Pinnacle Yachts

If you’re wondering whether or not to lease a boat with Pinnacle, stop thinking and just do it. Out of the four summers I’ve lived in Chicago, summer 2014 was the most fun thanks to our 37′ sailboat rental through Pinnacle. Here’s the story– being a power boater growing up I’ve always wanted to get out on Lake Michigan but didn’t want to deal with the hassle of buying a slip and having to store a boat over winter. After spending some time googling boat rentals Chicago, I decided to contact Pinnacle. Their owner Gary called me back right away and explained the program to both me and my friend. I originally thought we wanted a power boat, but Gary sold us hard (in a good way) on signing up for a sailboat (even though we had no prior sail experience). I recommend doing it with a friend because it created calendar flexibility, splits the cost, and was safer. After a fun kick-​off lunch at the club and a 7 day intensive training course (which we had to pay separate for) we pretty much felt comfortable with the boat and could easily throw up the sails and get around the lake. Hardest part is actually pulling in and out of slip, not sailing. You essentially own the boat all summer along with 9 other owners, and don’t pay for gas or maintenance. We were worried about the slot draft (like a fantasy football draft that lasts all day– can draft ~20 time slots either 9am-​5pm or 5pm-​9am), but with careful planning we secured all the weekend dates we wanted, including Memorial Day, Labor Day, Lolla Sunday, air and water show, and a few Wed firework nights. Throughout the season we picked up a bunch of random free slots too because most other boat owners were from the suburbs. Season runs from end of May to end of October. I think we ended up using it approx 30 times. The boat is awesome with a super nice cabin, two bedrooms, kitchen, and a bathroom. I even slept on the boat a couple of times. Most other owners respected the cleanliness and treated it with respect. Our wind gauge kept breaking which was annoying, but that was only problem we had with maintenance. We found that on weekday nights when we’d take a couple friends out on the lake we would usually sail. On weekends when we’d max out the boat (12 person max), and hang out at the playpen we rarely sailed and just used the motor. Motor maxes out at around 7 knots, which is the same top speed we hit with the sails up. One word of caution– there is an evergreen clause in the contract which automatically signs you up for the next season if you don’t tell them otherwise by August… kind of rubbed me the wrong way but was the only negative in entire experience. Pinnacle seems to have this yacht rental business down to a science… and is a very efficient company. I highly recommend.

This company is great. We used them and had some excellent experiences. They are very responsive as well if you do have an issue, and will solve it fast. I recommend!