Get On Board! Experience boating without owning the vessel

SEABROOK, Texas (KTRK) -- Nothing says summer like a day on the lake. While the idea of owning a boat may seem out of reach for some families, there are two clubs in town that are building the bridge.

Ken Vollbrecht at Freedom Boat Club says it's the only way to go if owning isn't an option for you.

"We own the boats, and our members own the water," Vollbrecht said. "We provide a hassle-free entry point into the boating lifestyle. People will join the club and pay a one-time entry fee similar to a golf country club membership, pay monthly dues, and basically they get their choice of any boat in our fleet."

The membership gives you access to over 185 sister clubs across the country. In Texas alone it's in Austin, Dallas, Clear Lake and Lake Conroe.

Boat club member Calin Augt agrees and says the savings can be huge.

RELATED: Boat rental app helps you get on the water

Get My Boat is a boat-sharing service, much like AirBnb or Uber. Users can either post their own boats to rent out or find a boat to rent by the hour.

"We've paid for insurance, we've paid for maintenance, and here everything like that is free - it's all included in the price," Augt said.

Over at the Carefree Boat Club, customer convenience is the company's motto.

Members make a reservation online to reserve a boat. On the day of the reservation, call the dockhand when you're about 10 minutes away and they'll be waiting for you.

At the end of the boat outing, come back with the boat full of fuel and they'll be waiting to help you unload.

Both clubs have multiple locations and members have access to the entire fleet. Carefree has four locations in Texas and 36 throughout the United States.

"If you want to take the kids to Disney and want to get a fishing boat and do some off-shore fishing, you just go to one of our club locations.

Once you join, you will be given a training class by a staff member on how to safely operate the boat. There is always a staff member a phone call away if you need assistance.

"I can take a novice and have them operating this boat safely in just a couple hours," said Carefree Boat Club's David Warden. "I encourage the spouses to come out and learn as well."

"Well, of course we like a mom's day out too," said boat club member Suzi Nelson.

After you've had a fun-filled day on the lake, just drop it off with dockside service.

"We clean it, we store it, we insure it, we maintain it. You just use it," Warden said.

Two clubs in town have made it easy and affordable to enjoy boating.