If you're looking for a "somewhat" inexpensive boat rental on Lake Patoka, choose someplace else. When we first arrived, they told us the boat we paid for wasn't working and had "upgraded" us to a more expensive one. This "upgraded" one was more expensive solely for the fishing gear on board - which we did not want. This "new" boat was dilapidated, rickety, and not safe. The boat bimini had holes in the top and was literally tied to the roof of the boat, not secured with poles or anything stable. When we asked if we could get a different boat, they said they only had more expensive options which we would have to pay the difference of ($150). Didn't seem fair considering our first boat that we had paid for in advance now wasn't available. The staff was not accommodating and told us we had to call the owner and wait for them to respond. When we called, no one answered and there was also no cell service. Ended up paying the difference for a "semi-better" looking boat that had a cinder block as an anchor... Drifted around the entire time on the lake, a cinder block should not be used to tie down a two story pontoon boat with a slide, didn't work. Over all, would not return. read more

Gilligan's Boats - The tied down bimini and muddy/moldy seats - Boating Near Me - Birdseye, Indiana

We have been renting from Gilligans for about 6-7 years now and have seen the ups and downs. The boats are nothing to write home about, they are clean and i think fair shape especially for the price. Historical our biggest complaint has been the long wait time when at the dock to pick up our boat. This year we were greeted with a newly paved lot and a staff that was on top of it! Got all the paperwork signed, boat inspection and out in maybe 15 minutes. Staff was pleasant to deal with and really made us feel welcome. Couldn't be happier. read more

Unfriendly, The pontoon looked great in the pictures but that's not what you get. No horn on the pontoon, the anchor is a rope tied to a cinder block, pontoon is very very old an banged up. Gilligan's will not let you look at the pontoon till you sign a contract. read more

staff wasn't friendly. gave us a rental that was difficult to start. had to be towed. guy on phone had a bad attitude like I was the problem. wasn't too impressed with any of it. won't rent there again. find som place better read more

Wish I could give this place 0 stars. For starters, when we arrived, the boat we paid for was not working so they provided us with an "upgraded" boat. They claim the boat was more expensive than the one we paid for but only because it contained fishing materials. We were not there to fish and mentioned that to the staff. The boat is in terrible condition. We wanted a different boat for our safety. They had other available boats but insisted on us paying ANOTHER $141 on top of what we already paid. The staff would not negotiate even though it was an inconvenience for my group. We decided to "upgrade" and once we got out on the water, we drifted the whole time. The anchor was not effective. Do not waste your money at this place. read more

I would not recommend this place at all; we rented a boat, none of the gauges worked, we couldn't tell if it even had enough gas to get us around the lake; the radio did not work, speakers did not work, and to top it all off the boat broke down in the middle of the lake. We had to be towed back to the dock. I requested a refund or at least a partial refund because of the experience and the fact that we rented the boat until 8:45 p.m. and the boat broke down at 4:00 p.m. Gilligan's refused any kind of refund. Never again! read more

We had an excellent experience with Gilligan's. The checkin process was simple & the boat and tube were ready for us when we arrived. I can't say enough positive about the employees who were there from the beginning to the end. Kind, friendly, funny & knowledgeable are only a few of the words I could use to describe them. The boat wasn't brand new, but it was clean & well kept. After reading a couple other reviews, I was a bit hesitant to reserve our boat with them, but I'm so grateful we did. Their fees are fair & the equipment was fine. p.s. The "rocks" referred to in a couple other reviews are actually concrete blocks that work excellent as anchors. It is not an uncommon practice to use them. read more

Gilligan's Boats - Boating Near Me - Birdseye, Indiana

Weird experience here. The owner was condescending to us and extremely difficult to work with. Renting a boat is supposed to be fun! This guy acted like he didn't like us and didn't want us renting a boat. You unfortunately must pay for the boat without actually seeing the boat. Ours was moldy, old, and not pleasant. It cost MORE to rent with Gilligan's than Patoka Lake Marina, even though PLM gave us a much newer, cleaner boat. Avoid. read more

Just rude people with no interest in helping customers have a good time. They just want you to sign a bunch of waivers to cover their ass then overcharge you. Only boat rental place I've seen that doesn't give a half day rate when you rent later in the day. Just an all around bad experience and I suggest you try one of the other 2 boat rental places on this lake instead of Gilligan's, or just another lake altogether unless you have your own boat, because none of the rental places here had the ability to be affable. read more

Gilligan's Boats price gauged me, charging 4 times the amount the competitors were charging. They charged me $900/day for a pontoon with a slide, whereas the marina boats go for $250/day. The boat was nice although the anchor was poor (dull and not heavy enough) and the staff was nice, but the owner is very rude. I do not recommend this company due to the excessive and unfair price. read more

We had a great experience renting from Giligans. We didn't reserve a pontoon we just walked up and rented one for 4 hours. They were very helpful choosing the best boat for us, explained everything and sent us down to the dock. The help at the dock Was friendly and informative. The boat worked flawlessly and was in good shape. Giligans fit the bill for us. read more

I am on Patoka Lake MANY times a week. One weekend I needed some "direct injection oil" for my Sea Doo Sportster. Patoka Lake Marina didn't have any but a fellow Sea Doo owner said Gilligan's is where I find it when I need it but good luck trying to call or email them. Well lets just say he was right. I was stuck without a ride to their store and NO ONE would answer the phone. I have called many times after that, left messages and even emailed them expressing my displeasure in their BELOW PAR customer service. Their phone message says, "We regret not being able to answer your call.... due to high call volume..." I called during the morning at 9am, noon, 3pm, 5pm and even at 9pm... I'm sure their call volume isn't heavy at 9pm when they are closed. I have yet to receive a phone, email or etc from them. I highly discourage their business due to my experiences. Patoka Lake Marina has 99% of the things I need... So they will be getting all of my business from now on. read more

Boat was very unsafe. Rented a 15 person boat. When we got on the boat the back and the left side boats railing was about to fall off. It was not even bolted together. We were told not to sit on the back end or left back side of the boat because it could finally brake and we could fall into the motor. So my 15 person boat went to a 7 person boat. I tried to call the manager but he refused to talk to me. Sent an email and he never wrote back. This man cared nothing about the safety of my family. He made sure we signed all his paperwork before we seen the boat so we couldn't sue him if one of us died though!! He made sure his ass was covered. I was told I could not get a refund since I had already was at the dock. Bad management Does not care about the safety of your family He is all about his money!!!!! I will never ever be back!!!! read more

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This is a great business to deal with. The boats were great, plenty of room for a large or small group, having a large fleet of boats. Plenty of shade available on the boats for the fair skinned people in our group...as well as kept us dry during a few rain showers. Very easy to get back into the dock after a wonderful day on the water. The staff was incredibly helpful and had great customer service. We would happily go back to Gilligan's. read more

UNSAFE!!! CINDER BLOCKS ARE NOT ANCHORS!!!! Owner was VERY RUDE AND INSULTING!!! He provided 1 cinder block for an anchor. We texted the number provided to let them know we almost went under another boat while floating on our floats which were attached to boat bc the cinder block provided as an anchor did NOT hold the boat in place. The man on the boat we almost went under asked if we rented from Gilligan's Boats. Owner was EXTREMELY RUDE and INSULTING demanding us to return boat and to never use Gilligan's Boats again. He sent 28 texts in 1 hour insulting me because I told him the block was not holding us in place. He said it was my fault and I was putting everyone's safety at risk. We surely will NEVER rent from this company again!! Disputing charges!! WOW!! UNSAFE. Unprofessional. The boat did not look like the picture they sent when I made the reservation online. read more

We reserved a couple months before online and paid in full. Our boat was exactly as pictured and waiting on us when we arrived. Would definitely rent from Gillian's again in the future! read more

Absolutely terrible place to rent from if you want to be treated nicely. The owner is so rude to everyone. I even watched him get snippy with his own employees. You try to ask him any questions and he just shoots you a stupid look and gives you an answer like you are dumb. He also will not explain any of the policy's with you if you ask him too. He just refers to them in a booklet, so if you don't understand what you are reading you are SOL. I realize it is the cheapest place to rent a boat on patoka but if you saw his boats you wouldn't rent from him. They have torn seats, ours broke down and we waited over an hour before someone came to get us, the anchors are just rocks, and there are hardly any working radios on the boats (so bring your own). If I could I would rate them a 0 and I will never refer them to anyone! Spend a little extra money at the marina because it is worth it! read more

This was the worst experience I have had with boat rentals! We picked the boat out online and when we showed up to the "dock" (after walking through the mud) the boat they gave us was terrible. The seats were held together with blue duck tape.. the boat was disgusting and looked like it may not make it back. It was in very rough shape. The trolling motor they had on the boat did not work!! The anchor was a huge rock with a rope tied around it... This was absolutely not worth the money we paid for the rental. It was my birthday and we wanted to enjoy a day on the lake! I would never recommend this rental company and I will never go through them again! read more

We went there yesterday and the people were so nice, they helped us load up our fishing equipment and showed us how to operate the boat, gave a free upgrade on our boat, they were so nice, I would recommend Gillian's to everybody read more

BEWARE...we waited in line for 3 hours to get our boat (the people in front of us had been there an hour before we even got there!) and when it was finally time to get my boat, it was 1:30 and it had to be returned by 6. Per the rental agreement, I was to have the boat for 8-11 hours, but since I didn't get the boat on time, I asked about a half day rate. They of course rudely told me nothing could be done. Since my group of 14 was already loaded on the boat, we ended up renting it and it was a piece of junk. It went about 2 miles per hour and was very dated. I will never rent from them again, and I will be sure to tell people how awful their service was. Even the owner was a jerk to us. read more

Everything about this adventure was a joke. These guys have no idea what they're doing. Very poor setup for boat rentals. The boat we rented misfired multiple times, we didn't have an anchor, rather than having a ladder brace we had wood blocks to stabilize ourselves, and we got the wrong size inflatable. Not to mention the fact that nothing is clearly marked at all. We got pulled over by a Conservation Officer for speeding in a no wake zone, and when we asked him to point to something telling us to slow down he couldn't. Now I'm stuck with a ticket fee and getting ripped off by these filthy peddlers. I'm never coming back. read more

In August, 2012, we rented a boat from Gilligan's and traveled from Oldham County (80 miles 1 way) for a day on the lake boating and tubing. Our Pontoon immediately overheated and had to be returned to dock. We noted another boat experiencing mechanical problems as well. Our boat could not be repaired; we asked for another boat...none available ...luckily, we had the good sense to bring it back to the dock or we could have been stranded ... none of the telephone numbers we were given were answered. Back at the Gilligan Sales Building... we had to ask repeatedly for a return of our money (they wanted to "credit it" to another boat on a different day. Seriously we asked repeatedly for a refund!!!! To add insult to injury a concession of $20 discount on our next rental was offered for our disappointment, 160 mile round trip, gasoline expense and park entrance fee. Please know that the Owner never returned our calls, nor answered our emails.. BEWARE! Gilligan's does NOT have an extra boat or a plan for such emergencies...the Owner is not availalbe by phone, or email . t Gilligan's did not respond via email ( as promised) or by phone. We were ignored. Our Family will never rent from Giliigan's again and we will certainly not reccomend Gilligan's to others..we will tell them of our experience. GO TO THE STATE MARINA....unlike Gilligan's they have a plan for such emergencies and have extra boats to accommodate. read more

This place, or more so the owner of this place is a nightmare. My husband was offered a job to fill the marine mechanic position, while at the time we lived in Florida. For over two months this man fed lies to my husband about his pay rate, schedule, expectations, and so forth. Once we moved for the position (out of our own pocket) the nightmare began. The owner became shaddy, he wanted my husband to skip certain fixes on customer boats and sign his name as if they were completed. He argued with his employees as well as customers and then without notice, 2 weeks later text my husband and told him not to come back. When my husband did return for his personal tools and belongings, this man denied him entry to go make sure everything was there and also denied him a letter of terminated employment so he could file for unemployment AS WELL AS HIS FINAL PAYCHECK. This man is a crook and very unpleasant to have to deal with both as a customer and employee. read more

Wouldn't go back to this place. They try to squeeze every last dime out of you, along with the workers being completely useless (no guidance on the lake). There's a lot of other lakes in Indiana along with a lot of other companies offering same, if not better boats. Gilligans' boats can keep the extra 30 dollars they squeezed out of me by charging the all day rate when I was only out there for 6 hours. Horrible business management. Pass read more

We rented a pontoon boat for the day from Gilligan's and the owner was so very nice and helpful explaining everything to us. The boat was clean, comfortable and easy to handle. We rented a double tube and had the best time with it. Highly recommend Gilligan's. read more

I did not have good luck with renting from Gilligan's Boats. The toll free number has been disconnected. The land line has had a mailbox full for days. The only way to communicate with them is via e-mail. It took three e-mails to get a response. There was a problem with my reservation and I was still unable to speak with anyone associated with Gilligan's Boats. I could only speak with the service they hire to process the applications and take the money. They are not definitely not very user friendly. read more

this man is a dirt bag. boats are so unsafe! the back and side rails have no bolts or screws. you can fall right into the propeller and die. door was held up with tape. screws coming out of the drivers seat. mold all over the seats. the anchor is a cement brick. life jackets are old and nasty. he cares nothing about you your childrens safety. he is all about getting his money. avoid gilligans boat at all cost. your life and your childrens life depend on it. he also tells his employees to not bother him with complaints. he will not be bothered. employees said to call bbb because i would be wasting my breath even if he would talk with me because he doesnt care. she said he is fully aware of the condition of all his boats. he just plan doesn't care. he just wants your money. please dont use his boats and run him out of business so no child dies from his unsafe boats. read more

After reading bad reviews, we were hesitant to rent a boat, but took a gamble because they were the only marina that rented for half days. The worker inside filling out paperwork answered all of our questions and sent us on our way. Note: you must pay for a one day park pass to get to the boat launch. We paid the cheapest price for an economy boat and didn't have great expectations. The boat was old & simple, but expected for a cheap rental. The guys at the launch were very helpful getting us loaded and on our way. After 2 hours, we had engine trouble. The dock hands answered our text immediately and gave us instructions to return. We asked if they could meet us on the lake as the engine was making a loud beeping sound. However, we made it safely back to the launch, they gave us a much nicer boat for our troubles, and additional time. We also passed the other worker who was out looking for us. We felt they went above & beyond, not to ruin our day. Yes, the economy boats are old and rather worn, but I wouldn't expect anything more from the cheapest rental. The more expensive larger boats are much nicer if that's what you're looking for. You get what u pay for. read more