Great place, great employees. We enjoyed our week at…read morelake,using your boat. Front office woman, very helpfulland nice. ( every one there is friendly.good company

Debbie was great, helped us get set up with a rental on late notice when my boat trailer broke…read moredown, they are friendly and accommodating.

I have docked at SB for many years and am reporting, more than reviewing. SM's new manager- Tim…read moreand Sales Manager-Melissa have done more harm to this business in the last 2 1/2 years than ever before. Neither one of them know how to manage people as is evident by the scores of people who have quit and by the fact that these 2 have yelled at other employees and boaters in front of customers and boaters. Melissa even had to find someone to pilot the boats when she was attempting a sale, because she couldn't do it herself. (No license and no experience). It is extremely disappointing that the owner seems to be blind to what is really happening. The rates in 2023 increased by 30% and yet I have witnessed boaters cutting the grass because SB's has no employees to do this work. New restroom facilities were installed by prior management; however, under Tim's management are rarely cleaned. (Emptying the trash does not constitute cleaning). My educated guess is that they are down to under 5 employees (which includes the 2 "managers"). If the owner wants to keep this business afloat, then he should fire the 2 managers immediately and attempt to salvage his business. What was once a decent marina is now pretty bad. Sad to report, but thought you ought to know.

I recently had work done on my boat at smith boys. This included winter storage and several repairs…read morethat cost thousands of dollars. I was to have the boat moved from their property in the mid to end of June but had difficulty finding a hauler to take the larger boat. They were well aware of the challenges and provided no referral for a ship hauler. Instead of the end of June, I finally got it moved July 16. I was shocked when they hit me with an additional full summer storage charge which approached $800 for the extra few weeks I needed. No discussion, no advanced notification and no prorating. I was just shocked they had the nerve to do this. They have my money but they've earned an extremely unhappy customer who will never set foot on that property again. I will remember getting screwed by them for many, many years.

The Good: excellent mechanical repairs and attention, if you can get it…read moreThe Bad: horrible at docks (they singlehandedly destroyed a thirty year old wooden dock in just three years), even worse at brokering boat sales The Ugly: if you cross them, even slightly, and even if you apologize, they cut you off cold--without even the integrity to tell you to your face. They just leave you to the mercies of the lake and don't look back. Read the other reviews--this is a pattern of behavior for them. Employ at your own peril.

This business is responsive and has a commitment to customer satisfaction. They worked quickly to…read moreresolve engine faltering at higher rpms. Problem was resolved without taking boat out of water. They drove to my dock and diagnosed the problem, got the parts for a 1990 boat, and it is running like new.

I used Ready About Sailing for my spring tune up due to their proximity to where I store my boat…read more This included a tune up, plugs, cap and rotor, and a routine change of the bellows on the Mercruiser out drive. After about a week on the water the engine began running rough and the out drive was clunking on turns and the engine temp was erratic. I then took the boat to my usual Marina for service. The wrong spark plugs were installed, ancient plug wires not changed, found corroded wires in the distributor, bellows were installed wrong and kinked, blocking coolant water flow, and outdrive reinstalled without proper shims, causing the clunking on turns. All told, about $2K to address these issues.

Denny, Becca, Eric, Steve and Brent have all been amazing to work with. I have a 2007 Precision 185…read morewhich needed the transom rebuilt and Eric did it with no additional service ports being added. I really appreciate a sailing dedicated business and I do all I can to support them.

I can't say enough about the great service I received at Lawson Boat and Motor. I'm new to boating…read moreand had purchased an old fishing boat. The motor was bad and certain parts were no longer manufactured. The team at Lawson spent weeks diligently trying to find the parts but were not successful. I ended up purchasing a used motor. Mark, Trevor, the President of Lawson's, Andy and even the owner of the marina all worked to fix problems that kept creeping up with the motor. Mark, knowing the trouble I had had with my first motor, went so far as to come in on his day off to make sure I would be taken care of. The team is incredibly knowledgeable, determined and creative in problem solving. They exhibited top customer service and patience towards me and my little fishing boat. Kudos and thanks to Lawson Boat and Motor.

Unfortunately, the chairs reeked of cigarette smoke. It's so bad I can't bring them inside my home.read more

From the owner: I can do all upholstery boats, motorcycle, furniture....everything!! read more

Probably deserves 1 star but (sorry to say) boat yard owners are typically a shady lot --…read moreespecially on Chautauqua Lake -- so there may be worse operations. Lone exception was the old L.S. Aero Marine (now Lawson Boat Center museum in Bemus Point) which was run by a former licensed marine architect & magazine editor (brother & sister) who took on the business out of a family passion for boating. Shore Acres labor force is typically made up of neighbors who work under the table for merchandise, gas, etc. so don't expect a highly motivated or well trained bunch. Unless you're needing gas or something pretty simple, I'd be careful about dealing with Shore Acres; the owner Dick Sparling (like his father Charley Sparling before him) will rip you off if he can. Plenty of horror stories of ruined summer vacations going back over 50 years. You might have better luck at other boat yards on the lake, but be careful.

The service is as bad as the place looks!! While on vacation, I had a problem with my 2017 90 hp…read moreMercury outboard. Since this dump was conveniently located across the lake from us, I made the mistake of taking the boat and motor to them. What a mistake!! I was told that they would have to replace the impeller. The job was to take a day, but ended up being 2 1/2 days. The explanation given was that a bolt had broken and needed to be repaired. The motor was used a couple times at the lake before being brought home. The second time it was used upon returning home, the alarm, indicating overheating, went off again, just as it had at the lake. It was taken to a dealer and, lo and behold, the impeller that had been replaced by Shore Acres was scorched and found to be an aftermarket part and not Mercury. Talking to the owner of Shore Acres just got me more upset. He had every excuse imaginable, going as far as accusing me of running the motor in my driveway. As far as he was concerned it was not his problem any longer because I didn't somehow get it on my trailer and haul it 2 hours back to him so he could look at it. Before taking anything to this place, think twice. The work done is as bad as the place looks!!

This is where all the big boats on Lake Chautauqua dock but being a small lake, nearly every boat…read morehas a gasoline (none of the marinas even sell diesel fuel) engine and a 35 footer is considered a big boat. This marina also has the best facilities such as a restaurant, an on rails boat lift, in house marine mechanics & etc.

We were referred to Holiday Harbor by another resident in the area. It was a pleasure to deal with…read moreJamie who is very knowledgeable and very professional. Very recently, I was in their office to drop off the batteries for our pontoon boat. That evening, I received a text from an antagonistic individual in the neighborhood which included a photograph of me covertly taken while I was in the Holiday Harbor offices. The text included profanity and threats. It turns out that Charles, the owner of Holiday Harbor, took the picture and sent it to at least one individual in the neighborhood, who then used it to send a threatening message to me. That individual was arrested and, when confronted with his actions, Charles indicated he does this type of thing routinely. I have never encountered a business owner, particularly in a small community, that behaves in that fashion. It is astonishing that a local business owner would act in that manner, intentionally and deliberately creating a controversial and potentially dangerous situation. I strongly recommend, for your own safety, that you avoid doing business with Charles. He has a great staff, but he should not be trusted whatsoever under any circumstances. Regrettably, there is no option to rate this business with less than one star.

RIP OFF! I'm a girl and BERNIE took advantage of me because…read moreof it. Charged me for battery replacement and spark plugs and he never took the cover off my boat. Told me it was fixed and it wasn't. Then I heard elsewhere he takes advantage of people who don't have a ton of money. I have a small boat and refused to make time for me, but definitely charged me for it! THIS GUY IS TERRIBLE!

I rented a ponton boat from Bernie and it was great. He had it delivered for me to Bemus Point…read morewith only a few hour notice. The boat was in top condition, ran great, was clean, etc. His price was cheaper than some of the competitors. I talked to him a few times on the phone and he was very friendly and quick to respond throughout the entire afternoon.

I just rented a boat slip with electric hookup for the past week, which was an excellent…read moreexperience. Staff were available for questions, and the convenience of their non-ethanol gas was helpful. Had a great time on the water. Thanks for helping that happen!

I have never reviewed a boat yard before and know some folks who would not give this score. Let me…read moresay that 2 years ago I brought my boat here, they buffed it out when that service was not requested. It needed the buff out badly so we came to an agreement that was amicable. Next year, something else not requested was done, this time it was just removed from the bill. That summer one of their subcontractors lost my anchor, they loaned me one while I got it replaced. Last fall, the boat was delivered to the storage area, but some of the things requested were not completed. Uncertain it was fully winterized and ready for a upstate NY deep freeze winter, they sent a tech to the storage site to verify and complete the work. So what can I say, well the work is sometimes not what was asked for but they always made it right. For that I give 4 stars in a market where folks that stand behind their work and strive to be fair is not always easy to find.