Chat with Capt. Bob — Find Your Next Airboat Near Sarasota. It's Free!
Tell Capt. Bob what you're looking for, and he'll connect you with a local Sarasota-area dealer.
What Makes An Airboat the Right Choice?
An airboat has no submerged lower unit at all — an aircraft-style engine and propeller sit above the waterline in a protective cage, and a flat-bottom aluminum hull rides on top of the water instead of pushing through it. That combination lets it go places no propeller-driven boat can: shallow marsh, sawgrass, mudflats, sandbars, and even wet grass or ice.
Whether you need a rig for duck hunting and frog gigging in skinny backwater, a guide boat for gator and eco tours, or a fast recreational airboat for open-water runs, talking it through with Capt. Bob narrows the search fast — no filters, no guesswork, just a real conversation about how and where you'll run it.
Built for Sarasota Bay's Grass Flats
Sarasota Bay's grass flats and the passes around Longboat Key and Siesta Key hold strong redfish, snook, and trout fishing year-round, classic Gulf Coast flats water right in the city.
An airboat — a flat bottom and an air-powered drive that goes where props can't — skinny marsh and grass flats too shallow for any propeller boat — is built for exactly this kind of flats and grass-bed fishing. Capt. Bob can help sort out what actually fits how you fish Sarasota Bay.
Airboat FAQ
What makes an airboat different from other boats?
Airboats use an aircraft-style engine and propeller mounted above the waterline in a protective cage instead of a submerged outboard or sterndrive. With no prop, skeg, or rudder underwater, they can run over grass flats, marsh, mud, sandbars, and water just inches deep where a normal boat would ground out.
Aluminum or fiberglass airboat — which is better?
Aluminum is the standard for most recreational, hunting, and fishing airboats — it's light, keeps draft shallow, and shrugs off impacts from logs, rocks, and oyster bars in skinny water. Fiberglass shows up mostly on higher-end tour and luxury airboats, where the heavier hull rides smoother and quieter for passengers.
How much does an airboat cost?
Airboat prices vary by hull size and engine — a basic aluminum hunting or fishing rig can start in the low-to-mid five figures, while a larger tour-boat-style airboat with a big-block or aircraft engine can run well into six figures.
Is talking to Capt. Bob really free?
Yes — there's no cost and no credit card required to chat with Capt. Bob and get matched with airboats from local dealers.