I can't say enough good things about Ben Watts Marina. From the moment I started working with them, they have been incredibly efficient, thorough, personable, and professional. What really stands out is how much attention they pay to the details. They went above and beyond to identify additional items on my boat that had been overlooked by others, which gave me a tremendous amount of confidence knowing that everything was being properly looked over. Their communication and service have been exceptional, and they completed the work even faster than I anticipated. Most importantly, I feel completely comfortable leaving my boat with them because I know it is in good hands and that they genuinely care about doing the job right. It's rare to find a marina that combines this level of expertise, attention to detail, responsiveness, and customer service. I'm extremely impressed with Ben Watts Marina and would highly recommend them to anyone looking for a marina they can truly trust. read more

As far my experience, having kept my boat here for the last four years, this is a great place for an annual slip as well as over the winter. I think there were some updates in management and they have been treating me really great. I always have something small that I need or requests or whatever it is, it gets handled. I appreciate their attention and care for my boat. read more

John has always treated his customers with kindness and respect He always would explain what he was selling and would back it up

Where do I begin? The unprofessionalism of the dock staff is absolutely astonishing. To be told, "I don't know how you've made it this far in life without being corrected, because I would have corrected you a long time ago." I believe that to be a threat and a personal blow by the staff as they're 3-5" from my face and blocking my path to the driver door of my SUV. Additionally, these same two men were previously trying to get my friend who owned the boat, to pay them personally, extra cash for the time it was taking us to get our boat in the water all the while, being yelled at because it was my friend's first time on the lake and these two guys have zero consideration for the next generation to learn a safe and cautious approach to launching a boat off this dock. In the future, I will not recommend this marina to any of my friends in the boating community due to the lack of professionalism and personal comments made by the staff, whom could benefit from training in customer service and safety. read more

Thanks so much to Doug at Ben Watts Marina. Excellent customer service! He personally took the time to test motor, battery and charger, explained everything to me, and was honest about what was in need of replacement. I will be using this business in the future. read more

We had a great day fishing with our Captain, Ben Watts. Ben was friendly and worked hard to help us have a successful fishing trip. read more

Ben Watts Marina - Boat Repair Near Me - Fox Lake, Illinois

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This business has the WORST customers service AND technical ability to repair/maintain a RANGER boat.

I have a slip at Ben Watt's. I had an issue with my boat not attaining the speed it should. The boat was purchased at Skipper Bud's last year, new. I decided not to haul the boat to Skipper Bud's and rather, try Ben Watts' service department because they were authorized to service Mercury engines. Doc, service advisor, who likes to claim he is the owner and is not, is a likeable guy and a story teller upon first meeting him. Brought the boat in to get it checked out. The tech ran diagnostics on the motor (all good), changed out the hub on my prop. He suggested too that I might consider acid washing the bottom for a little better performance. I took the boat out afterwards and nothing changed, no speed improvement after a misdiagnosis and a charge of $506. Doc lied to me many times concerning the problem, the service and running of the boat after service. My SIMRAD says the boat was never ran after the tech diagnosed the problem. So they never ran the boat on the water to see if the hub was the issue. I looked at the hub that was replaced, it is perfect. I was charged $506 to change out a hub that was perfectly fine. So I bring it back out of the water and another tech ran diagnostics, found a little water in the middle toon where my storage locker is and said that the bilge pump had come loose and fallen in the bottom of the toon. He checked all toons for water, nothing. The only other thing it could be is the bottom needing an acid wash. Rather than offer the acid wash to me I was told they didn't have time. I took it home and a few days later I acid washed it myself. I just recently (Friday 8/19/23) dropped it in the water to test it and, believe it or not, back to 48mph from 30mph. The bottom was NOT that dirty, at least you wouldn't think it would affect performance THAT much - but it did. Then, to make matters worse, after docking my boat back in my slip I pulled my truck with my trailer to the slip to unload the boat and go home. Before we got a chance to unload the boat Doc came speeding through the lot, locking up his tires on the gravel, jumped out of the truck and began yelling at me asking me what the hell are you doing? He said I shouldn't have my trailer back there because I might hit the water/electric stations like the other idiots. How about posting a sign?? "No trailers beyond this point" and I would never think of it. After getting screwed over and repeatedly lied to throughout the whole service ordeal with Doc, and only Doc, I remained calm and cool, moved my trailer and let the narcissist rant. After the season is over I WILL NOT be coming back here. There are plenty of other marinas nearby that would like the business, I'm sure. Polite too! Would still be at Skipper Bud's if not so far north. Note to owner: Doc is costing you customers. Read the reviews. There are plenty of complaints about him. He is a total NARCISSIST. Hopefully he is not fielding the reviews. Looks like he might be due to the "ALL CAPS" owner responses in the reviews. Something he would do. Yelling through the PC at YOU! Proceed at your own risk! Thanks read more

For 5 years we've paid the ramp & overnight slip fee. This year the price has DOUBLED....$20 "in" fee, $20 "out" fee, overnight slip fee...PLUS a $40 "trailer storage fee". read more

I'm a longtime slip holder at Ben Watts and was disappointed to learn that in addition to my $1200 slip fee that I will have to pay to launch and pull my boat out--$20 in and $20 out, every time. In addition, my guests now have to pay a $10 fee to park there. The manager Bob says this is because people were taking advantage of the launch ramp and parking. In my opinion, there are many ways to manage the bad seeds without penalizing your loyal and honest customers. Not a good operating model. read more

If I could give this guy zero stars I would. Worst marina I've ever been to. Owner treats you and your boat like trash. Take my advice and go anywhere else! read more

We had a terrible experience. Their partnership with Bub's is terrible. You are only allowed to call Bub's to pull lifts in and out but they never call back and Ben doesn't care. read more

very helpful guys brought my jetski in to get a battery replaced they stayed after hours to help me get it running. very nice people here

I have been launching and pulling my boat at Ben Watts for over 6 years with no issues. Today I pulled my boat into their yard and was almost run off the path by staff in a large black pickup truck. I was told I could not come through and was accused of going through a chain fence and I was being very dangerous. This person was very unprofessional and accusatory; I was told to go launch somewhere else, which I said gladly. Will not use this marina again. I went to the Lake house on Bald Knob Rd and paid $5 less with a very friendly staff. I see other posts describing the unprofessionalism of the staff at this marina. read more

Over the top nice it's nice to have a company care for your boat as much as you do. Highly recommend them for service not only that if your ever looking fir a place to lay your boat or jet ski's this is the place very organized getting in and out and everyone always asks if you need help. Thank you Ben Watts team for everything you guys have been amazing read more

Great people and great service, Everyone is very friendly and willing to help, I highly recommend their services. read more

Ben Watts Marina - La Chulita - Boat Repair Near Me - Fox Lake, Illinois

We launched our boat at Ben Watts Marina for the first time on Friday. Layout and launching site were easy to use/navigate and the employees were so friendly and helpful! Doc Watts, one of the owners came out and introduced himself and assisted with the launch. We got gas and the attendant, Chase, was nice and helpful as well. We highly recommend Ben Watts Marina!! Thank you for a great experience. read more

We found the dock staff to be incredibly nice and extremely helpful especially with newbies like ourselves. They went out of there way to assist and make sure all was good. This was our first time using this marina but will definitely be back. read more

Very convenient marina, long deep boat ramps, and good location off Pistakee lake. The management staff is very nice and helpful. They offer in and out service, and sell fuel right at the ramp. We have used them a few times when launching and never had a bad experience. They also sell parts and offer service. Highly recommend. read more

Went above and beyond to help my hubby with a sudden issue with our boat/ trailer. Son Brandon was amazing and helped every way he possible could. Can't thank them enough for helping us out! Highly recommend!! read more

We contacted the marina to let them know we were moving the boat to Virginia. My husband flew all the way from North Carolina to get it ready. The staff at the marina was not willing to let my husband do anything to get the boat ready. We offered to pay them to get the engines running and the bow thruster fixed. They did neither. They threatened to have my father and husband arrested if they did anything to the boat and forced them to leave the property. My fathers boat was there for 15 years with no issues until the new owner took over. I would absolutely not recommend putting your boat there. I give them zero stars. read more

The service here isn't so speedy. We waited in the boat for 25 minutes before someone was going to move out of the way so we could load the boat on the trailer. It was making my Dad very mad. Turns out that one of the people holding everyone was Ben himself. Some of the marina boys apologized, but said that they couldn't "kick the owner in the ass for taking all the room." Let's just say that I wanted to. How rude. My Dad says that this marina sucks. I'm no boater (mostly a passenger) so I trust what his opinion means. Plus--it took forever to get our pass for the day. Go some place else to launch! Trust my Dad! read more

My family and I had a great experience at Ben Watts! Bob did a great job for my boat and was very nice. He's a very honest guy and I don't think there's many of those around. He told me how much it would be to fix my boat and I agreed. When he finished, he charged me much LESS. AND he finished faster then he thought. I asked him why it was much less, and he said because he took a lot less time then expected. That's so nice of him when you know people won't always do that. For another repair, I was going to have to leave my boat for the repair but I really wanted to use it for the next day. He took about 30-45 minutes and took care of me VERY WELL. I really appreciate good customer service like that and will surely use them for all of my boat projects. read more

Having been a long time customer the recent turn to charging everyone that parks in the parking lot even on off-season and low activity days seems pretty bad. It doesn't go along way to building customer loyalty. I would steer clear read more

Probably shouldn't have your company name on your car when you are flipping people off on the highway....Not sure how their boats work but a lovely guy and his kid with a great disposition thought that they should continuously refuse to let me over on the interstate while the kid had a great time flipping us off, hope they have a great day and don't run off the road as they almost did while trying to cut me off! read more

Ben Watts Marina - Boat Repair Near Me - Fox Lake, Illinois

My wife and I went to the Lake County Boat show last night looking for a pontoon boat. We liked the first two we saw from this marina but owed it to ourselves to look around. Bob Nordmeyer gave us a 'ballpark' figure on both. No one else could come close to the prices he had for the whole package. After about 30 minutes we went back to talk actual numbers on the second boat. We liked the pricing Bob had and the 'extras' he was throwing in and yes we bought the boat. We have NO buyers remorse today and we're excited to get out on the water. This is a great dealer. Now I need some noodles and a big ass tube. WooHoo! read more

We live in Lake Geneva but Ben Watts Marina had the boat we wanted so in June we bought a beautiful used 21 foot ski boat from Ben Watts. It was there on consignment but they stood behind it and our salesman Fred did everything he could to make sure that we were satisfied. There were a few hiccups but nothing major and I would do business with Fred and Ben Watts Marina again. read more

Ben Watts understands fishermen! They do their absolute best to get my boat fixed so I can enjoy time on the water. I have always - and will always bring my 20' Champion Bass Boat in for service. This past week, they even sold me the parts, shared with me quickly how I was to put them in myself so I can keep running that specific day. Bob Nordmeyer is always positive- and smiling. Thank you to Ben Watts! read more

Horrible. Had the Canvas Shop across the street drop off the pontoon boat for winterization and winter storage. Paid over the phone with credit card. They called 3 weeks ago to claim the boat is off storage and needs pick up. I explained that our pier wasn't in yet due to covid-19. The pier went in and I tried picking up the pontoon. They charged $920.00 for addional 46 days of storage @ $20.00 per day past April 30th. Had no idea that they had contract terms like this. Never saw or signed a contract with these terms. They extorted this amount in order to pick up my boat. The Fox Lake Police forced Ben Watts Marina to write on the contract that I refused to sign it and to release my boat. Owner went into details about his $150,000.00 tax bill trying to justify this bill. It is not my job to pay for Ben Watts taxes. I will now have to sue for this amount in small claims court. read more

This marina is employed by scam artists. I had my boat stored at Ben Watts for winter storage where I had no issues. Once I decided to sell my boat, Ben Watts Marina decided to show their true colors. While deployed to Afghanistan defending our country I agreed to sell my boat and pay a 10% commission. I had the boat listed for $22,500.00 and had an offer for $20,000.00. The buyer and I agreed to the price of $21,250.00 as is. Ben Watts informed me that they would send me a statement via e-mail regarding the difference of the sale and the pay off amount plus the 10% commission. 10 days later I hadn't received an e-mail and my bank had not been contacted although the marina received the funds from the buyer. I called the marina and was told that even though the boat had been sold for the agreed upon price they were billing me for work that the buyers wanted done with no prior approval from myself. Currently the owners have paid for the boat, but I still hold the title and I will until the matter is resolved. It is a shame that the company would take advantage of a deployed soldier and I feel sorry for the buyer who has paid for the boat, but does not legally own it! read more

I liked Jen when she worked there, always nice, easy to work with. Now I got screwed this year and wasn't able to book the same slip I had last year. They were rude, not even nice enough to work something out to get the same slip. Just sorry, someone else booked it before you renewed it...too bad...Thats ok, don't wanna keep a long term customer happy especially paying $1400 for a slip and $700 winter storage..ill just move to different marina. Ben watts Marina docks suck..dangerous...most of them are sinking in the water, nails, screwes popping up...getting gas sucks cause it takes to long if u don't have cash...overall just not good read more

After shopping half a dozen different marinas, I recently purchased a new Ranger from Ben Watts Marina in Fox Lake, IL. I have owned 2 other Rangers since 1990 as the quality & craftmanship last for years, if not a lifetime. My previous two boats were purchased from two different marinas. While my experience with the sales staff was adequate I did not take the time to post comments about my experience, as I am with Ben Watts because the curtious attentive patience I was shown deserves to be recognized. The boat I purchased was a custom order down to the last detail. The staff worked with me, one on one, going over colors, options, etc., as if the boat was their own. Colors & options can be overwhelming & takes a substantial amount of time to get right. To add to all this, I changed my mind several times after the order was printed out. Fred, my salesman, never showed any frustration, in fact he made it clear, he understood this was a big purchase, and he wanted to get it right as much as I did. Whenever there was a question Fred & I had trouble with, Bob the manager had the answer. I found Bob to be very knowledgable and thorough. Fred & Bob worked with me on price for each option I added and in fact threw in several nice options, they knew I wanted but was reluctant to add as price can add up quickly. I cant tell you how refreshing it is not to be nickled & dimed for once. When I do buy another Ranger, years from now, I absolutely do not need to shop any other dealers. My next purchase will be with Ben Watts and I highly recommend them to you or anyone you know considering a new boat purchase. You will not find a more reasonable final purchase price or a better experience with the sales staff anywhere else. Ben Watts has a service department with a sterling reputation as well, and I look forward to many years of them handling whatever needs I may have. Thanks again Ben Watts! Shawn P. Cook Lake Villa, IL. read more

Just wanted to thank the staff at Ben Watts Marina for helping decide who I would buy my boat through. My wife came in to take a look at a boat that was listed online that we were interested in. After calling ahead and setting up an appointment she arrived to be told that the boat was in a different building than the dealer originally thought and no one was going to be getting it out for her to look at. As soon as I came home from my business trip we went down to Munson Ski & Marine where they were happy to show us two different boats over the course of two different appointments. We ended up buying one from the wonderful people there and can't wait to take delivery in the spring. Thanks for ensuring I'll never do business with Ben Watts, you definitely helped push a potential customer to a better dealer. Maybe you should take a woman shopper more seriously when she sets up an appointment and comes to see a boat from you guys. read more

Awful. Even though they did fix the problem I had; I cannot recommend to anyone. They lost my trust. I left them my boat to repair for nearly a week. Dropped it off with two batteries; just got one back. Best they could suggest is someone stole the other; really? No interest in owning up to any liability, anything other than, "sorry". So since they do not care enough to protect the property entrusted to them, why would you trust them in the first place? read more

hahaha ben hasn't been around in like 60 years! people are crazy... this place is great. I've seen as many as 100 plus launchers there. I have been launching there for years and had very little issues. obviously there doing something right. Take my opinion or her DADDY'S read more

This Marina has gone from bad to worse. Waited for 10 min. for gas service and pump out. Again no water hose to clean up after pump out and to re-fill clean water resivior. I went in and asked for the manager and was told that the dock personal had left the hose out twice and it was stolen so there will be no hose. I simply will not recomend this establishment, unless you like rude uncaring slow service!! read more

Completely unprofessional service department. Had my boat out of the water for 4 weeks saying it was unsafe needed $2,600 in work and parts needed to be ordered. I checked in weekly for update was told parts were not in yet. On week 4 they told me I had to prepay parts before they would order them. Wouldn't that be useful information several weeks ago? I was so upset I had another mechanic pick up the boat. I advised office I was having it picked up, 5 minutes later the service guy called me screaming at me that he didn't do estimates for free and I had wasted his time. Wouldn't tell me how much the estimate cost was, I went there within 15 minutes and they had the boat cover half off and someone was messing around it. Later that day they parked boats on 3 sides within inches to pin it in. I spoke with office the next morning and put estimate charges on my credit card. Service guy said new mechanic could not have copy of the estimate and refused to give it to me. Jenny in the office was nice and acknowledged I had been a good customer caused no problems and paid all my bills over the last three years in full and on time and did not know why he had been so belligerent. She said they would credit me half the slip fee I paid 1,200, New mechanic had the boat towed and in the water in 48 hours and for $2,000. Less!! Unbelievable!! read more