Lake Lifestyle
Houseboating on Shuswap Lake
A Shuswap lifestyle guide by Justin Gaspari, REALTOR® · CIR Realty
Shuswap Lake is the Houseboat Capital of Canada: four sheltered arms, warm water and the country’s largest rental fleet. Here’s how houseboating actually works: renting, owning, the season, what it costs, and where you get on the water when Blind Bay is home.
If you picture a Shuswap summer, you picture a houseboat: a floating cabin drifting between quiet bays, beached on a sandbar for the afternoon, a barbecue going on the top deck. There’s a reason the image is so fixed. The Rental Houseboat Owners Association called this the Houseboat Capital of Canada back in 1969, and the lake has earned the name ever since.
Shuswap Lake is shaped like a letter H, spreading into four long arms (the Main, Salmon, Anstey and Seymour) across hundreds of kilometres of forested, mostly undeveloped shoreline. The water is warm and sheltered, the bays are countless, and much of the best of it is only reachable by boat. That’s the perfect houseboat lake: room to roam, calm water to do it on, and a beach of your own around most corners.
Renting
Renting a houseboat on the Shuswap
Most rentals run out of Sicamous, at the north narrows of the lake, where the fleet is based. Twin Anchors has built and rented houseboats there since 1977, and Waterway Houseboats runs a second fleet alongside it, together the largest houseboat rental fleet in the country. Boats range from compact family models to floating condos that sleep more than a dozen, with hot tubs, slides and rooftop decks on the larger ones.
Pricing is split into low, mid and peak seasons and depends on the boat and the number of nights. As a rough guide, a mid-size houseboat vacation starts around $1,890 for three nights, day charters start near $1,000 for eight hours, and a deposit of $500 or more holds the booking. Peak July and August weeks on the biggest boats run well above that. Rates change year to year, so confirm current pricing with the operator before you plan a budget around it.
Owning
Buying your own houseboat
Rent a few times and the math starts to change. Plenty of Shuswap owners buy their own boat instead, new or used through the active local market, and keep it at a lake marina for the season. Waterway Houseboats, based in Sicamous, is one of the best-known places to buy and sell houseboats on the lake, and smaller runabouts and pontoon boats are easy to find closer to home.
Owning turns the whole season into yours rather than one booked week: a Tuesday evening cruise, a weekend at anchor off an island, a September run when the lake has emptied out. It’s the version of lake life that makes the most sense when you actually live here, rather than driving in for a holiday.
From your door
Getting on the water from Blind Bay
Here’s the part that matters if you’re buying land here. Blind Bay sits on the south shore of the Main Arm with its own marina and boat launch, so getting on the water is a matter of minutes, not a road trip. Just offshore is Copper Island, the forested provincial-park island that’s one of the lake’s favourite anchorages and day-trip destinations.
From a lake-view lot at The Highlands at Blind Bay, the houseboat capital isn’t a vacation you book once a year. It’s the view from your deck and a short drive to the dock. Rent a big boat when family visits, keep a smaller one at the marina, or just watch the summer traffic drift by below. The lake does the rest.
Neighbouring Sicamous, 45 minutes east, is the rental hub and worth the trip; our Blind Bay guide covers the marina, the golf and daily life on this shore.
Your lake, your backyard
Live where the summer happens
The Highlands at Blind Bay is a collection of fully serviced, lake-view lots on the south shore of Shuswap Lake, minutes from the marina, above the water rather than on it, with the whole Houseboat Capital laid out below.
See the lots for sale, read about the Shuswap lake lifestyle, or register for updates and we’ll send new lot releases and pricing as they come.
Houseboating FAQ
Common questions
Why is Shuswap Lake called the Houseboat Capital of Canada?
The Rental Houseboat Owners Association coined the phrase in 1969, and it stuck because the lake is built for it. Shuswap Lake spreads into four long arms with sheltered, warm water and hundreds of kilometres of forested shoreline, and Sicamous, at the narrows, is home to the largest houseboat rental fleet in the country. Twin Anchors has built and rented houseboats there since 1977, with Waterway Houseboats running a second fleet alongside it.
How much does it cost to rent a houseboat on Shuswap Lake?
Rates depend on the boat, the season and how many nights you stay, split across low, mid and peak periods. As a rough guide, a mid-size houseboat vacation starts around $1,890 for three nights, and day charters start near $1,000 for eight hours on the water, with a deposit of $500 or more to hold the booking. Peak July and August weeks on the largest boats run well above that. Always confirm current rates with the operator.
When is houseboat season on Shuswap Lake?
The season runs roughly from May through September, with July and August the warmest and busiest. Spring and early fall, the low and mid seasons, bring quieter water and lower rates, which is part of why living on the lake beats visiting it: you can go midweek in June or September when the crowds are gone.
Can you buy a houseboat on Shuswap Lake instead of renting?
Yes. Plenty of Shuswap owners buy rather than rent, either a new boat or a used one through the local market, and keep it at a lake marina. Waterway Houseboats, based in Sicamous, is one of the better-known places to buy and sell houseboats on the lake. Owning turns the whole boating season into your own instead of a booked week.
Where do you launch or moor a houseboat near Blind Bay?
Most rentals launch from Sicamous at the north end of the lake. If you own or trailer a boat, Blind Bay has a marina and boat launch on the south shore, with Copper Island (the forested provincial-park island just offshore) a short cruise away and one of the lake’s favourite anchorages. From a lake-view lot at The Highlands you are minutes from the water rather than hours.
Do you need a boating licence to operate a houseboat in BC?
To operate your own motorized boat in Canada you need a Pleasure Craft Operator Card. For a rental you do not need the card. The operator walks you through a rental boat safety checklist that serves as a temporary substitute and gives you the orientation to handle the boat before you leave the dock.