Houseboat

For the 1958 film, see Houseboat (film).

A houseboat on Lake Union in Seattle, Washington, USA

Floating house on the Amazon, Iquitos, Peru

A houseboat is a boat that has been designed or modified to be used primarily as a human dwelling. Some houseboats are not motorized, because they are usually moored, kept stationary at a fixed point and often tethered to land to provide utilities. However, many are capable of operation under their own power.

By country

Australia

In Australia, especially on the Murray River and the sunny coastline of Queensland, there are many motorized, pontoon-based houseboats with two or more bedrooms; some of these houseboats have more than one level or multiple stories (floors). Some are privately owned as either a primary residence or a holiday shack. Many are also available for hire (rent) as self-driven holiday destinations with accommodation for four to perhaps a dozen persons. Coomera River, the Great Sandy Straits near the world's largest sand island - Fraser Island and in recent times the Tweed River (near Barri Island during the popular Tournament Crabbing competitions) are especially popular with Queenslanders and interstate tourists. Lake Eildon in Victoria and the Hawkesbury River near Sydney in New South Wales are popular houseboating areas.

Canada

In Canada, houseboats are gaining major popularity in British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec as there is an abundance of perfectly suited rivers and lakes for houseboaters to enjoy. Houseboats in Canada are generally motorised and used recreationally, rather than as a permanent dwelling. The Rideau Canal system is a historic waterway known for its picturesque setting and quaint villages. The town of Sicamous, on Shuswap Lake, British Columbia, is said to be the "Houseboat Capital of the World".

China

There is a houseboat and fishing community in Hong Kong known as Aberdeen floating village.

Germany

Houseboats on Landwehrkanal, Berlin.

The Port of Hamburg has a sizable water borne community that includes a Flussschifferkirche or Boatman's Church. Berlin also has some houseboat neighborhoods, notably on the Landwehrkanal in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg.

India

In India, houseboats are common on the backwaters of Kerala, see below, and on the Dal Lake near Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir.

Kerala houseboats

Main article: Kettuvalloms

A Kerala House boat in Kumarakom, India

House boat near Alleppey, Kerala, India

The houseboats in Kerala, south India, are huge, slow-moving, exotic barges used for leisure trips. They are a reworked model of Kettuvallams (in the Malayalam language, Kettu means "tied with ropes", and vallam means "boat"), which, in earlier times, were used to carry rice and spices from Kuttanad to the Kochi port. Kerala houseboats were considered a convenient means of transportation.

The popularity of Kettuvallams has returned in the function as major tourist attractions.

Such a houseboat is about 60 to 70 feet (18 to 21 m) long and about 15 feet (4.6 m) wide at the middle. The hull is made of wooden planks that are held together by ropes of coconut fiber; the usual wood is 'Anjili'. The roof is made of bamboo poles and palm leaves. The exterior of the boat is painted with protective coats of cashew nut oil.

Kashmir houseboats

Houseboat on Dal Lake in Srinagar, Kashmir

House boats on Nageen Lake, Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir, India.

Unlike their counterparts in Kerala, the houseboats in Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir are usually stationary. They are usually moored at the edges of the Dal and Nageen lakes. Some of the houseboats there were built in the early 1900s, and are still being rented out to tourists. These houseboats are made of wood, and usually have intricately carved wood paneling. The houseboats are of different sizes, some having up to three bedrooms apart from a living room and kitchen.

Many tourists are attracted to Srinagar by the charm of staying on a houseboat, which provides the unique experience of living on the water in a cedar-paneled elegant bedroom, with all the conveniences of a luxury hotel. Srinagar's thousand or so houseboats are moored along sections of the Dal and Nagin Lakes and the Jhelum River, each decorated fancifully and named romantically and even whimsically. Like hotels, houseboats vary in degree of luxury and have been accordingly graded by the Department of Tourism. A luxury houseboat, like a luxury hotel has fine furniture, good carpets and modern bathroom fittings, while the ‘D category’ (the lowest category) of houseboats, like low-budget hotels, is spartanly furnished. Like hotels too, houseboats vary widely in their locations. Some overlook the main road, others look out onto lotus gardens and yet others face tiny local markets and villages, which are also floating on the lake. All houseboats, regardless of category, have highly personalized service. Not only is there always a "houseboy" for every boat, but the owner and his family are often close by. The cost per day of hiring a houseboat includes all meals and free rides from the houseboat to the nearest jetty and back, as no houseboat on the lakes is directly accessible from the banks.

Every standard houseboat provides a balcony in the front, a lounge, dining room, pantry and 3 or more bedrooms with attached bathrooms. All houseboats not moored to the bank of the river or lakes provide a shikara as a free service from the houseboat to the nearest Ghat (jetty). Virtually every houseboat in Srinagar has been provided with a municipal water connection.

Laos

Houseboat for Students in Zwolle, Netherlands

Houseboat in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Narrowboats at Braunston on the Grand Union Canal, UK

Beached hull house boats at Hayling Island, UK

A doghouseboat on the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA

A houseboat in Silver Glen Springs, just off Lake George, USA

A houseboat in Lake Bigeaux, near Henderson, Louisiana, USA

In Laos, houseboats are used to accommodate tourists on the Mekong river. The houseboats are usually referred to as 'slow boats' and exist in wooden or steel variants.

Netherlands

In Europe, some of the finest and costliest examples of houseboats can be seen along the canals of Amsterdam, which even has houseboat hotels. Houseboats are very expensive nowadays in Amsterdam because of the limited number of moorings; this expense has reduced the likelihood that the approximately 2,400 families that live on the inner waters of Amsterdam will find themselves confronted by new neighbor boats. The Bloemenmarkt is a houseboat borne flower market along the Singel in Amsterdam. The town of Maasbommel is pioneering floating houses, with flexible connections for fluids and electricity; these are not primarily intended for travel, but rather to be safe against flooding.

New Zealand

In New Zealand houseboating is developing as a holiday activity. Whangaroa Harbour on Northland's east coast is a land locked harbour that provides houseboating.

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, canal narrowboats are used as homes and also as mobile, rented, holiday accommodation. Narrowboats were originally used for bulk transport of raw materials and fuel on canals constructed at the start of the Industrial revolution. Nowadays, the canal network is mainly used for recreation and is different to typical holiday locations, which are usually based in coastal or rural areas, because canals are inland and often pass through many former historical, industrial, urban areas.

In coastal regions of the United Kingdom, the beached hulls of old boats and ships have been used as homes in the past, for example, Peggotty's houseboat of the 1840s in the novel David Copperfield. Today in the very same area (Hoo Peninsula) there are hundreds of converted ships, barges and other boats being used as homes by many families.

Over 15,000 people live afloat in Great Britain.

Liveaboards are attracted to their lifestyle for many reasons, including:

• economies of combining home with pleasure
• closeness to Nature
• camaraderie
• escape from day-to-day pressures of life ashore

Research has shown that liveaboards are not a subculture; actually, they are a very diverse group. Often, they have a strong sense of their local community and its environment.

There are a number of residential houseboats/moorings in the London Port Health Authority (LPHA) District. Although a significant number of houseboats are permanent floating residences, many are occupied only at weekends and seldom move whilst others may periodically leave the moorings for short cruises.

The various moorings stretch from Broadness Creek and Benfleet Creek in the lower part of the London Port Health Authority District up to Twickenham in the upper part. Many of these are Port of London Authority (PLA) licensed moorings which also have Riparian Local Authority planning approval for their existence, whilst others have neither.

United States

In the United States, houseboats are gaining in popularity. Recreational houseboating in the United States started in the late 1940s when people were looking to stay on the water for longer periods of time. Lake Cumberland in Kentucky is considered the birthplace of houseboating in the USA. Today one can find motorized houseboats with over 2,000 sq ft (200 m²) of living space.

Seattle, Washington is home to a relatively large collection of floating houseboat neighborhoods, particularly in Lake Union and Portage Bay. The earliest houseboats in Seattle were recorded in 1905, and peaked with over 2,000 houseboats in the 1930s. There are currently approximately 500 houseboats in Seattle. Most houseboats are designed and built for inland lakes and waterways only. Portland, Oregon also has many houseboats along both the Willamette River and the Columbia River, with the neighborhood of Hayden Island as a prominent example.

Renting houseboats has also become popular. In addition, houseboats have been used for commerce; on the Northern Neck of Virginia, Chesapeake National Bank had a floating bank branch called the Boat 'n Bank that provided bank services to watermen. Halibut Cove, Alaska has one of the only floating post offices in the US. Mystic Island, New Jersey had a 'boatel' (hotel for boaters with water access) when it started in the 1960s but the building has since changed ownership and no longer operates as such.

Sausalito, California, also has one of the most noted collections of float homes that were owned at various times by the likes of famous musicians, film stars, authors, and other notables, from the hippie era until even today. Like many areas where float homes have taken hold, battles have brewed between float home owners, local and state government, and the local establishment (which includes land-based home owners). Float home owners had fought established land-based tax schemes whereby float home owners sought relief from real estate taxes. The state won the battle with the shadow tax allowing the state to make the case that property beneath the float home was improved by the shadow the float home cast upon the bottom.

For recreation

Houseboating is a very popular recreational activity for groups of people of all ages, aboard houseboats of all varieties, ranging from more modest 30–40 foot boats to 70-foot (21 m)-plus luxury houseboat models. Houseboating is appealing due to the ability to more completely explore the local scenery, remain in close proximity to other outdoor activities (hiking, boating, beaches, etc.), and finally, retain the potential to move the living quarters for a change of view or neighbors, on a whim.

Houseboating lakes

Houseboating on Lake Powell is a popular vacation option since the Glen Canyon Dam impounds water from the Colorado River to form almost 2,000 miles (3,200 km) of shoreline. Lake Mead, the largest man-made lake in North America, about 30 minutes from Las Vegas, New Bullards Bar Reservoir in the Sierra Nevada foothills about 45 minutes from Nevada City, California, and Lake Shasta in the mountains just outside of Redding, California, are also popular spots for houseboats. Four rivers or "arms" merge together to create this man-made wonder: the Sacramento, McCloud, Squaw Creek, and Pit. Each has its own personality and unique beauty. Shasta Dam, the highest center spillway dam in the world, can be found at the southwest corner of the lake. Lake Shasta Caverns, a fascinating natural wonder that can only be reached from the lake, offers daily tours year round. With Mount Shasta rising majestically to the north and the Lassen volcanic peaks to the east, the scenery and views are endlessly breathtaking. Jones Valley Resort on Lake Shasta rents the largest three story houseboat on the lake, in the twenty-two passenger Titan. Houseboats.com, which specializes in luxury rentals on Lake Shasta, also carries houseboat rentals on Lake McClure and New Melones Lake just southeast of Sacramento.

Houseboating is also common on Lake Cumberland - often referred to as the Houseboat Manufacturing Capital of the World (as the majority of American-built houseboats are manufactured in the counties surrounding Lake Cumberland). Lake Cumberland and other lakes in the Southeast US such as Norris Lake (TN), Dale Hollow Lake (KY/TN), Centerhill Lake (TN), Lake Lanier (GA) and more offer very favorable houseboating conditions as the geography provides a vast number of coves and fingers that allow houseboats to tie up or anchor away from the main channel and provides the user a peaceful, secluded atmosphere. Due to the large number of houseboat manufacturers located in the Southeast US, the new and used houseboat marketplace in the Southeast is one of the most competitive and affordable areas for houseboats to be purchased in the nation. Houseboat transporters can also deliver a houseboat to any body of water in the US. Houseboating is also popular on Lake Amistad, Trinity Lake, Lake Mohave and Lake Mead National Recreation Area. In New York, houseboats have also become a major part of the great South Bay on Long Island. Houseboats are also available for rental at Lake Billy Chinook in Central Oregon where waterskiing is popular. Lake Billy Chinook has many little coves to anchor the houseboat.

Venezuela

In Maracaibo, Venezuela, there is a big house called La Casa Barco, which was built by a former captain of the Venezuelan Navy in the 20th century. The building resembles a real ship with its anchors, lifeboats, and radars, floating on water. It is located in the neighborhood La Estrella. Nowadays La Casa Barco has become a city icon for tourists.

Zimbabwe

In Zimbabwe, specifically on Lake Kariba houseboats have been in use since the creation of the lake in the late 1950s/early 1960s. This is undoubtedly one of the most luxurious ways to experience the Zambezi basin and all the associated wildlife, as it is possible to view a lot of game as they come down to the water for drinking, and to cool themselves down.

Carbon monoxide from gasoline-powered generators

Many houseboats use gasoline-powered generators. The carbon monoxide exhaust from these generators has caused problems for some houseboat inhabitants. The US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, in tandem with the US National Park Service and the U.S. Coast Guard, performed a number of evaluations on air quality, particularly carbon monoxide (CO) levels, on houseboats beginning in August 2000. Since that initial investigation, over 600 boating-related poisonings in the United States have been identified with over 100 of these poisonings resulting in death. Over 250 of the poisonings occurred on houseboats, with more than 200 of these poisonings attributed to generator exhaust alone. Some houseboat and generator manufacturers have begun working with these agencies to evaluate engineering controls to reduce CO concentrations in occupied areas on houseboats.

See also

• Boathouse, a house to store a boat.
• Cabin cruiser
• Floating restaurant
• Hulk (ship)
• Prison ship

External links

• Living Afloat, the reference website on houseboats and how to convert them
• Houseboat Museum Amsterdam
• Houseboat Trivia (English version)
• NPS.gov - US National Park Service website
• Recreation.gov - Recreation information for US public lands
• All About Houseboats
• Cool Houseboats for Everyone
• "The Case of the Hospitable Houseboat." Popular Science, July 1969, pp. 50-55.