The holidays are here, and so are annual holiday boating parades! It’s a fun time of the year but it’s easy to become complacent with on-board safety. After you are done decorating the boat, read our blog to brush up on boating safety practices to ensure the safety of all passengers!

If you’re captaining the boat, brief all passengers of the rules before they come on-board

Make sure you have enough, properly fitting life jackets for all passengers. If a life jacket is too big, the jacket will push up around your face, causing suffocation, and if it is too small, it will not keep your body afloat.

If you are going to allow passengers to consume alcoholic beverages while on-board, do not allow them to get out of control

Designate a backup driver, just in-case

Before departing from the dock, make sure that all holiday lights and electronics are properly plugged in, and that their chords are tucked safely out of the way to prevent slips, trips, and falls

• Keep a first-aid kit on-board
• Clear all alleyways of hazards, including holiday decorations
• Follow all of the parades participation and safety rules
• Do not overload your boat with passengers
• Designate a look-out person, they may see something off in the distance, or on-board that you are unable to see

What measures do you take to make sure all passengers are safe while on-board? Share them with us on our Monterey Boats Facebook page. And don’t forget to share pictures from the parade too! If you still haven’t decorated your boat, use our Holiday Boat Decorating blog for help : http://www.montereyboats.com/news/view/holiday-boating/#.Uq5vrlWzKpg