Our Search For The Ultimate Dinghy (rigid vs inflatable)

Nikki Wynn

Jul 3, 2022 — 2 min read

There are a lot of decisions to be made when it comes to our new floating home. Sooo many more than when we purchased our first boat. Because Curiosity was a 10-year-old used production boat that hundreds before us had already spec’d out. We had a wealth of knowledge to tap into for almost every aspect of the boat. Just what we needed as two green tadpoles.

But Curiosity² is a brand-new design and boat in every way. She will be hull #3, meaning only the 3^rd ever in existence, a blank canvas. And first up, we need a car. AKA, a dink, a dinghy, a tender. There are A LOT of options out there, but we want our dinghy to be much like our boat. Lightweight, nimble, and powered by electric propulsion.

Luckily, we’re in New Zealand. The island country where there are more boats than people and some world-class marine ingenuity. And we may have just found the last dinghy we’ll ever buy!?

What do you think? Do you like our top options or is there another tender we should be considering and testing?

OFFSHORE CRUISING TENDERS

We spoke to the team at OC about the anchor locker cover and adding a false floor. I have good news and bad news: They do have a lid and it should be added to their site in the near future. For the floor, they claim it’s a dry ride and all you’ll need is a sponge to clean up every now and again. Oh well, fixing 50% of our gripes isn’t bad at all 🙂

Full Details: https://octenders.co.nz

HIGHFIELD CLASSIC

We’ve had such a great experience with our Highfield CL340 and that is the reason it’s our inflatable rib of choice. It’s hard to beat their broad range of boats and options.

Full Details: https://www.highfieldboats.com

If you are in New Zealand, contact Jonathan at Aakron Xpress: aakronxpress.co.nz

🙈🙉🙊FULL DISCLOSURE

This video was sponsored by Surfshark VPN and not by any of the boats mentioned or reviewed. We don’t get any sort of incentive should you purchase. But if you do, please let them know they should buy us a beer for the recommendation. 🍻