Queensland now home to more than a quarter of a million boats

by Marine Queensland on 18 Feb 2014 Queensland has firmly cemented itself as the nation’s boating capital with over a quarter of a million vessels now registered across the state.

State boating industry association, Marine Queensland reports that January registration figures released by Queensland Transport reveal that there are now 250,475 registered vessels in the State – an all-time peak.

'It is encouraging to see this growth in our local recreational boating fleet' said Marine Queensland CEO Don Jones.

'To reach the milestone of having over a quarter of a million boats is a fantastic achievement for our State – we have one boat for every nineteen people in Queensland'.

New vessel and personal watercraft (PWC) registrations in the state have also been on the rise with an 8% increase in new vessel registrations for the 2013 calendar year against 2012 results. This is in contrast to other States across Australia who continue to experience a decline in new boat registrations, with New South Wales reporting a 9% decrease in registrations for the 2013 calendar year.

'To see new vessel registrations increasing clearly demonstrates boaters’ dedication to the lifestyle despite economic conditions' said Jones.

'These figures are a positive sign for Queensland boat manufacturers and retailers that the local market is buying and they are choosing to buy new.'

December 2013 saw the highest number of new vessel and PWC registrations in Queensland since 2007.

'The popularity of PWCs in Queensland has significantly increased in recent times,' said Jones, 'The final quarter of 2013 saw PWC registrations representing up to 30% of all new vessel registrations for the period.'

A 12% increase in the total number of PWC licences issued in 2013 further confirms the growing popularity of these vessels amongst Queenslanders with more than 121,000 licences now issued across the State.

General Recreational Marine Licences (boat only) increased 3.5% in 2013 taking the total number of boat licence holders in Queensland to 776,693.

'With more than 6,000 kilometres of coastline to explore, Queensland gives boaties plenty of reasons to get out on the water with family and friends' said Jones.

More at www.marineqld.com.au