Inflatable Rafts Are Way Up There In Fun Factor - Just Don't Plan To Travel In A Straight Line!

Inflatable Rafts are that group of inflatable boats that have flat bottoms and no transom. These boats are sometimes called soft tails.

Rafts include everything from the cheap vinyl toys that you see piled full of kids at the beach in the summer, to heavy duty whitewater boats of the highest quality for river running.

There are a few small models that do have a motor mount (not a transom mind you) for hanging a small motor on, to enable the boats to be used more easily as a tender or for fishing on short trips.

Small inflatable rafts are super light weight and easy to fold up...... but without the all important keel you don't want to try to run them in a straight line for any great distance.

Companies that offer small light weight rafts for use as tenders, as white water boats, or for fishing include:

• Achilles - Hypalon coated nylon
• Alpacka Pack Rafts - USA made - urethane coated nylon
• Feathercraft - Urethane coated nylon - super light weight 1 to 3 man sizes suitable as a tender
• Water Strider - one man kick rafts - built by Incept a New Zealand company.

Companies that offer full size whitewater rafts and fishing rafts. Some manufacture their own heavy duty products and give 10 year warranties, these are the best boats by far! Some are made using private label manufacturing, some with contract manufacturing.

• Achilles - Hypalon coated nylon
• Aire - USA made - (10 year warranty on their best boats!)
• Alaska Series
• Apex
• Aqualine
• Aquamarine
• Avon
• Blue Line Boats
• Custom Inflatables Inc. - urethane coated custom boats from West Virginia
• Demaree Inflatable Boats - USA made -(vulcanized Neoprene on some models)
• Gumotex - Czechoslovakian manufacturer of Nitrilon and Hypalon rafts
• Hyside - US manufacturer of Hypalon rafts and Catarafts
• Incept - New Zealand made - (5 year warranty)
• Jack's Plastic Welding - USA made - (10 year warranty on all their boats!)
• NRS (10 year warranty on their best boats!)
• Outcast by Aire
• Saturn (only a 2 year warranty)
• Sotar
• Star
• Stream Tech - inflatable drift boats for fishing (10 year warranty)
• Vanguard Inflatables