Island Buddy 8' Water Platform and Swim Boarding Step

**2 YEAR REVIEW** just wanted to follow up and say we are on our 3rd summer of this mat. has held up great and been tons of fun for kids. We use this island hopping around charleston SC and keep it folded under the bow filler of our center console. There are other larger options and "fancier" ones with decking material out there, but we've enjoyed this size. our friends have larger ones and they are nice, but no so user friendly for what we do. they are heavier and tougher to manage. i have found this size perfect for day use where you are blowing up and packing each trip.Great productI researched these a good bit before purchasing and was leery of spending a lot on an inflatable mat. We used this one for the first time this past weekend and it did great. had 4-5 kids on it at any given time and all playing on it. not just lounging. We are using it for an extra float when we have our boat at sandbars. it folds up small enough to slip under our bow filler, and i would compare it to having a deflating tube on board. The top is a little slick, but the kids had fun with. one thing that sold me on this matt were the handles around the edges. they definitely aid in the them getting back on from the water. Only thing i wish it came was a carry bag. would have like to have atleast one small level of protection when transporting it. it does come with a pump but we never used. we ordered one of the high pressure pumps from amazon, and were able to blow it up on the bow of the boat in about 5+ minutes. it says 8-15psi, but we got it to 5psi and it was plenty firm.the 6x8 size is good for us since it's being transported. if you are in a set location i'd definitely opt for the 10x10.Will plan to send a follow up review at the end of the summer once we have had more use.

I did not expect it to be this sturdy but wow! You can pump it up to 15 psi max but I pumped mine to 10 psi and it became a rock. It does not give or twist at all. There was a check in the review for stretch. I did not check it because it does ot stretch at all which is exactly what you want. It is made of very thick material. I may get another one so that I can attach them together and make a bigger platform. If it is unanchored it is hard to stand up on as it will move quite easily out from under you. Young folks will probably have no problems, but I still recommend tying it to an immoveable point.Edit: Someone has also stated that it can not be blown up with a regular air compressor....They are incorrect. With just a little ingenuity and some regular air fittings it most CERTAINLY can be blown up with a regular air comprressor. The valve will move off of the Island Buddy fill valve seat when using an due to the air pressure entering it. It will reseal as soon as you stop filling it. If you push the center of the fill valve by hand, the fill valve locks allowing the air to escape if necessary. I suggest using the hand pump during and after filling in order to obtain the correct fill pressure.

First, this raft is GREAT! The kids love playing on it. It's completely sturdy and blows up relatively easily in about 8-10 minutes. After we had given up on blowing up the raft, my 8-year old daughter quickly completed the task! It's a bit cumbersome to roll up properly for transporting, and bulky to transport, but well worth the effort. We use it on the boat and in the pool.

Our Island Hopper Island Buddy has just finished it's fourth summer as an excellent swim platform. Easy to install and easy to take out, clean, deflate, fold and store for winter. We find the surface has good traction and is quite firm at the recommended pressure. We added a few inches of reflector strips on each side to make it more noticeable by boats at night though few are out after dark. Kids and love it. Because of water weeds and mussels at our edge of the lake we typically paddle out to the platform, tie up and then either relax, or swim without getting tangled in aquatic vegetation. Yes, we are very satisfied customers.

Platform held up with multiple adults and kids using it. Worked as advertised.

Has a hole after second use

I bought this for my swimming pool and wow we just love it .. Kids and adults have a blast…We also used it for the back of our boat and worked perfect…

Island Buddy is the perfect size. Fits on the swim step when folded up. It didn't take long to inflate once we anchored. The kids had a great time and spent the entire time off the boat and in the water. Mission accomplished, I have my boat back!