there was plenty of space."
• "Highly recommend activity, however for self driving boat you are better off booking online because waiting our was nearby four hours."
• "Private hire motor boats on Lake Windermere available from either Bowness or Ambleside."
• "Great experience - from the booking process (online only) to the boats, to the staff and to the beautiful lake."

Cons:

• "The terms of the cruise tickets are quite unfriendly to the customers. You cannot reschedule a booking and you cannot cancel the ticket."
• "Parking is the biggest problem around here make plenty of time before you are due to sail."
• "Had to book online which was a nightmare also it was showing time slots available but when we clicked on them to book it was taking me another page, I gave up in the end."
• "I booked a 2-hour cruise on lake Windermere on Sunday morning, 17/07/22. We arrived at the office at the required 15 minutes before the cruise, only to find that we were unable to enter the office."
• "An extremely hot and lovely day, and we couldn't hire a rowing boat due to staff shortages (we were told that staff were needed to clean them afterwards)."
• "These guys are inflexible and actually quite rude. After paying a substantial fee for 5 of us, they then imposed range restrictions which meant we could NOT enjoy Windermere and refused any refund."
• "Absolutely disgusting service. I queued up for an hour then to be told by Ahmed that I can bring my family whilst the boat arrives."

Staff and Service

Pros:

• "Staff were friendly, helpful and very informative throughout. Would definitely recommend this company, boat was great."
• "The staff were friendly and welcoming and ensured we went through the safety form to ensure we understood what to do and how to get help in the case of an emergency."
• "The self drive electric boats are fantastic value for money and a definite must for seeing Windermere from the lake. Friendly, helpful staff."
• "We had the best time on our little electric hire boat. Staff were friendly, helpful and very informative throughout."
• "The best experience in Bowness ever we hired a boat self drive for an hour then we couldn’t get enough from the view we extend it for an hour more. The staff there are friendly and very helpful."
• "We were met by Ahmed, the most enthusiastic and charming man! He was very friendly and full of joy! He made the whole experience of hiring a boat so much fun."
• "Had a lovely hour on Lake Windermere in our own personal boat. Although it looks like a speed boat, it went extremely slow and the time it took to get out into the lake didn't give much time to explore as we needed to head back again! Staff were lovely and helpful to book."
• "Absolutely fantastic experience. Staff were friendly and the boat was easy to use."

Cons:

• "The only reason for 3 stars and not 1 is the location which is great, but the customer service is terrible the people renting the boats are bossy rude and petulant."
• "Absolutely disgusting service. I queued up for an hour then to be told by Ahmed that I can bring my family whilst the boat arrives. Then a so called person 'incharge' accuses me of being rude to then refuse me service."
• "Tried to give my deposit back with 'ulster' bank notes, although these are marked sterling they are not legal tender. He was quite pushy."
• "I booked a 2-hour cruise on lake Windermere on Sunday morning, 17/07/22. We arrived at the office at the required 15 minutes before the cruise, only to find that we were unable to enter the office."
• "The terms of the cruise tickets are quite unfriendly to the customers. You cannot reschedule a booking and you cannot cancel the ticket."
• "Shocking customer service. Absolutely woeful. Ruined a lovely day. Hired a boat & set off only for the waves to be too much for my other half and so we immediately returned."
• "These guys are inflexible and actually quite rude. After paying a substantial fee for 5 of us, they then imposed range restrictions which meant we could NOT enjoy Windermere and refused any refund."

Boat Quality and Safety

Pros:

• "The boats were clean and tidy and the staff were friendly. Once out on the water it was good fun and you could share the driving."
• "The self drive electric boats are fantastic value for money and a definite must for seeing Windermere from the lake. Friendly, helpful staff, who have safety at the forefront and provide excellent instructions/information prior. Boat was clean, easy to drive, no smells of fuel and a quiet motor."
• "Hired a boat for an hr from Ambleside for 4 adults, a kid and a dog, easy to book online the staff when we arrived were extremely friendly and helpful, some of our party had mobility issues but this was professionally resolved with help from the great staff."
• "Great experience on the lake with boat hire from Windermere Boat Hire. Boats were clean and very well maintained."
• "The boat was clean and ready for us very helpful and professional staff overall great experience apart from. The boat we had was fully electric so we felt its abit slower than what we used to which is the petrol engine one."
• "Paid £35 for the hire of a motorboat for 60 mins, been a good few years since I last hired one of these, I have to say I was really impressed at how clean and modern they were, we were given thorough instructions on how to operate the boats."
• "I took my family and it was an amazing experience overall. The staff were friendly and polite and we saw them clean every boat as soon as they were returned preparing for the next booking which gave me a peace of mind they are doing there best with the current Covid19 situation."
• "Despite probably being the busiest day of the year (August Bank Holiday) we had a lovely time on the lake. We set off from Bowness beach the took the boat off for a cruise. Three adults, three kids and two dogs all happy. Kids could pilot the boat as well, which they loved."

Cons:

• "Had a lovely hour on Lake Windermere in our own personal boat. Although it looks like a speed boat, it went extremely slow and the time it took to get out into the lake didn't give much time to explore as we needed to head back again!"
• "Paid for two hours solo in the pouring down rain late October...think they probably thougt i was mad.. asking me several times if i was sure i wanted to take the boat for two hours! . But they let me take it ethier way no problems :) Had great fun went to other side of the lake and back couldnt see a thing out the windows tho dye to the rain so had to stick my head out the side window to navigate.. was slightly over my time i think but they still gave me my deposit back.. best thing i did in the lakes on my short stay!"
• "Much easier than rowing. However it was quite drizzly when we were out and there were no wipers on the boat. It made it impossible to see. Had to keep wiping the window that I could reach. I would def hire a boat again but not if it was raining."
• "The only bit of a moan was that they don't have windscreen wipers for the windscreen. I fully understand why as they would be misused and left on, but it would of been nice to of had the windscreens cleaned of bird muck and wiped before the hire."
• "Honestly have never experienced anything as amazing as this. On a hot day this is the perfect trip out into the lake, even better with a partner. You can relax, feel the sun and just glide along the water and enjoy a gorgeous summer breeze."
• "Hired an automatic boat - it was great! Easy to drive and great fun to explore the lake. Loses one star because after taking our life jackets off, I was expecting them to be put aside to be sanitised. But no, they were put straight back into the general tubs of life jackets. No wiping down, nothing. Very poor during this covid pandemic."
• "The lake is lovely and the boats are ok the lake has a 10 mph limit and the boats do about 5 mph, on a nice day when the lake is empty it's very peaceful but when it's busy not so much fun."
• "Great time on the lake. Boats (electric)much newer, quieter and easy to operate than the ones at Keswick (petrol). One hour is little for such a big lake. Recommend two hours trip. Worth the money. Afternoon/evening less busy on the lake."