Banana Boats

Want to experience all the thrills of speed and soaking wet excitement in one? Then banana boat rides are for you!

Ranked among the top-five popular beach activities, banana boating is an inexpensive group activity guaranteed to give you a wet and wild thrill.

Going on a banana boat is a fantastic experience that gives you an enormous adrenalin rush. It's a wild activity that's so exciting and a far greater thrill than you've ever felt before. This ride is similar to whitewater rafting on the ocean.

Fun with a Big Splash Landing

You can enjoy a half or full hour of an exciting bumpy ride on a banana boat. Get ready to get wet and cool off.

Up to five or six people can ride a giant inflatable banana raft towed fast by a speedboat that takes sharp turns in attempts to throw you off the banana boat and into the water.

See how log you can keep your clothes dry. Soon your clothes get wet when the banana boat capsizes and you fall into the water. Great Fun !

A Typical Ride

You jump onto the inflated banana boat with anticipation, the tug-boat engine rumbles, the banana boat edges forward. Then suddenly you rage forward as if you're being pulled into space. It feels as if you're going 30 mph but they say it's only about 10 mph.

Your clothes get soaked as you crash through the surf breakers into the warm blue waters. Hold on tight as experienced pilots take you skimming over the water at incredible speeds. Bounce over the chop and wave to your friends on shore as you glide by on the colourful banana boat.

The first corner is always the most thrilling because you actually feel the banana boat gradually tip sideways and you know you're going to fall off. But fate changes course and the banana boat bounces back onto the water. Hold on as the boat twists and turns in the water trying to throw you off.

After a few turns, the driver begins to speed up. Then suddenly the banana boat tips over and you're thrown into the water. But thankfully due to your life jacket, you just bob up and down on the surface until you clamber aboard the banana boat once more.

Just a warning, it can be hard to pull yourself back onto the banana boat while in the water. It uses a fair bit of upper-body strength, especially if you wear a lot of waterlogged clothes. But the adrenaline and excitement soon takes over, so immediately after you've got back onto the banana boat, you shout for more!

When you finally finish they capsize the banana boat near the beach and you fall back into the water for another good soaking. After you handed back your lifevest, you literally feel like jumping into the water again, clothes and all; well that's what we do.

Reader Comment

Chan from Pattaya told us:

When I get tired of being lazy on the beach, I like to head out on a banana boat for a little exhilaration. These inflatable rafts are towed by powerful speedboats and take you on a wave hopping adventure in the Gulf of Thailand.

On my first ride on a banana boat, I felt slightly nervous even though I couldn't wait to try out this odd-looking activity that seemed so much fun.

Boat operators provide you with a life jacket to protect you in case of any mad dives into the water. You should also wear clothes to keep the life jacket from chafing and be safe when you hit the water at speed. Jeans, T-shirt and hoodie work for me.

Just watch out when the driver tries to throw you off! We got thrashed into the sea five times. Most probably we got seven people so it's too heavy or maybe the driver did that on purpose. I'm sure the turn angle was really sharp! Everyone fell into the sea.

We were flung into the water because the speedboat rider did a TOKYO DRIFT on water! We were all flying off in the air. Luckily we had jeans and hoodies on, so nobody got hurt. It's a real thrill and awesome laugh. We were all screaming our heads off. WAHAHAHA!

Afterwards we all went swimming in our wet clothes, just to relax. That was great fun.

If I want to go solo, I sometimes rent a jet ski at one of the many venues along the beach. Jet skis are so much fun, as you effortlessly glide on the water. These two activities are best in the winter months when the surf is calmer.