WATER ON THE WATER

Sea the City

in a Luxury Hot Tub

By Tara Ryazansky

Photo by Tina Winslow

Boats bob in the water at Liberty Landing Marina. Docked amongst the yachts and sailboats is a large catamaran that’s different from all the rest. It blends in well enough with its welldesigned aesthetic, but it certainly isn’t like the others. It’s Sea the City’s hot tub boat, the first and only one of its kind in the New York City area.

“I don’t think it stands out at first glance, but when people inspect it a little closer they start to inquire about what exactly it is. You can’t always see the hot tubs when you’re standing at the dock looking,” says Adam Schwartz, the owner and founder of Sea the City.

Unique Ride

On the deck, it’s clear just how unique of a ride this boat offers. It allows passengers to see the city while hanging out in luxury hot tubs.

Sea the City has been operating out of the marina for seven seasons as a jet ski rental business.

“I am a lifelong boater. When I was about 40 years old I decided to make my passion my business. That’s when I started my jet ski business,” says Schwartz, who previously worked as a business consultant. “I was always looking for another business to expand into.”

“A couple of years ago, I started to see all of these very small hot tub boats that exist around the world. They’re in London, Amsterdam, Seattle, Vancouver, basically you rent them and they’re just sort of off the waterline. They’re for very calm waterways. That’s not what we have here,” Schwartz gestures toward the hectic harbor.

Still, Schwartz was intrigued and wondered if there was a way to make a boat like that work in the busy waters of Jersey City.

Starting From Scratch

“I’m a lifelong New Yorker so my mentality is always sort of like, there’s nothing we shouldn’t have here,” he says with a laugh. “I started thinking about how we could adapt that concept to the much more active water that we have in New York Harbor. I started putting together that idea of having a much bigger platform, and larger tubs with a captain and crew. We worked with boat builders. We found a boat builder who had experience in the harbor. We started from scratch.”

The result was a 40-foot-long vessel fitted with two hot tubs.

“It’s built specifically for the purpose we’re using it for, and the waterway that we’re in,” Schwartz explains.

The boat launched in September 2020.

“COVID was an issue, but outdoor activities and water sports in general were all the rage. We had a very, very strong year. The feedback from the get-go was very positive. People really enjoyed having an outdoor space to socialize in. It’s a great way to see the city,” Schwartz says. “We’re very fortunate. You always wonder how it will go when you have a new concept. It’s a pretty cool way to make a living and spend your time among people who are just overwhelmingly in a good mood.”

Enjoy the View

How could you be in a bad mood while relaxing in a hot tub and taking in the views along the Hudson?

Schwartz typically takes guests out of the marina and toward the Statue of Liberty where they hang out for a while, and, of course, take lots of photos.

“It’s very heavily Instagrammed and TikToked,” he says. “There are a lot of selfies and live-streaming and things like that.”

Party Vibe

Each private tub is reserved for a flat fee and can hold up to 10 guests. You can charter the entire boat for a party of 20, but the tubs are separated enough so that each side of the boat can have its own vibe if two parties are going on simultaneously.

Schwartz says that the atmosphere varies depending on the guests.

“We designed it this way. If there are two different groups they’re far enough apart. Each tub had its own music system, so you can have people twerking in the forward tub and people just chilling and sipping champagne in the aft tub and neither detracts from the other,” Schwartz explains. “It really depends on what the guests make of it. We’ve had people get engaged, just a couple who come out and it ends in a proposal, and we’ve had really fun birthday parties. It runs the gamut.”

Schwartz says that most of his passengers are locals.

Bough to the City

“We see a lot of locals doing special events like an anniversary, a birthday or bachelorette party.”

Next, the boat takes its course toward the World Trade Center. Sea the City offers a 90-minute ride with openings seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

“You see the whole city right off the bough,” Schwartz says.

He doesn’t get sick of the view.

“It’s a pretty charmed life for me and for my team.”

It’s pretty charmed for Sea the City passengers as well.—JCM

SeaTheCity.com

SeaTheCity on Instagram and TikTok Photo Courtesy of Sea the City

Photo by Tina Winslow