Holly Bluff Marina houseboats anyone?

chriskre · #1 (**permalink**) 05-27-2009, 09:38 PM

Just curious if anyone has done the Holly Bluff Marina house boats on the St. John's river in Central Florida? I was thinking of doing it next year and curious if anyone has done it and if they liked it. What do you recommend. Thanks.

Lisa P · #2 (**permalink**) 05-27-2009, 11:56 PM

We would LOVE to try those.

Unfortunately, they have a $585 mandatory fee associated with the exchange, plus the regular exchange fee, your maint fees on your home week and other possible optional costs. I think that's a bit steep and it was raised from only about $100 a couple years ago. Doubt we'll do it.

If we're spending that on a boat, it's a sailboat rental.

shaggy · #3 (**permalink**) 05-27-2009, 11:59 PM

I haven't done it but I met another tugger who did. They loved it. The only problem they said they had was with the alligators under the trees that they wanted to tie the boat up to.

They said they'd do it again in a heartbeat. shaggy

btcctomtb · #4 (**permalink**) 05-28-2009, 12:45 AM

I see these on last call all the time. I do not think I would exchange a week but on last call and a few buds ready to go fishing I would book in a heartbeat.

That being said, Fees are not bad for houseboat I have done a few houseboats on Lake Cumberland and Dale Hollow and it is about the same price. I have also fished St. Johns, water levels not always so great I can imagine a houseboat having a hard time finding a place to anchor in many locations. And yes there were gators along the coast in many locations but would not stop me from fishing....Swimming maybe......

Carolinian · #5 (**permalink**) 05-28-2009, 02:37 AM

We have done it before the outrageous increase in fees, Would probably NOT do it now for that reason, It was nice, but we preferred the canalboats in the UK. At normal crusing speed, one can cruise the entire availible range for the houseboats in 2-3 days, so you need to stop and spend some time along the way. Even at a $100 fee the instruction course was a joke, lasting about 15 minutes and not even covering such basics as using the reverse gear as your brakes. The boats are equipped with minimal maps rather than proper charts, which would have been much better. The one anchor that is provided will often not hold the boat if there is much wind. Two anchors would have provided more stability. They are also not equipped with boathooks, something I sometimes found useful in the cabin cruiser I used to own in a tight spot. There were several situations during the week that having a boathook onboard would have been very helpful.

BoardGirl · #6 (**permalink**) 05-28-2009, 09:18 AM

We had an exchange for last Sept, paying the reasonable fees. I called when I saw the fees go up and RCI said I'd pay what was on my confirmation, which was the cheap fees.

Sadly, torrential rains cancelled that trip for us (but RCI hooked us up with a beachfront unit elsewhere for no additional $ - I was shocked, but thrilled!). I would not try again due to fees. I think you can rent on your own cheaper now.

chriskre · #7 (**permalink**) 05-31-2009, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by btcctomtb

I see these on last call all the time. I do not think I would exchange a week but on last call and a few buds ready to go fishing I would book in a heartbeat.

That being said, Fees are not bad for houseboat I have done a few houseboats on Lake Cumberland and Dale Hollow and it is about the same price. I have also fished St. Johns, water levels not always so great I can imagine a houseboat having a hard time finding a place to anchor in many locations. And yes there were gators along the coast in many locations but would not stop me from fishing....Swimming maybe......

I agree with you. I'd only do this on last call too because of the high fees or maybe on a 7500 points exchange. Thanks.

chriskre · #8 (**permalink**) 05-31-2009, 08:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BoardGirl

We had an exchange for last Sept, paying the reasonable fees. I called when I saw the fees go up and RCI said I'd pay what was on my confirmation, which was the cheap fees.

Sadly, torrential rains cancelled that trip for us (but RCI hooked us up with a beachfront unit elsewhere for no additional $ - I was shocked, but thrilled!). I would not try again due to fees. I think you can rent on your own cheaper now.

Nice to hear a positive RCI experience with so many negative ones here.