Bahia Sternwheelers At the Bahia Resort Hotel

Honestly, for a $ 5 Ticket on Groupon, I was not expecting anything spectacular. My husband and I had date night over the weekend and decided to try something more spontaneous– a cruise on Mission Bay on an old Sternwheeler boat. We drove to Catamaran hotel, parked our cars in valet (for $ 10, it’s the best parking deal vs $ 8 an hour, + $ 1.50 every half hour), and made our way in the hotel, past the lobby and past the beautiful outdoor patio. The boat makes pickups every hour. In the daytime, the cruise is great for families and in the evening, from what the website boasts, it’s a «nightclub». I say this with sarcasm, as the ride wasn’t a fun hotspot. The boat is an attraction for the tourists that stay at the resort. There was a bridal shower party that night, so the music playing was a good mix of top 40s and hip hop. After the bridal party left, we were accompanied by 4 couples, we are guessing are in their 50’s. The DJ started to spin disco music and the couples were on the floor as my husband and I escaped to the rooftop deck. There was a drunk patron crying on the phone about how his party left him stranded on the boat. There was also another couple getting their PDA on R-​rated style. My husband and I just sat on the bench, drinking our tequila sunrises until we could safely exit.
To summarize everything: Good for tourists. That’s it.

I just had my wedding in the Bahia Edwards stern wheeler… it was a disaster this was to be the that one special day in your life,. DJ guy sucked… Power went out right after dinner thank god no music playing everyone from the 2 nd had to go downstairs I can’t believe this happened. E were at a standstill in the water not moving I’m trying to get some money back …

Came down to the Bahia for a wedding. We stayed for the weekend for a Sunday night wedding on the Sternwheeler. The sternwheeler never left the dock. You could feel the engine start and rumble, but after a few minutes it would just die.
We boarded with another sternwheeler and it left just fine. We saw it pull back in and out with another bunch. I think there were about 3 trips on the other cruise that left the dock. The poor bride and groom were mortified. I hope they didn’t have to pay for it and at least got some type of comp.

We recently held our school’s fundraising auction on the William D. Evans. Initially we met with Lindsay. She went over menus and cost and helped us choose our date (March 15^th). She was very knowledgable and professional. Once we had signed the contract, Kadi took over and was there every step of the way. We had so many questions since we had never planned this type of event before and she was very patient and helped us figure out what would work best for our event. On the day of the event, the staff took care of everything. The boat had just gotten new carpet and it looked beautiful. When it was time to go up to dinner, everything was in it’s place and the tables were gleaming under the gorgeous stained glass. Cheryl was our banquet captain and she was completely calm and attentive. Everyone who attended had wonderful things to say and we hope to have our event at the Bahia again!

Very disappointed in the Bahia Belle! Purchased tickets via Groupon for our final/​celebratory event during our trip to San Diego. Reviewed the timetable /​schedule prior to make sure we allocated enough time for a dinner stop at the Catamaran before heading back during «family time.» After waiting 30+ mins. at the dock with many other families, a hotel staff member announced that the boat wasn’t expected for ANOTHER half an hour because they were using the «big» ship rather than the other. Because of this delay, it would not be possible to stop at the Catamaran and still return on time. This means if we still were to go, kids would not be able to eat until we returned (unless we wanted to eat snack bar food — ummm, no). With this being our final night, my kids left very disappointed. Thumbs down Bahia! Maybe if at least one of the hotel staff members (we stopped at your main desk and gift shop) I had asked about the boat/​cruise had taken the time to let us know that the schedule had been changed — we may have tried to make alternative arrangements — like EAT IN YOUR RESTAURANT thereby giving you our $$. Instead, we left and ate elsewhere. Too bad for you.

For the price it was a superb deal: $ 10 dollars and you can stay on as long as you want… until they kick you off and close up shop. The live band was a very talented group of musicians who played common classics. The upper deck of the ferry was neat, not too cold, and waitresses visited somewhat frequently with drink orders. Their drink menu could’ve done with some expanding, as they had around 4 – 5 beers to choose from, all macro brews, and several wine selections, which I didn’t bother to inquire about. The cruise itself was a little joy ride across the bay, which was beautiful at night, with 30 min breaks on each of the bay side to allow passengers to board and disembark. Overall a great experience but not enough to make me want to come back.

This is a very nice alternative to the Hornblower.
While i do not remember there being a dinner involved, there was dancing and BOOZE! It is a very nice boat that is for sure. I would love to hold a party here, and it takes you on a part of the bay you wouldn’t see with the Hornblower.
So if you feel like drinking on a boat but don’t want to do the harbor cruise thing again give this place a shot!

So we went on the Bahia Belle. And besides the interesting views of the bay, it sucked all over.
I was so excited to try this little cruise out. However, parking is a pain in the ass at the Catamaran, the boat is in need of a serious remodeling, and the overall experience was lame.
I’m glad I had a Groupon and got each ticket for half off. However, me not reading the Groupon right, I actually bought 4 tickets not 2. So now, I either subject myself to the weird boating experience, give them to a friend with a forewarning, or just give them away.

THIS REVIEW IS STRICTLY WEDDING RELATED.
I am currently waiting to do a wedding on the William D. Evans. Kristin is the coordinator you talk to to get a wedding at the resort. I wish I could hire her myself as a wedding planner! She is very sweet, very responsive to all questions.
So far everything is wonderful with planning and I will update after the wedding.