Samboat
Samboat is a Bordeaux-based peer-to-peer boat rental marketplace that connects individual boat owners with renters worldwide, offering over 50,000 sailboats, catamarans, motorboats, yachts and jet skis across more than 70 countries via a multilingual website and mobile apps.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersBordeaux, France
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Samboat does
Samboat, operated by French corporation Lacani SAS and headquartered in Bordeaux, is an online peer-to-peer boat rental marketplace that connects individual boat owners with travelers seeking to charter vessels worldwide. The platform lists over 50,000 boats spanning sailboats, catamarans, motorboats, RIBs, houseboats, yachts and jet skis across more than 70 countries, served through a multilingual website, native iOS and Android apps, and a 5-stage structured booking workflow covering search, booking, inspection, sailing and review. Underlying infrastructure comprises secure payments and deposit pre-authorization via MANGOPAY, a community review system that has accumulated 204,252 reviews averaging 4.88/5, optional cancellation and deposit insurance products, and a loyalty program (SamBoat Club) with sub-brands for families, groups, adventures and curated experiences.
Samboat monetizes primarily through transaction commissions on completed bookings, supplemented by revenue from optional insurance add-ons, gift cards and a professional fleet management offering for charter operators such as Dream Yacht Charter. The go-to-market is product-led and self-serve: boat owners can list vessels free of charge, while renters search, compare and book directly through web or mobile, supported by SEO-optimized destination and boat-model pages, referral and partnership marketing (Nouvelle-Aquitaine regional tourism, CGI Finance, Navily, Fondation de la Mer), and aggregators such as Trustpilot, Google Reviews and TripAdvisor. Founded in 2013–2014, with disclosed funding of approximately $1.39 million across two early rounds (Angelsquare 2015; MAIF Avenir 2016), the company operates with a team of 11–50 and reaches more than 300,000 renters per year, with no publicly reported revenue or GMV.
Samboat firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Samboat
- Legal name
- Lacani SAS
- Website
- https://samboat.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Samboat is a Bordeaux-based peer-to-peer boat rental marketplace that connects individual boat owners with renters worldwide, offering over 50,000 sailboats, catamarans, motorboats, yachts and jet skis across more than 70 countries via a multilingual website and mobile apps.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Samboat industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Peer-to-peer boat rental marketplace
- NAICS
- Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (48721), Other Support Activities for Water Transportation (48839)
- SIC
- Services-Equipment Rental & Leasing, Nec (7359)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Private Charters & Yacht Experiences (Crewed, Bareboat, Day Charters) (THAJAJAB)
Keywords
Where Samboat is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Bordeaux
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Samboat business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Transaction Commission: Platform takes a commission on each boat rental transaction completed through the marketplace. Boat owners pay to list for free but the platform earns revenue from successful bookings.
- Optional Insurance Products: Optional cancellation insurance and deposit insurance offered to renters for additional protection during boat rentals
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Motorboat rentals |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Sailboat rentals (monohull) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Sailboat rentals (catamaran) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Captain/Skipper service |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Boat listing (for owners) |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
Samboat product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Samboat operates an online peer-to-peer marketplace that connects private boat owners and professional rental companies with individuals seeking to rent boats. The platform lists over 50,000 vessels across 70+ countries and 600+ destinations, enabling users to search, book, and pay for sailboats, catamarans, motorboats, RIBs, houseboats, yachts, and jet skis. SamBoat monetizes via commission on bookings and the sale of optional rental insurance products such as cancellation and deposit insurance.
Product overview
SamBoat is a peer-to-peer boat rental marketplace operating as a single unified platform. The core offering connects boat owners with renters worldwide, providing access to over 50,000 chartered yachts and boats across more than 65 countries. The product portfolio spans multiple boat types (sailboats, catamarans, motorboats, RIBs, houseboats, yachts, jet skis) available with or without a captain. Supporting services include optional cancellation and deposit insurance, the SamBoat Club loyalty program, cabin cruise packages, gift cards, and professional fleet management tools. Users can access the platform via website and native mobile apps (iOS/Android), with payments processed through integrated payment services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Samboat Club: Loyalty or membership program for frequent users of the boat rental platform
- Samboat Moments
- Samboat Families
- Samboat Adventures
- Samboat Groups
- SamBoat Experiences
- Cabin SamBoat
Products and services
- SamBoat Boat Rental Platform Core online marketplace where consumers can search, compare, and book sailboats, catamarans, motorboats, RIBs, houseboats, yachts, and jet skis from private owners and professional fleets across 70+ countries and 600+ destinations.
- 5-Stage Booking Service Structured end-to-end booking workflow: search the catalog, choose boat with skipper option, add extras (cleaning, bed linen, etc.), complete secure online payment, and finalize the rental contract through the platform.
- SamBoat Mobile App Mobile application that allows renters to search, book, and manage boat rentals from a smartphone.
- Cancellation Insurance Optional insurance product offered alongside boat rentals to protect renters against trip cancellation.
- Deposit Insurance Optional insurance product that covers the security/damage deposit required when renting a boat.
- SamBoat Club Loyalty Program Loyalty program offering tiered benefits and rewards to repeat renters on the SamBoat platform.
- SamBoat Gift Cards Gift cards that can be purchased and redeemed toward boat rental bookings on the platform.
- List My Boat (Owner Listing Service) Service enabling private boat owners to publish their boats on the marketplace, manage availability, pricing, and bookings.
- Professional Fleet Management Dedicated offering for professional rental companies and fleets to distribute their inventory across the marketplace with centralized management tools.
Quantifiable outcome
- 4.88/5 average rating based on 204,252 reviews
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Samboat
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Samboat technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature4 records
Samboat partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered regional, core and minor.
- Nouvelle-AquitaineregionalRegional government partnership supporting maritime tourism in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of France.
- Dream Yacht ChartercoreProfessional yacht charter company offering fleet boats on the SamBoat platform, providing verified fleet inventory.
- CGI FinanceminorFinancial services partner potentially offering financing solutions for boat purchases.
- YescapaminorFrench peer-to-peer boat rental platform partner in the sharing economy ecosystem.
- VogavecmoiminorSailing community platform connecting sailors for crew sharing and sailing experiences.
- Guide-Plaisance-MobileminorMobile boating guide partner for French recreational boating information.
- World YachtingminorYachting industry media and services partner.
- Je StockeminorStorage services partner potentially for boat storage solutions.
- NovaminorMedia partner for marketing and promotional activities.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Samboat competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Strengths4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Samboat social profiles
Digital presenceSamboat compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Samboat financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Samboat leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Samboat funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Samboat M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Samboat
What does Samboat do?
Samboat operates an online peer-to-peer marketplace that connects private boat owners and professional rental companies with individuals seeking to rent boats. The platform lists over 50,000 vessels across 70+ countries and 600+ destinations, enabling users to search, book, and pay for sailboats, catamarans, motorboats, RIBs, houseboats, yachts, and jet skis. SamBoat monetizes via commission on bookings and the sale of optional rental insurance products such as cancellation and deposit insurance.
Is Samboat a public or private company?
Samboat is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Samboat founded?
Samboat was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Samboat based?
Samboat is headquartered in Bordeaux, France, in the Europe region.
How does Samboat make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Transaction Commission is the primary driver. The others are optional Insurance Products.
Does Samboat have an API?
No public API is recorded for Samboat.
What industry is Samboat in?
Samboat's product category is Peer-to-peer boat rental marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAJAJAB, Private Charters & Yacht Experiences (Crewed, Bareboat, Day Charters). Its NAICS code is 48721 and its SIC code is 7359.