Detroit Boat Show, Including New Nautical Products, Cruises into Cobo Center Feb. 16-24

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The Detroit Boat Show will take place at Cobo Center next week and feature boating accessories such as this floating grill. // Photographs Courtesy of The Detroit Boat Show, Float 'n' Grill

It may be frigid outside, but inside Cobo Center, Feb. 16-24, all thoughts will be on the coming summer during the Detroit Boat Show, which is expected to draw more than 60,000 boaters and other interested consumers in from the cold.

This year, the show will cover 500,000 square feet with everything boating, including many new and innovative nautical products and accessories.

“It’s great to see a thriving boating industry in Michigan,” says Nicki Polan, the show’s manager. “We have new exhibitors this year, and past exhibitors are taking more space and bringing in more product, which makes for a bigger and better show that is sure to please our attendees.”

Those attendees will see and buy hundreds of boats, including new model 2019 debuts as well as 2018 and 2017 model boats for fishing, skiing, wakeboarding, and cruising. Paddle boats, kayaks, paddleboards, and inflatables also will be well represented.

With dealers from around the around the state displaying their wares, the Detroit Boat Show, according to Polan, is the best place to shop for a boat, and show prices are also extremely competitive, she says. Buying a boat in February assures that vessels will be ready for an early spring launch.

Past surveys have shown more than 1,500 boats, worth an estimated $50 million, traditionally sell during the show’s nine-day run, and shortly after due to leads generated there.

The Detroit Boat Show also offers exhibits selling boating accessories and services including motors, dockage, water toys, skiing, and wakeboarding gear, boating and fishing accessories, electronics, boat gear, nautical gifts, and artwork.

One such accessory comes from Michigan inventors Michael Bashawaty and Jeremy Quillico. It is the Float ‘N’ Grill, an operational floating grill. It features textured marine-grade vinyl, a built-in igniter, cup holders, a dual latch that locks the grill lid tight, a secure and removable grease trap, and a slot to hold the propane tank in place. It sells for $279.

Admission to the boat show is $13 for adults; children 12 and under are free with an adult.

For a full list of special promotions, exhibits, and other boat show information, visit www.detroitboatshow.net.