20 Best Whitewater Inflatable Kayak (2022 Updated)

I’ve used this thing about 4 times now. I love it. Is it perfect? No. Does it have flaws? Yes. The seat is ok but after an hour it starts to irritate the sciatic nerve if you have sciatica. But luckily you can improve the seating.

The wood that it comes with actually has holes drilled in it so you can install an actual boat seat. Also I’d highly suggest purchasing an actual electric pump. The foot one that it comes with is annoying but it works.

It usually takes me about 5 minutes to inflate but deflating is a pain. I can never get all the air out. You’ll have to fully deflate it if you want it to fit in the carrying bag that it comes with. The material is actually really good.

I’ve had it on concrete and it doesn’t seem to harm the material. That’s really my only complaints about the boat. I give it 4 out of 5. I get a lot of compliments on it actually. Go get you a sea eagle pack fish.

I don’t think you’ll regret it.

I ordered this Boat because my wife loves to kayak and normally that is a one person activity. I wanted to share in her love of the sport, But I am a short (5’7″)and quite stout guy (300+ lbs). I got the 3 person boat because I read in other reviews that people felt cramped in the 2 person boat and I wanted to be able to carry more things on the boat if I wanted to without worrying about the weight.

My wife and I went to a local lake to try it out and spent 4 hours just having a great time! We are planning more trips and plan to take this with us during our vacations in case we find a place to kayak.

It folds up small enough to bring with us as we travel in an SUV. If traveling in a car you may have to give up some space for it, but for us, it won’t be a problem. It took me 10-15 minutes to set up by myself and we carried it to the water, climbed in and set off.

I had to adjust the seats for my bigger frame but it was quite comfortable. I had room to stretch out my legs, but I could see where the smaller craft would seem too small. I’m not sure I would put three people in this boat and it only comes with two seats anyway.

It would be possible to have three but you would have to sit with your feet crossed, which on a lake requires a lot of paddling. Perhaps on a river three could sit like that since it wouldn’t require as much paddling.

The boat tracks well because of the fins on the back. We tried a different and bigger boat and the back end kept wanting to slide so it was hard to steer. Either one of us could paddle alone and still keep us moving along, and when we both paddled we got up some good speed.

This boat is 1 1/2 feet longer than it’s 2 person version and weighs only a few pounds more so I chose this one. The Price was great too. My wife has a 1 person plastic kayak and we paid almost as much for that one, and it was on sale.

After the lake we let out the air and brought it home to wash it down and dry it out, before putting it back in the bag, but you could certainly let it dry with a couple of hours in the sun after the ride, but we wanted to be careful.

The boat feels sturdy and is made with a thick material. Some people said in their review that they felt like tipping was an issue. I could understand that because I felt that especially at first but as we continued to paddle around I felt more confident in not tipping.

This was a larger lake and people were using jet skis and ski boats so there was some waves and we never came close to tipping over. Also the seats are comfortable when you adjust them to the way you wantto sit inside the boat.

You can sit perfectly upright or leaned back, which was a more comfortable position for me. As per someone’s suggestion I inflated this boat in my living room first to check for any leaks, and there were none but it was good to do anyway.

I hope this review is helpful for those thinking about buying this or deciding between this and it’s smaller version.

Set up the kayak in our living room to see how it is done before taking it out on the water. Didn’t want to make a fool of myself in front of people where we will launch. The setup was fairly easy. The only problem I had was with the retaining rings on the valves.

I broke two of them trying to slip them on to the base of the valve. I also had a leak iin one of the valves in the seat. Think I corrected that problem. The kayak is easy to inflate. It took me 260 strokes on the pump to completely inflate all the chambers.

If you are looking for a kayak, I would recommend the 370. There is plenty of room for 2 people and gear.

We are not experts – took a few guided classes and decided we were ready to do it on our own. We researched the kayaks that were used in our classes but they were too expensive. Once I found this model I researched the prices and found Walmart was the cheapest.

We’ve taken them in the ocean and in the river – they performed great in both. They are extremely portable – I have a power source in the back of my car so we can fold them up and take them anywhere, inflate them on site and off we go.

It takes my husband less than 5 minutes to inflate each one. We use them weekly and they seem to be holding up really well. We get compliments on them wherever we go. Some kayaking guides in California commented on how nice they were which we thought was a great compliment coming from experts in the field.

I really appreciated the bright color of the kayak when we were in CA with lots of motor boats around us. We did go on a guided tour in La Jolla and used their tandem hard kayak. I was so incredibly sore for days afterwards.

The inflatables are so comfortable and soft. The seats are very adjustable. My husband and I are very different in size and both accommodate us extremely well. I can’t recommend this kayak enough. absolutely love it and the price is great.

Maybe as beginners we don’t know what to compare it to but for now we are extremely happy with our kayak choice!.

I weight about 220 lbs and cannot get it to track straight when paddling. It moves left and right with each stroke and won’t track straight. I have several hard kayaks that don’t have this problem. Also my river is shallow and rocky and this boat draws much more water than a hard kayak.

I would not buy this boat if you are a big person or if using in shallow rocky water. The quality of the materials and construction are good, otherwise not happy with performance.

I like that it sits low so its not tippy, I like that there is lots of room like a canoe. Its easy to get back in to from deep water, room for my dog and a cooler. I have had mine 3 years and I will never go back to a hard kayak This is so comfortable! I live in TN and have done class 3 with other kayakers and I was the only one that didn’t tip.

It goes smoothly over rocks, no sign of tearing or ripping on anything. Takes 3 mins to inflate or deflate. Get a longer than average paddle and I carry and foot pump inflator too Love it!.

We bought two kayaks. We love how they can be easily adjusted to accommodate one person or two. We go down river often and out in the lakes. We set them so that my husband and I can each ride individually.

And when our daughter and her husband join us we can easily set them up as a two person. As a note, my husband is a tall man a bit under 300 pounds – he sits in the back with me up front. The kayak is easy for us to navigate as it is for our daughter and husband who are both tall and slender.

My husband and I have had our 5 year old grandson join us in one kayak. We all had a great time. The kayaks are easy to steer in whitewater and flat. They move easily along rocks, downed trees and other obstacles in the water.

We bought an electric pump that allows us to set the fill psi and they filled easily. The paddles work well and the seats are very comfortable – we are impressed with how easily they are to adjust. It comes with a removable tracking fin- not a skeg.

From the back of the SUV to complete set up and in the water was under 10 minutes. The boat is light to carry – one person can easily carry it inflated or not. When back on shore, the kayak is easy to deflate and return home.

To dry them we simply drape over the SUV and then turn over the next morning. To be extra careful before final storage my husband uses a paper towel to hand dry. The storage bag fits everything back in readily.

We highly recommend.

I’ve paddled this kayak on the ocean in Hawaii, on the Puget Sound, on a couple of lakes in the Oregon Cascades and on the Columbia River. It has handled great every time. Plus, I’ve managed to get the boat and all its gear back into the carry bag each time, too.

One great feature that Driftsun doesn’t point out is that the carry bag is within the typical airline dimensions and weight limit for a checked bag. This has made travel with my kayak super convenient.

As for paddling, no, it doesn’t glide like a rigid sit inside boat, but it does handle surprisingly well and is fun to paddle. Conversion for one-person paddling and back again is super quick and easy.

The boat moves right along when I paddle alone. As for construction, I am very pleased. The boat and fittings are solid. The drop-stitch floor really makes this kayak perform. The paddles are much better than I expected them to be.

They have loosened up a little bit over time, especially at the blade to shaft joint, but the paddles still feel solid overall. I initially expected that I would be looking to upgrade the paddles, but I’m not feeling the need to do so at this point.

The seats are the best I’ve ever used in an inflatable boat, and they are more comfortable than those in many rigid boats–a big thumbs up! The weakest thing in the whole package, in my opinion, is the carry bag itself.

While mine is holding up just fine thus far, I do baby it by wrapping the ends of the paddle shaft pieces with cardboard to prevent the aluminum from chafing against the bag’s fabric. It’s a very minor thing.

I am very pleased with my Driftsun Rover 220, and I expect it will easily deliver many more years of great service.

Nice kayak for the money. Super easy to set up. Takes maybe 10 minutes to unload, pump up, attach seat and put it in the water. EVERYTHING, including the pump, seat, paddle and kayak easily fit in the tote.

The tote is HUGE! The pump has a gage so it’s easy to see when the sides and floor are full. The only reason that I gave this a 4 instead of a 5 is the skeg, or fin. It’s not easy to get in or take out.

It has a clip to hold it in place but you have to squeeze it together to remove it and its difficult to do one handed while your holding the kayak out of the water. Also the plate on the bottom that holds the skeg isn’t flat like my other inflatable, so even after removing the fin and taking it out of the water it got pretty scratched up.

This one also comes with self-bailing holes for white water but you can close them for flat water, which makes these the best of both worlds. And the caps for the self bailing holes are attached so you don’t have to worry about losing them! I also like how portable and easy these are to throw in the car and take off.

I can load, unload and set up all by myself, which I couldn’t do with a hard-shell. Another perk is this one is lightweight. It weighs under 25 pounds with the seat attached. This is not a glorified pool toy! If your limited on space, or you want something super easy to use.

get an inflatable! You won’t be disappointed.

We previously had a SeaEagle 120 double inflatable, which we loved until all the glue started failing at about 6 years and the boat became unsafe. We bought this as a replacement, and so far we like it even better than the SeaEagle.

At 27 lbs, it is SO remarkably light and packs up into its own backpack that its easy to transport in any vehicle and easy to carry to the water. The fact that the floor and comfy seats do not inflate is actually a really nice feature, as it means you sit lower in the water (than in the SeaEagle) and get more of a real kayaking experience, plus there is less to inflate/deflate and is faster to dry.

We took it out on a lake on a windy day and were amazed by how well it tracked. Overall, it takes us about 6 minutes to fully inflate and deploy. Sponging it down after use followed by a quick air dry takes care of the water.

When deflating, we simply reverse the direction of the pump, which vacuum seals the bladders, making it a snap to fold back up and put back in the backpack; there is ample room for boat, seats, the pump, and 2 PDFs in the backpack.

(We use the SeaEagle reversible foot pump which is small and works great. ) At 14. 5 feet long this has great leg room and storage space. You can turn the front seat around for picnics on the lake, and you can swim off this with easy re-entry from the water! Overall, we’re very happy with this so far.

It remains to be seen if the glue will last more than 6 years. all these inflatables are made in China or the like, and the warranties don’t extend out far enough to cover glue failure. But at least we know what we’re in for this time.

Bought a couple of Intex Challenger K2 kayaks last year to dip my toe in the water on kayaking in general. Am totally hooked, so this year I decided to upgrade. I bought the Advanced Elements DS-XLT from AirKayaks and am very happy with the craft and my purchase experience.

I wrote a very detailed review but for some reason AirKayaks hasn’t posted it. They said it was flagged by their auto-review process and they never followed up even though I have reached out a couple of times.

Which is too bad, bc I like to do detailed reviews! Short summary is that I love it and recommend it, and you can only get it from AirKayaks. I love all their reviews, guides, etc. The only con is weight.

fully loaded (boat, paddle, pump) the bag weighs a good amount, and when the boat comes in from the water the inner lining can be pretty wet and it adds a few pounds. I wanted a second kayak so I bought the Deschutes 110.

Knew it wouldn’t perform like the AE but it’s much, much lighter and much easier to dry, so I thought it would be a good second option, and I figured it would be an upgrade over the Intex. It’s better than the AE in terms of ease of setup and ease of drying and storing by a good margin, but the AE is much better on the water.

But compared to the Intex, believe it or not, I’d recommend the Intex. The Deschutes is absolutely not worth the price difference compared to the Intex. It’s 6X more expensive, but it’s not 6X better.

-It’s comparable tracking-wise and speed-wise. -It’s MUCH easier to dry. The Intex is surprisingly labor intensive to dry and pack up. -It’s stiffer and more comfortable. The seat is quite nice. -I like the foot bar.

I don’t think it’s designed to be a foot bar, but I’m just the right height for it to be a foot bar. -It doesn’t look like a toy. Sorry Intex, but your boat looks like a toy. Where I am EXTREMELY disappointed is it’s durability.

I took it out once on flat water, a location I have paddled a dozen times in my Intex and a half dozen times in my AE, and never had a problem. So after that first and only paddle on the CT River, I deflated the craft, brought it home, inflated it and left it to dry overnight, and when I returned in the morning one side had deflated.

So I inspected and I found a very small hole. call it the size of a pencil tip. Bigger than a needle, but small enough that I didn’t notice any deflation while I was paddling. I do not remember any impacts while I was paddling, and the leak was very, very slow, so I don’t know if it was there when I purchased or if I hit something while paddling bc it stayed inflated while I was on the water.

In either case, I’m now unhappy with the purchase. While I did patch it with the included patching kit, I am very worried that it’s easy to puncture. To be clear, I’m not worried the patch will leak.

I put a big piece of material on and a LOT of glue. I’m worried in general that it’s easy to puncture. It popped after one trip! One! Frankly, based on how much patching material came with the craft, I am worried that Aquaglide knows it’s durability challenges as well! There’s a ton of material in there.

I pinged AirKayaks to ask about a possible return and we went back and forth a little; they asked for a picture and asked a couple questions, but they stopped answering so I think I am stuck. I will say again that I don’t know if it happened while I was paddling.

It’s 100% possible. But because I didn’t feel any impact and I didn’t seem to run into anything, I’m worried that it doesn’t take a significant bump to pop it. Feels like if I run into or graze anything it’s a patch job.

So I am very concerned about any future excursions. Where can I even paddle where there isn’t some danger of something under the surface? I actually bought the craft for my family to use while I use my AE; I don’t think I am comfortable putting them in the craft.

I don’t want it to puncture while they are on the water. Too scary. So basically a tough $600+ lesson.

Bought Aquaglide 110 from Dicks. Also own Chinook 90 and Sea Eagle 330. The features mentioned in published info are all good. There is a foot support on the bottom mat which is essential for kayaking comfort.

It needs to have a thicker seat for sitting higher for comfort and paddling reach – seems like Aquaglide would know this and not save themselves $10 with cheap seat. Now I need to pack in inflatable or other seat cushion/riser.

I am 5-11 and 185 and I can easily stand in this flat bottom boat. The material is great for strength, very light weight, and quick drying when travelling. I wish people would give good paddling details: this flat bottom kayak goes 2 MPH with an easy paddle speed.

With some faster paddling it glides along at 3 MPH. I tried to go 4 MPH but no luck (cell phone GPS works great for this). The tip does not track exactly straight when paddling but comparable to other kayaks.

The Sea Eagle has a better seat, but nothing to keep it in place and no other features and is very heavy. If they added features other boats have a and reduced the buoyancy for a single it would be good.

It goes 3 MPH with less effort than the 110. When they say good for lakes and mellow rivers, they never say why; I suspect it is the flat bottom with little cushioning, the lack of bow up angle, and the skeg that puts this boat in that category.

Some day a kayak company will make the perfect inflatable kayak and give accurate analysis; have not seen this yet.

This kayak is amazing! The quality of the material is so nice and sturdy. The excursion is a thicker more durable material than the K2 and a little longer and narrower, very comfortable with plenty of leg room.

It inflates and deflates quickly. maybe 7 minutes. Plenty of room for a small cooler. I like that if you’re sitting still for a while fishing or just enjoying the view you can use the bar to attach a small beach chair umbrella for shade.

I see where others have mentioned their kayak deflating in the sun, we didn’t have a problem with that at all. We did make sure that we compensated for that ahead of time with extra air in case it became an issue (as the instructions warned about).

We also bought the K2 for our son and he loves his too. No leaks or holes in either. No issues at all. I would be careful in very shallow water near oysters or rocks because of the material. If I had one con on both of the kayaks it would be that I’d like for the oars to be a little longer but that isn’t enough for me to give a lower rating.

I rented a Sea Eagle explorer 380x, and although I really liked the 380x, my shoulder width caused me to continually hit the bigger tubes with my paddles. I decided to go with the 385FT for my purchase and I’m very glad I did.

You sit up a bit higher and the tubes are smaller making it more comfortable. The kayak paddles well and tracks well. I haven’t tried it as a tandem, just using it as a solo. I’m a bigger person and wanted the stability and weight capacity to myself.

So far, no issues with this kayak, it’s great. I love being able to fold it up and throw it in the car quickly and easily. Very convenient.

I’ve been kayaking since the early 80s and my back is no longer what it was. I’ve sold my beloved hardshell kayak that I paddled on rivers for the past 25 years from the Rogue, McKenzie, North Santiam, White Salmon, Snake, Salmon, North Umpqua, North Fork of the Willamette, and more.

At the same time, I had an Aire Lynx that I’ve used as a boat for friends or family to paddle on trips with me. Last year I tried a friend’s Aire Force and felt like this was the solution to my problems at long last.

A great handling boat that gives me some of the performance of my hardshell in terms of carving in and out of eddies, making quick maneuvers, paddling upstream to catch a wave, and some light surfing.

It handles great in big holes since it doesn’t fill up like a Lynx, and is shorter and more of a playboat. It also doesn’t require the Fish and Wildlife tags in Oregon since under 10′ which is a bonus.

This is our pros and cons list for the Super Lynx after 4 outings in lake and Class II river. We decided to get a inflatable kayak after 40 years in Old Town and Wenonah canoes. Our preference is still canoeing.

However, in spite of hundreds of hours canoeing all kinds of lake conditions, we could not imagine a canoe self-rescue with grandkids on board. So we decided on an inflatable kayak to be 100% safe on a lake with grandkids.

We chose a Super Lynx after trying the best Aquaglide and Sea Eagle tandems. Here are our Super Lynx Pros: can’t tip or sink it, rugged, light weight, easy to roll up and carry, paddles good on flat water and into moderate headwind, comfortable with AIRE inflatable thwart seats, self bailing, 10 yr warrantee, best materials and components, made in USA for decades, bright/safe colors, pretty, 5 minutes to inflate, AIRE staff knowledgeable and responsive.

Cons: hard to paddle a line with 10+ mph side or tail wind, poor paddle control in side currents, AIRE Cheetah and Deluxe kayak seats are not compatible or comfortable with life jackets, not much room to store gear, some paddle drip despite drip rings, some wave splash over side tubes, get occasional wet butt, water gets into (inside) the floor pocket directly thru mesh drains, water also seeps into side tubes thru stitching and zippers, heavy to lift and carry from water until the floor pocket drains out thru mesh drains, not all water drains out of floor pocket and side tubes so AIRE staff told us to leave in hot sun for trapped water to evaporate and vapor to escape thru zippers.

Two hours in sun dries the trapped water out nicely. Be aware, but not discouraged, by our cons list.

Bought the Tributary Tomcat Solo for my wife who is a Class 1 with a bit of Class 2 kayaker. She loves it saying she feels safe and secure nestled between the large diameter tubes. We also added an inflatable foot rest and thigh straps to extend the possible use in more changeling conditions.

There is also plenty of room for cargo behind the inflatable seat. One note for improvement – the seat inflator valve is different than all the other valves on the kayak – an inconvenience.

I have now used this kayack twice. I go to a local lake that is calm. It is very easy to inflate, and light weight to carry. It takes me 15 minutes to inflate. I do believe that it requires more effort to glide through the water than regular kayaks, but it’s for my pleasure.

Overall, it’s a good value for the price.

Stable, easy to bass fish and, with a little practice, fly fish from in small lakes or slow moving bodies of water. 15 mins setup and pack up after you practice a few times. Easy for this 60 year old to pack in to those hiking fishing spots.

The oar is light weight but functional, use a teather, hint, on the paddle, rods, etc. New to kayaking. love fishing and this Kayak has added out of my car truck access to fishing I did not have. Modifying the kayak is fun also.

The cup holder, now rod holder, with some 2 inch pvc pipe now has a custom rod holder for a casting and fly rod. Worth the less than a hundred bucks price. 5 plus kayak rentals. pays for itself and it lives in my trunk ready to go!.

Inflates very quickly. Tough – rubbed up against barnacles a few times and no damage. Really easy to paddle in calm water. Packs up quickly into a backpack form.

Extremely convenient. We use it on rivers and lakes often, and I am impressed with the overall strength of material. After several river runs I was worried about all the times I’ve hit large rocks and dragged the bottom of the boat; however, you can barely see any scratches.

Often, my son and I will head to the river and take the boat in a Smart Car (small two-seat vehicle with a little luggage space behind the seats). I can fit the boat, seats, oars, battery inflation, vests, storage bins, and a small cooler in there.

People are stunned to see us inflate a boat twice the length of my car and jump in the river. Fun stuff.

TraduireAfficher dans la langue originaleplease check out my review on youtube- https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=-eYe6Vcl90I First, I am so pleased with this kayak and Driftsun in general. Shipping was super fast.

I have zero experience with inflatable kayaks and I had it up and inflated in 3. 5 minutes the first time I opened the box. This Kayak comes with everything you need (besides PFD) to get you on the water right out of the box for a great price.

I Would HIGHLY recommend this kayak. Happy adventuring!.

TraduireAfficher dans la langue originaleI must say that I was apprehensive about getting a non name brand kayak. But this package is very high quality and well designed. We have gone out twice now in lakes/river and we really enjoyed it.

There are no worries about stability and structural strength of the material. It is super important to use the fin otherwise tracking in a lake is almost impossible. Take your time with the set up, 2 lbs in each chamber and you are set.

As stated before the kayak is 11 ft not 10 ft as noted in specs. Enjoy 👍🏻.

TraduireAfficher dans la langue originaleI had begun a year ago on a basic inflatable. It was a gift and I was very happy for it having loved so near the river. A friend had this same model and I couldn’t believe how effortlessly it sat on top of the water vs in it.

It fills up and maintains its size for hours. Really just so excited about it and the mini trips I can use it for with pals. You can even buy a small attachable motor to give yourself a little push. Very thankful.

We’ve been whitewater rafting for decades, and I’m not really up to the challenge of a hardshell kayak anymore. This is so much fun! I bought an AGM battery to take along, so we use the electric raft pump to inflate this.

That way you can deflate it when no one is using it. But that hasn’t ever happened, because everyone loves this thing!.