Rockvam Boat Yards

We rented a pontoon at Rockvam Boat Yards this past Saturday, and it was about as breezy as it gets. The boat we chose held up to 10 people, with plenty of seating and a roof towards the back of the boat so you don’t get too much sun. The location was right next to Fletcher’s on the lake, which was convenient for eating before/​after.
The service was also great! They helped us back our boat out of the dock, and were there to help us unload when we returned.

Wow, there are a lot of negative reviews for these guys on here! I’m honestly very surprised. I’m not a sailing expert and granted, I have only rented a boat from Rockvam Boat Yards once, but I was very impressed. My family, friends and I had a really great experience with them today. Here’s why…
Making a reservation for a pontoon online was super easy. You pick your date, you select your boat (excellent descriptions of the different models /​price ranges), you get to read a lot of very useful FAQs then you just submit your payment — BOOM. Done, 5 minutes or less.
This morning on our way to the boat yards we got delayed by about 90 mins. We were supposed to pick up the boat at 10am, we ended up arriving at 11.30am. No problem. I called ahead to let them know I was going to be late, they told me not to worry. Simple.
When we arrived they quickly checked us in, even though several families arrived at the same time. Very friendly staff behind the counter in the store, very friendly staff on the docks to check you into the boat, give you the tour, give you the safety instructions, explain the small print and the deposit etc. All good. Even though they had several families to get started at the same time it took a total of 20 mins to get checked in and away.
The pontoon was immaculate. I would even say it looks brand new. Comfortable, fast enough, stocked with life vests and a 20 gallon tank of gas which was easily enough to last us all day.
When we returned the check out process was easy. They checked for damage, they checked to make sure we left the boat in good condition and made sure we didn’t leave anything. That was it! No hidden charges, didn’t feel like they were out to make an extra sneaky buck with small print.
The only thing I didn’t like was that they charges us an extra $ 20 or $ 30 for a ladder for the side of the pontoon, to make getting out of the water easier. I thought this was silly and a needless extra expense. Besides that though, awesome.
We had a really great experience. I’ll be back for more!

Oh where to start. I have never spent much money with Rockvam because they do have a reputation.
1) Had my boat towed into Rockvam since I hydrolocked the engine on a Friday before Memorial Day. The service departed didn’t really care I had water in the cylinders. They said they would «take a look» sometime next week (after my motor is rusted internally). So I opted to pull it out on there landing for $ 20 bucks. Yes they really charged me the $ 20. I used my own truck and trailer.
2) On second attempt to work with Rockvam… How much is a slip for a 26 foot Sea Ray? Oh that will be $ 5,700. Jeez. Really?
3) Gas prices… wwhhatttt!
4) Pontoon rentals = cash money for a crappy pontoon with a small anchor big island and smaller motors.
No thank you Rockvam.

We were in town for work and had a day off. We decided to rent a pontoon boat and go on the lake for a day. When we read the reviews on Rockvam we weren’t so worried. Sounded like we might get cranky team members. The prices were great so we figured we would give it a shot. I am SO glad we did!
We had a EXCEPTIONAL experience. They were very, very friendly and took great care of us. They even gave us great service when we asked about fishing license. I would rent here again in a heart beat! Great job to everyone that was working Sunday ⁶⁄₁₄. You guys rock!!!
Don’t listen to the other reviews. This is not what we experienced at all!!! They are great!

Honestly I had such a great experience! The service was amazing and people were so helpful. I recently just rented a pontoon and to saw the least I will be back again. It was way easier then I thought to rent a pontoon and they helped every step of the way. I got to meet the owner Jerry and manager Roxanne who were so sweet. I read all the comments on Unilocal and was septal to rent and I have no idea what anyone was talking about I had a great time! I went out with my family and they all said how great the service was and what a great time they had! If I could give more then 5 stars I would! Highly recommend!

I can’t tell you how much I love rockvam boat yards. They always have nice people working (cute too) and they always give me and my family the best experience. All of the boats I have rented have been clean and tidy. Also the people who work there are always talkative, friendly and have a smile on their face. With the customer service they provide and the quality I would definitely give this place a solid ¹¹⁄₁₀.

We have rented here twice and have received horrible service both times. A senior staff member, was extremely rude to us and threatened not to rent to us because we reserved for 7 and showed up with 4. We paid for the same boat, so I do not understand why it mattered. We will never rent there again.

2015 prices at $ 5.59 — who do they think that they are. When asked why he over charges for gas, Jerry said that he hasn’t changed prices since last year. Banning against Rockvam! Spread the word, Rockvam is overcharging!

I would never rent from Rockvam or tell my family or friends to rent from them! We have rented from them approx. 10 times! The one time we were 10 minutes late they charged us $ 100 late fee! We also canceled our next rental and they would not give us the whole amount back even though it was a week away! Terrible customer service! They obviously do not care if they have repeat customers, or a positive word of mouth! Do not rent from Rockvam! They do not care about their customers.

We had rented the boat for a couple weekends back and everything went fairly well. We took the top canvas down to enjoy the sun. When we got back the staff put the canvas back up and some holes were revealed– some very old wear and tear holes that were previously right along the support bars but had shifted with putting the canvas back. It was very evident that these were not puncture wounds or new tears, that these had been on the old boat for a while, however we were still charged for repairs. They are a cheaper boat rental company, however they make up for that price difference with unfair damage assessments.

We rented a little fishing boat for the day… came in about 1:00 pm on a Monday and asked if they could give us a good deal… teenage girl at front said this is our deal all day long, attitude and not friendly service. The dock boys were great and very informative. The rest of the business and boats stunk! Our little motor boat had some troubles where we ended up stranded at a few points. I asked to speak to the manager at the end of the day and report the issues (also hoping she would give us something back $$$ for inconvenience or $$$ off our next rental to entice us to come back). But nope she said «oh thank you for telling us we will fix that for the next boaters!» Horrible customer service, decent price, but will take business elsewhere on Minnetonka next time!

I rented a pontoon from them this past weekend (memorial day weekend) and had a pretty good experience overall. The online reservation system is slick. After reserving a boat they called to confirm the appointment the day before. Once arrived they had paperwork ready. The boat was in great condition. They went through each item on the boat with us. They warned us about what and what not to do. Where and where not to go. They took us off the dock and away we went. I will say that they presented themselves in a very great manor. I had guests in town and everyone was dressed decently and presentable. I’ve rented from other places where people are working shirtless and very sloppy.
Pros: efficient service, organized, professional.
Cons: expensive, VERY BUSY (probably due to the holiday weekend), Fuel is not included in your rental, boat motor was small.
Would I return? Maybe depending on the occasion. If i needed a nice place that was presentable ya probably. If its just for me and some friends I’d look for something cheaper.

1189 dollars to replace alternator and to fix a loose seat, estimate asked for 6 times in a 4 day period… finally got a call when work was done, never got an estimate. We dry docked our boat at Rockvam, it ended up sinking because of the way they put it in the water (their practice is to rest the lower unit on their shallow access… a no no) (the best is when they called us; «Sir, your boat is sinking «) …of course they denied everything. Funny when we went to another mechanic and got insurance involved… all we had to say was Rockvam… that’s when we learned what a shady operation it was. Last year was our first year boating, biggest mistake… doing business with Rockvam… crooks is an understatement.

Competent mechanices but very expensive. Slips are absurd expensive. Pontoons are in poor condition and spendy to rent.
Gas is VERY expensive in part due to the extra taxes required for selling black gold on the lake.