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.

Went on the 3pm tour leaving from McCrea pointe park. Had a delightful time the tour was…read moreinformative but in a fun way. Giving a variety of facts and local color. Go on this tour well worth the price. The crew and captain answered all my questions.

The Chautauqua Bell is a wonderful thing to do during the summer. You can have a special event…read moreaboard the boat. You can plan to eat dinner on board. Sometimes they do special events like murder mystery dinners. We had a special event on the boat with hors d'oeuvres. They have an open bar prices are a little high. Our boat ride lasted about two hours we have gone in the lake itself and other times we have gone along the river. I always enjoy myself at this venue. There is free parking. Restrooms available. Friendly staff on board. Beautiful scenery.

great folks great place. Definitely a great place to camp. Right on the water very friendly bath…read morehouses were clean definitely will come back.

Rented a pontoon boat for the day. So fun. Nice staff. Good boat. An amazing day on the lake! The…read moreBluetooth in the boat was great . Listening to our own playlists while wasting time !

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.

My parents own a house on lake Chautauqua in New York. It was my Mommaship's dream to own a house…read moreup here where our entire family could congregate for vacations and holidays. Three years ago, they finally found the perfect property - located in the cute little community of Lakewood - and, officially became the owners of multiple homes. Lake Chautauqua is surprisingly idyllic - set in the finger lakes of southwestern New York - it is surrounded by wineries and cute little communities like Bemis Point and Jamestown (which was the birthplace of Lucille Ball.) It's about 40 miles east of Erie, PA and 80 miles south of Buffalo; it is also easy to get to from Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and New York City. The lake it's self is about ten miles long and is great for fishing, boating, tubing and other variety of water sports. The Chautauqua Institute is nearby - hosting concerts and a series of high profile speakers (Al Gore, Jane Goodall most recently) throughout the year. The community of Lilydale is host to a psychic community (and, fairy houses) which is renowned throughout the country - a little wacky, if you ask me, but very interesting to visit. Year round it is a beautiful place to live: the colors in the fall are amazing, winter brings lots of ice fishing, skiing and such, spring and summer are big tourist times here. Frankly, the only time I am truly relaxed is for the two weeks of vacation I get to take with my family (yes, I know I am a dork for liking to hang out with my family on vacation.) We sleep late, eat well, sit around on the boat or deck reading/playing cards/staring at the mote in the middle distance, drink wine and just chillax. It's wonderful.

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 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.

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.