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    BFLO Harbor Kayak

    3.8 (45 reviews)
    Closed 9:00 am - 8:00 pm

    BFLO Harbor Kayak Photos

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    Sam R.

    I decided to take our 5 year old daughter on an adventure and experience Buffalo, and BFLO Harbor Kayak fit exactly what I wanted! We paddled out to the lighthouse, and then back up the Buffalo River, past riverworks. The staff was attentive and made sure we understood safety protocols before launching. I'd highly recommend for anyone - experienced kayakers, beginners, and families.

    Samantha S.

    Such an amazing way to spend an hour of your day in the summer, that is, when you aren't told there is a 3 hour wait. I have made several attempts to go kayaking here and on only one occasion did I not find myself waiting. They only have 25 kayaks, which is insane to me, considering the size of the river and how empty it appears when you look out. There is room for an additional 15-20 kayaks at a time in my opinion and they would do a killing if they invested in a bunch more. Nobody wants to be told there is going to be a 3 hour wait on a Sunday afternoon. It kills the whole day, Sure, there's places to see on Canalside and a lot of area to be explored, but you can only walk around, sit on a bench, and drink so many 21st Amendment Hell or High Watermelon beers before you reach that hot and desperate point in your day where you just NEED to get in the water! There is little organization at the renting stand. There is no line, more like a group of people standing around and a guy with a clipboard directing his attention to the person closest to him asking if they need help. Make sure, if you'e been waiting, speak up, don't let other people walk up and get in front of you because people can be pushy here. It was $20 for a single kayak for an hour which I thought was very reasonable. $30 for a tandem, but a single is much more fun, they allow for splashing wars, races with your friends (or strangers) and you paddle at your leisure. They have sit ins or kayaks you sit on top of, I recommend the sit in ones, they seem more comfortable and there's room for a small backpack. They did not have any waivers available for us so they taped the last copy they had on the booth window and had us sign on a blank sheet of paper. Official. Then we were told to grab a life vest and head down to the dock. Once we got down to the dock there were two people sitting underneath the dock in lawn chairs who didn't move a muscle and then a woman assisting one lady getting of a kayak and motioning me to come over to the one that was available for me. There was an area to drop your shoes off and they were happy to keep your backpacks for you, we kept ours though. The woman helped me into the kayak and told me to paddle out to the second bridge and then to come back because that would be about an hour. Perfect. Apparently if you paddle right, the water gets a bit choppy, we followed her advice. The experience was awesome, weather was perfect, we stopped when we wanted, few boats on the water so rarely did we need to have much direction. The view of the city was incredible, definitely bring your camera. On the way back, I pulled up to the dock and the two men sitting underneath the dock in lawn chairs didn't want to move to assist me out of the kayak. It made me a little uncomfortable but I think they secretly did a rock papers scissors, and the losing dude came and helped me out. I got some seriously good color, but definitely bring sun screen.

    Nicole D.

    Great experience renting kayaks from this company; they are located right at the end of the boardwalk at Canalside and the process was seamless. The price was $30 for a tandem kayak rental (life jacket rental included), they ask for your ID to keep as collateral and you are able to go a pretty far distance, as long as you stay to the side and out of the way of the boats. Service was friendly - overall a great experience! Highly recommend renting from this company!

    Justin M.

    This is something I've always wanted to do when I come to canal side and dang it I did it. Sure I played a little hookie on my lunch break and extended it a bit but hey when you have the opportunity to go kayaking you friggen take it by the oar and row. If you use yelp which you should you get a discount of 5 bucks off which makes this adventure even more worth it. Normally it's 15 per hour to venture the vicious seas of Lake Erie however check in and well you can do the math it's close to priceless ! Sure I've yaked many of times in my 28 yr old career visiting the downtown buffalo scene but never did I think I'm gunna kayak ... sorry. Anyways you can paddle your butt off up and down the lake till your arms fall off. My only tip would be to get on the list to rent on since it seems on weekends it maybe impossible to get on one of these pleasure crafts. And hey I know next time I wanna play pirate of the open seas I may have to bring mr captain Morgan with. Who said you can't yak in a kayak ....

    View from kayaking on the harbor!
    Betty V.

    The canalside is a wonderful place for kayaking! Water can be a little dirty though, but I suppose you can't expect much from lake water. But it's an awesome summertime activity and great way to soak up the sun! There's always other people on the harbor on their boats so it's kind of cool to see everyone passing by. I went later in the afternoon around 5 pm and we were told it was a 45 minute wait, which turned out to be much longer. There's only a limited number of kayaks and paddle boards! Pricing is decent and fairly standard. The canalside is great. You can just sit on their cool chairs or on the grass and eat some ice cream while you wait!

    But it was sunny all afternoon! One day in Buffalo, and this is all I wanted to do.
    Holly L.

    We had one full day in Buffalo, and all we wanted to do was kayak or canoe on the Buffalo River to see the grain silos. It rained in the morning, but cleared up by 1 as all the weather reports said it would. We showed up at The BFLO Harbor Kayak kiosk at 3, and there wasn't a soul there - just a note scrawled on the window that they were closed due to weather and would be back the next day. This is an absurd way to run a company, especially one that's driven by tourism, and it's bad for Buffalo. Boo on you! That said, we settled for the Buffalo River History Boat Tour that was next door and enjoyed an awesome, informative, SUNNY tour of the river and the silos. I highly recommend the competition!

    BFLO Canalside
    Courtney H.

    We had to wait an hour but they called us when it was our turn. Don't be put off by the wait times, just go earlier next time. It's worth it. We kayaked near the ships, and down to the blue towers. GO EARLY or your may end up waiting 2-3 hours for your turn. You can explore Canalside while you wait.

    Relaxing

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    5 years ago

    Molly is an EXCELLENT guide! Very knowledgable! We learned so much about the city that we never knew before! Highly recommend!

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    6 years ago

    Their employee Sean has amazing hair and even better customer service skills. 11/10, highly recommend

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    12 years ago

    Difficult to get to. Direction link on yelp and website both incorrect. No one answers phone. Not pleased.

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    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - BFLO Harbor Kayak

    Review Highlights - BFLO Harbor Kayak

    It only cost $15 for an hour and I got to enjoy magnificent views paddling from CanalSide down to the First Ward.

    Mentioned in 14 reviews

    Read more highlights

    Elevator Alley Kayak - Tugboat pulling large ship

    Elevator Alley Kayak

    4.2(30 reviews)
    1.2 miSouth Buffalo
    $$

    Wonderful experience on the water. I kayaks were ready and waiting for us upon arrival.read more

    Had a great time kayaking with my Dad!…read more We did the Friday fireworks tour, which ends with watching the fireworks from the Bisons game. You start from the kayak launch across from silo city, paddle down to Canalside and then come back. There are two guides, one talking about the history of the area and another just to make sure the group is safe and accounted for. There are also sunset/twilight tours without fireworks which would be just as fun...I think I would have enjoyed spending more time paddling around Canalside and catching some of the music from the concert that was going on instead of the fireworks, but the tour was as advertised, so I am not going to fault them for that. Things to know before you go: -plenty of parking in this area as long as some huge event isn't going on -there is a small door along the road with a sign but the main entrance is actually inside the main Barrel Factory. -there is a bathroom to change, but there are no lockers for your things (at least I think), so you have to leave items in your car, so don't leave anything too valuable. -The kayak launch is dry, but I still got a bit wet from the water dripping off the paddle. The water made my clothes and drawstring bag I brought smell a bit funky so definitely only wear/bring items you can wash. My recommendations: -I really think the guided tours are best for people new to the area or new to kayaking. There really isn't anything TOO interesting history wise along the waterfront since a lot of it is new development (or abandoned) and most people in town have been to Riverworks and Canalside before. That said, it's still a great place to go kayaking and you can rent kayaks here without the guided tour if you are comfortable. They have good quality rentals with nice comfy seats. -Gene MaCarthys is practically right next door. What better way to reward all that paddling than with a nice cold beer?

    Photos
    Elevator Alley Kayak - This is not the entrance.

    This is not the entrance.

    Elevator Alley Kayak - Lights under the skyway

    Lights under the skyway

    Elevator Alley Kayak - Kayaking with rented kayaks from Elevator Alley Kayak, awesome !!

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    Kayaking with rented kayaks from Elevator Alley Kayak, awesome !!

    Niagara Kayak Rentals - Awesome Trip!!

    Niagara Kayak Rentals

    4.7(7 reviews)
    24.6 mi

    So... not knowing the area- my daughter wanted so badly to kayak in Canada while visiting the…read morefalls. This business was available to drop off a kayak at the beach on the river. They have both open single and tandem rentals and you probably do t want longer than 2 hours. The paddle is mostly upstream and not my desire when kayaking. 1.5 paddle up and .5 back. Kind of difficult to stay near the edge when the wake from boats causes sideways waves. The boat didn't have much tracking, but it got us to a huge rookery of. Cormorants. Lots of birds active along the waterway and beautiful homes and marinas. Views of USA and Canada for miles. I think the price for a two hour tandem kayak was 100$ in US It was worth the exercise and beauty.

    This business used to be called Niagara Kayak Rentals but it is under new ownership and they are…read morenow known as Kayaking Niagara. We found their website during a recent stay in the area and booked a 2PM trip from Queenston Heights, which would take us down the river to Niagara-on-the-Lake. We were told that the trip would take 2-3 hours with moderate effort, and we clocked in at 2hrs 20 mins. Registering and paying couldn't have been easier. Just go onto the Kayaking Niagara site and fill out a few forms. We were met at 2PM by Matteo at the Queen's Royal Park gazebo, which would also be the ending point of the excursion. We loaded into the Kayaking Niagara van shortly afterwards and were driven to the put-in spot 5-6 miles away. During the van ride, Matteo pointed out areas of interest and told us about the area. He was great. When we arrived, he provided our kayak, oars, and life vests; and gave advice on how best to navigate the waterway (e.g. paddling is more difficult close to shore, stay on the Canadian side of the river, etc.). Then he pushed our boats into the water and away we went. The kayaks were sturdy, handled well, and had a waterproof compartment for storage. Since it was both Canada Day and 4th of July weekend, the river was very busy with speedboats and jet skis on both sides of the border, making the water very choppy and harder to paddle through. But it was very pretty and we enjoyed seeing the vegetation and large houses dotting the shoreline. At the end of the trip, we navigated our kayaks back into Queen's Royal Park (across from Fort Niagara) and walked through the Artistry at the Lake tents back to our car. A few thoughts. My wife and I are experienced kayakers but this was a bit more challenging than we anticipated. I chalk this up to the boat traffic on the busy holiday weekend. There were some cool things to see, including the sailboats at Smugglers Cove and the waterfront houses in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Kayaking Niagara also does not set a time limit for patrons to be on the water. This means that if you want to keep paddling after you reach the end point, you are more than welcome to stay on the water. There are other options as well so check their website for details. I'd definitely do this again.

    Photos
    Niagara Kayak Rentals - Stormy Skies just outside of Youngstown, NY.

    Stormy Skies just outside of Youngstown, NY.

    Niagara Kayak Rentals - The Lower Niagara River, 2017.

    The Lower Niagara River, 2017.

    Niagara Kayak Rentals - The early bird gets the glassy flat waters, Queens Royal Park 2017.

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    The early bird gets the glassy flat waters, Queens Royal Park 2017.

    BFLO Harbor Kayak - tours - Updated May 2026

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