Designated Wakesports

This was a fantastic experience. We were there at 9am to get on the lake before the wind picked up. Justin was our boat captain and wakeboard instructor. He was knowledgeable and super professional. He brought the rope back to us quickly every time we wiped out so we could quickly get back to wakeboarding, or trying. He was really patient, helpful in describing how to position our bodies, legs, straight arms, getting up, etc. so we could successfully get up and wakeboard. I was really nervous but was put at ease and I’m really looking forward to doing this again soon! It was an expensive splurge of action but well worth it.

Last time I came here was Memorial Day Weekend 2014. Rented a Jet Ski for 2 hours. It was fun. Would totally go again next time I’m up there if I’m with friends and we really want a go at it. My only complaint is that jet ski rentals are a fair amount cheaper here in San Diego, where I live.

The service was good, but 1 month later, I found out they DOUBLE CHARGED me for the wave runner rental. Called them SEVERAL TIMES and the promised to fix it, claiming it was their credit card charge company error. It is now over 3 weeks, and still NOT resolved. I would be very careful doing business with them, you maybe double charged and spend hours trying to chase after them for a refund! Worse yet, if you didn’t check your credit card statement, you’re out $ 125.

great place with employees that were super helpful and cool. somehow got a jetski rental on a Sunday no problem. awesome service and we had a blast

Not a happy (almost) customer. Had called here the previous day and spoken to someone about a jet ski rental. I asked about cost of renting a jet ski, i also asked if they gave a discount, another place I looked at had a morning special. He said no, but asked how many I was renting I said 2. Then he stated that 2 would get a discounted price. Well… I go down then next morning to rent and another worker there was like, «we don’t give discounts on multiple rentals, only if you are going to rent them for 2 – 3 hours each» I explained my conversation on the phone and that didn’t matter, All I got was the same speech. I get the feeling that there are not too many employees working this gig this time of the year, so it’s not like there were a lot of options of who I talked to. I don’t think it would have been very hard for this employee to pick up the phone and call his boss, the one who apparently I spoke to and find out if he actually talked to me about that. I am giving two instead of one because I never actually told the guy on the phone when I was going to rent, so if he was the boss and he was going to give a discount to rent the two he just may have been making a personal business decision which bosses can do. Bottom line, I left and decided to rent elsewhere just on principle whether or not I get the same deal.

Very nice guys… we had wanted to rent some jet skis and had called ahead to get on their waiting list. I was told «should be ready about 5:00, we’ll call you when you’re up». Because we were using Über to get around and were on the other side of the lake, we came down about 5:20 figuring they’d be ready for us. Turned out they were backed up and couldn’t get us on until 6:30. I got pretty frustrated at that point (the kids were upset, we’d just paid $ 15 for an Über ride there and now apparently had to sit around for over an hour). They handled my upset with professionalism but we left at that point because I didn’t want to be on the lake that late. While we were trying to decide what to do they called me and said they could get us a single jet ski at a discount AND would give it to us until closing time (7:30). It wasn’t perfect but we split the time as the drivers and the kids got to ride on the back for the whole 90 minutes of awesomeness. I really appreciated their efforts to make the best of the situation and give us a good deal to boot. Very professional, great service, and really nice guys. Plus the equipment was excellent and their rates are better than the other options we found in town. Highly recommended!

Great place to get rentals. This is our 2^nd time renting jet skis and each time it has been an easy process. The equipment is great and the guys help you get out on the lake and having fun as soon as possible.
Come to the lake early as it is first come first serve. But early on the lake is less crowded too.
Nice people who are happy to help you make your day in Big Bear even better with their equipment and hospitality!

My family and I went up to Big Bear for the first time the second weekend of July. We rented a boat with Designated Wakesports and a few of us wakeboarded. Our driver was the owner and he was a great teacher — walking us through what we could do better each time. We had a great experience. Thank you!

Really cool guys, amazing fun. Very nice equipment, and the cable park is awesome!

The guys here are soooo awesome. Have used them a few times. We weren’t able to give them our business this time around because they were fully booked and they still gave great customer service. Pulled up with a pontoon loaded with kids and they helped us get the pontoon pulled in. Gave us some lessons on how to drive the pontoon and let me call around for another place that might be able to rent us a boat to inner tube and jet skiis for our big group. Sadly that other place, North Shores/​Holloway was terrible. Said they had a boat ready to go and once got there, they did not, but then sent us to their sister company North Shore and when got there … still no boat and driver. Told us they had 3 to 4 seater jet ski and they did not. Spent a small fortune with that other company and they treated us so poorly. Said they got us confused with another group but was unwilling to give us a discount of any sort or even an extra 15 minutes to compensate for us sitting in the heat with kids while they tried to get a driver. In the meantime, Designated is calling us back to make sure we found someone and seeing what they can do to maybe get another driver in to help. Such great guys. Can’t believe how good they were to us. Hope this review brings them even more business over the others there. They deserve it.

We did an hour of jetskiing/​seadoo. It was a lot of fun, and these guys were so nice. We filled out the forms, and they gave us a quick run-​through on how to operate it. Note that they do not take reservations. Equipment is rented on a first come, first serve basis. The business was a little hard to find. When you get to the parking lot, walk past the boat rental place down to the pier. Designated is actually in a tiny hut behind another business when you get down to the water. Look for their sign.

I came up for the weekend and wanted to get some Jet Skis. I called and asked ahead of time and found out their policy was first come first served. Because my friends didn’t want to leave until 1pm, we got to the lake around 2 and I was paranoid that there wouldn’t be any available. Lo and behold, two were.
After filling out waiver forms (lot of signatures needed), we got a very thorough crash course on rules and safety and how to operate the machinery. Very laid back, very cool. Then they let us get up on them and ride away. No problems with equipment, nothing. Smooth process, and I definitely recommend them to everyone.

Designated Wake Sports has everything you need for Lake fun! Their staff is friendly and very accommodating to ensure that you have fun. They are also very patient with beginners and want to make sure that everyone in your party is satisfied with your time spent on the water. Loads of fun for everyone!

My wife rented 2 Waverunner Jetski’s from this place a few days ago. We had a blast. Only bummer was we couldn’t afford another hour or two! The guy running the place that day was really laid back and patient with all our questions. No attitude, super friendly.
Rental price was $ 125 per hour and INCLUDED GAS. I can’t speak for all other rental places but from reading the reviews I get the impression they add a $ 25 fuel charge. Don’t quote me on that. No way we used that much gas in an hour so I was happy it was inlcuded. After reading all the reviews I was skeptical of most of the places up on the lake but this place was cool, no hidden fees, no hassles.
Only negative I would give is we couldn’t reach them on the phone. Rang and rang and went to voice mail, which was full. Took a chance and drove over and they had two waverunners available. It was just one guy running the place and he was busy so I just don’t think he was able to answer the phone unless he was going to ignore actual customers in front of him.
Also, their waverunners are pretty new — great condition. Would for sure rent here again.

Yes, 5 stars. I know we will be renting a wakeboard hour for my son again soon. I wish I remembered the name of our driver — my husband thinks it is Dustin. Anyway, we had a 9:00 reservation and got there at 8:35 since we didn’t know exactly where it was and my son was anxious and a bit nervous (of the cold water mostly). He is 15−½ and only was on a wake board for about 10 seconds up at Lake Millerton two summers ago. The driver was already there cleaning down the boat and setting out the life jackets for the ski rentals, etc. He was so friendly and awake at the early time of day — I was impressed. He explained everything to us and his driving skills were very good — I felt very safe. After my son’s first attempt was a fail he explained some things to change. Second time was almost there and once again, he pointed out exactly what to adjust — he wasn’t just giving general comments like keep your knees together — he actually showed the position and explained how that helps in keeping you from flopping forward through your legs since your chest is blocked by your knees, etc. The third time was amazing — the boy was up with the biggest grin on his face I’ve ever seen. It never left his face the entire run. After he fell, the driver again pointed out a couple things to adjust, hips forward, arms straight, how it relates to snowboarding, etc. Before long, the boy was outside the wake and crossing back and forth. He was so excited and we were very proud.
So even though we got out on the water a bit before our start time, he was not watching the clock making us feel like he was anxious to get back in promptly in 60 minutes but rather we felt that he was actually enjoying the time out with us watching our kid have the time of his life. It was a huge day for the boy. The hour cost $ 150 and we gave a $ 35 tip — he earned every dollar of it … please tip generously when it is warranted. People are so quick to dump on bad service but fail to recognize the guys that go above and beyond. «Dustin» surely did. I hope the business owner comments with his correct name if I screwed it up.
I highly recommend Designated Wakesports. I really apologize for not having his name for certain — I didn’t have my coffee yet that day ! Tuesday 8÷12÷14.

Great time renting skis from Desi. Super friendly staff and very helpful in explaining the rules of the lake and the do’s and don’ts. Highly recommend.

My go to place now for renting jet skis. Desi was Awesome! I rented a seadoo for an hour and both my daughters wanted to go he allowed me to come in half way through and switch them out! great customer service see you all soon

As so many other people said, Desi’s awesome. We rented a jet ski earlier today and we had soooo much fun! Here’s the thing. Go around the lake, jet ski rental prices are the same everywhere. We’ve spent a lot of time around big bear lake and we can confirm that. So what would make any place different? The equipment and the people, of course! The equipment was great; it was clean and we felt safe. But Desi himself was very cool. Felt like he perfectly prepared us and he was very great and patient when we wanted to come back half way through jet skiing to switch up our family members. Perfect experience.
I should also mention that we just showed up and rented right away. However, it was a Tuesday…

Really great place to spend the day riding.
This is the hidden gem on Big Bear lake. Cable park, wake board boats with drivers and jet skis. Informative and polite staff who makes everyone from beginner to shredder welcome.
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Fun for families of all ages, beginners, and pros. Fun features. Easy to use. Extremely helpful & kind staff. Best prices!
Definitely coming back again and again!!! :-)