A water taxi service launching in Fintry and La Casa is hoping to take advantage of what could be a busy tourism season for the North Westside due to restrictions on vacation rentals elsewhere.
Based in Fintry, OK Cap Ten hits Okanagan Lake for May Long weekend, linking La Casa and Fintry with Lake Country.
Owner and operator Craig Cruickshank has been an avid boater in the area for years, and with nowhere on the Lake Country side of Okanagan Lake to tie up his boat, he thought a water taxi service would be a great idea for tourists and people trying to get into town, but who don't want it to take all day.
"It’s an hour and 20 minutes to get to Lake Country [from the North Westside]," Cruickshank said.
"It’s only a half hour to get to downtown Kelowna, but it can be a little bit long in the summertime because of the traffic as it is a very windy road. So this is addressing the fact that in 10 minutes you can get across to Lake Country, and what you do after that is up to you."
“People can go do wine tours... They do e-bike tours as well, so it’s going to give people on the Westside a chance to get to Lake Country and really enjoy the wineries that are on the other side like 50th Parallel and Grey Monk.”
Short-term-vacation rentals in Kelowna and most larger B.C. cities are being severely restricted by both the provincial government and municipalities.
In La Casa and Fintry, both unincorporated communities, those restrictions don't apply and AirBnbs and VRBOs are aplenty.
"La Casa is open for business. This is a short term rental community," Cruickshank said.
"I would say approximately 70 per cent of the people rent their houses out nightly. The boat taxi service is going to lean into that. La Casa is a community, and just Westside completely, they are excited about this taxi service."
The water taxi service will run 10 a.m. to 6 p,.m. daily, and will also provide options to tour Okanagan Lake.
"People can book the Cap Ten boat and I captain it. And if people want to tube or do other things like that, just sitting and enjoying a bottle of wine. Bring your own food on board, I can’t serve alcohol, but people can bring it on. Cruising the lake is very relaxing, it’s one of my favourite things to do," said Cruickshank.
OK Cap Ten Water Taxi Service and Tours kicks will be running until the end of September.
To book them on the water, you can reach them through their website or by email.