Hot Tub Boats Are the Next Phase in Social-Distance-Friendly Escapes

By Mike Richard Published April 20, 2021

Virtual events are helping most of us stay sane amid this pandemic. But, Zoom happy hours, travel videos, and online museum tours will never replace in-person get-togethers. If you’re itching for real-world socializing that feels almost normal, Seattle’s hot tub boats are an intimate, social-distance-friendly escape unlike any other.

Hot Tub Boats

Situated on Lake Union, the Hot Tub Boats experience is exactly what it sounds like: A floating hot tub on the water. The purpose-built pleasure craft boasts a full-sized hot tub with room for six and just enough decking around the edge to stand up. That’s it. The water is heated to a constant 104 degrees Fahrenheit, courtesy of an onboard diesel heater. Passengers maneuver the boat at a blistering five miles per hour by using a basic joystick. Bluetooth speakers allow for dialing in just the right atmosphere. A small storage hatch also provides enough watertight space for stowing snacks, booze, and smartphones.

Hot Tub Boats

Finding unique, social-distancing-friendly group activities is harder now than ever. What’s great about renting through Hot Tub Boats is that everything — from arrival to the changing rooms to “check-in” to boarding — is done outside. Passengers interact only with their own friends and family throughout the entire experience. The company also promises that the water is changed out and the boats thoroughly cleaned between every rental.

Recommended Videos

The idea for Hot Tub Boats came to company owner Adam Karpenske after living on a houseboat without a hot tub. With a background in wooden boat building, it occurred to him to just build a dedicated “hot tub boat.” His design meets the strict guidelines set forth by the U.S. Federal Regulations for Boat Builders. Karpenske has so perfected his one-of-a-kind boats that his company also sells them. Every detail from the paint job to how the boat is filled is customizable.

Hot Tub Boats

Sadly, Hot Tub Boats is only available in Seattle — for now. The year-round rentals start at $350 for two hours and each additional hour costs $100. Just bring a valid driver’s license, a swimsuit, and a towel, and you’re good to go.

If you like your social-distancing with a few more amenities and a lot more open water, GetMyBoat offers more than 130,000 rental boats in almost every country on Earth.

Contributor

Mike Richard has traveled the world since 2008. He's kayaked in Antarctica, tracked endangered African wild dogs in South…

Culture

Learn how to smoke a pipe the proper way with our guide for beginners

Let us show you the classy way to smoke a pipe

Packing a pipe

Pipe smoking is the most aesthetically distinguished way to enjoy tobacco, but you lose the classy effect if you don’t know how to smoke a pipe properly. Smoking a pipe has become a lost art, and these days, most people who engage in pipe smoking do so to achieve a sense of nostalgia. Perhaps your grandfather enjoyed a puff now and again paired with a good stiff whiskey, or maybe your goal is to emulate a pipe-smoking artist.

I know that I enjoy a good puff on a pipe now and then, and knowing the right way to enjoy a pipe has made the experience much more pleasurable for for me. Whatever the case, if you intend to take up the time-honored tradition of unwinding with a pipe like me, you should learn how to smoke a pipe the right way. And smoking a pipe is very different than smoking a cigar (except you shouldn't be inhaling either).

Culture

Don’t ruin your cigars: here’s how to properly season a new humidor

Seasoning secrets every cigar lover could use

faceless man presenting a cigar humidor with cigars inside with gloved hands

If you're a newcomer to the world of cigars or just bought a brand-new humidor, you'll need to season it. And no, I'm not saying to add salt and pepper to it. If you've never heard of it, you might ask, "What is seasoning for a humidor?"

Don't think you need to flavor the box or anything — seasoning is really about getting the wood inside your humidor so as not to rob your cigars of precious moisture. Easy to understand, and getting it done is relatively straightforward as well. The trick is figuring out the "why," and we'll get into that in a bit. But let's first discuss seasoning a humidor.

Culture

The NBA’s ultimate celebration tool: The victory cigar

A look at the players and coaches who smoke to celebrate

Jordan smoking a cigar image on a bag

Sports are synonymous with celebration. After winning the biggest trophy of their lives, athletes want to indulge in the payoff that comes with seeing their dreams realized. Teams go into the locker room, where a waterfall of champagne hits them in the eyes, and swimming goggles seem to be a requirement, lest you walk around on the best night of your life half blind. While drinking is often the activity of choice after winning a championship, the NBA has an alternative symbol of greatness that other sports don't use nearly enough: the victory cigar.

Basketball is a team game, but it's also an individual canvas for solo superstardom. After winning an NBA championship, the coaches and players who sit atop the throne have long smoked a cigar in the locker room, during the parade, or even on the bench before the clock has hit zero. There's nothing quite like a good stogie to signify the ultimate win over the rest of the league, but how did the victory cigar get so ingrained in NBA championship celebrations? We want to take a walk down memory lane and look at some of the historical moments and people who made the cigar what it is within the NBA today.
Red Auerbach's victory cigar on the bench
Red Auerbach: The Story Behind the Victory Cigar + His Disdain of NBA Officials - Red on Roundball