Tierra Verde Watersports — Local services in Gulfport

We rented a 21 foot deck boat (#12) on Saturday 4/13/19 from Tierra Verde boat rental and were very diappointed in the condition and safety of the boat. The boat was in very poor condition and it was not minor issues, but major things that made it unsafe to take out on the water and operate. Three injuries occurred to my family and friends yesterday due to the poor maintenance of the boat. A few of the problems were: a missing hatch on the bow anchor compartment, a missing hatch on the stern ladder where everyone climbs up and into the boat, the seat backs were falling off and there were exposed sharp hinges, the seat covers were ripped and in poor condition, the hatch for the storage compartment on the floor of the boat had been ripped off and was unsafe and the compartment wasn't even large enough to fit my skis. The gel coat was all chipped up/cracked and the bumper surrounding the outside of the boat was loose in some places and had sharp edges that can cut you or snag your clothing, the ski tow pole was loose and the boat seemed underpowered and it was constantly a struggle to even get it up onto a plane.

I was informed that if I cause any damage to the boat (which I did not) then I would be liable; however, it was very apparent that they do not reinvest that money back into the upkeep of the boats. They do not keep them in safe operating condition. I have rented from Tierra Verde 4 or 5 times previously and have been satisfied the other times. I was informed that the ownership has recently changed and perhaps this is why the quality of our experience was so bad yesterday. I will most likely never rent from them again especially since it costs about $500.00 (including gas and everything) to take one of their boats out for the day... There are definitely a lot better boat rental places then...

The first time I rented a fishing boat with this company, I took my family out to go fishing by the Skyway bridge. On the way out I noticed the fuel gauge wasn't working. When we returned, one of my family members nicely paid for the gas while I unpacked our gear. Later, I found out it cost $90 in gas!! I thought that was way too much as we went straight to the bridge, anchored to fish, then went straight back to the Marina. At the time I just thought that's how it was.

Then comes the second time I rented a fishing boat here. This time multiple issues occurred. When I got there, I found out the boat I reserved wasn't working. I specifically reserved the boat with the T-top but we had to settle with a Bimini top which is not as easy to fish out of. But, I let it go. Then we started having engine problems. Every time we stopped, it would take at least 5-10 mins to get the engine to start. This time we did a full day rental and covered three times the amount of water in the same size boat/engine was the first time; however, gas was only $25 this time.

In addition, when we returned the boat, I mentioned the engine problems and was told they knew this engine was having problems too along with a lot of the fishing boats.

The last straw for me was this. When I got home that night, I remembered I left a bag of stuff in one of the storage compartments. I called immediately and they said they would search the boat in the morning since they were locked up already. Unfortunately, the bag never turned up. I hate to make accusations with no proof, but the bag just didn't disappear. The employee I spoke with made the effort to check the boat twice and ask other employees, but I felt as if someone was being dishonest.

Maybe I've just had bad luck, but, either way, I'm not inclined to rent from...

This is the second time I rented their 22ft fishing boat, The first time the boat had issues, the boat wouldn't plane on water correctly, Bait live well didn't work correctly, we had to go in early, the second most recent trip same boat, fish finder didn't work at all, the ship to shore radio didn't work, I tried to call them on it, they never responded, come to find out the antenna was broken. then we had to tilt/trim the motor up to remove line from prop, then the motor wouldn't go back down, I had to call them on cell phone because the ship to shore radio didn't work, they sent some one out. he had to release the pressure from the tilt/ trim, the fluid was low, fuel gauge didn't work, The cubby under center console smelled like gas, when we went in and filled up they said we used 10 gallons at $51.00 we went to skyway bridge, it doesn't take 10 gallons to get to skyway bridge from their location. and then they charge me for a full day. what a waste for renting junk, The coast guard needs to inspect their boats on a regular basis before letting then rent them, at least this way the would have to repair them correctly and service them on regular basis. if you want to ride around and play I guess their boats are ok if you don't care about boat issues and are tourist's, but if you are fishing, your better off just going to Fort Desoto fishing pier, or the skyway bridge. I will never go back, I just hate paying 300+ for something I didn't get a working fishing boat and a good time. this was the first time I ever went fishing (over 30 years) and I didn't have a good time and come back...