I’ll never know what it’s like to be a Hollywood star and walk on velvet carpet and honestly that’s okay. Besides, I prefer vinyl weave boat flooring over carpet anyway. However, as far as receiving a royal welcome and experiencing lavish hospitality, I now have a better idea of what red-carpet treatment feels like, thanks to the good people at Hagadone Marine Group in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
While talking to some of its extremely satisfied customers it became apparent the genuine people at Hagadone Marine practice being hospitable and welcoming to everyone they see on a daily basis.
I was in the area and as an avid boater I was naturally drawn to Lake Coeur d’Alene, a natural dam-controlled lake in northern Idaho. The huge body of water is located in the Pacific Northwest region of the U.S. and spans 25 miles in length and ranges from 1 to 3 miles wide with over 109 miles of shoreline. That’s just too much shoreline not to explore so I was in a desperate need of a boat.
Kodie Woodhead, the director of marketing at Hagadone Marine, provided three Barletta options for me including a beautiful Corsa 23UC that was in a slip just behind the sales office. She introduced me to Preston Scott in sales who helped untie me and just like that I was out enjoying this beautiful lake. It was seriously way better than actual red carpet, and just as impressive.
The personal touch was amazing and not bad for a dealership who looks and feels more like a small college campus. Besides boat sales, the Hagadone Marine Group offers slips and moorage, maintenance, repair and warranty service, wood boat building, restoration, fiberglass repair, fuel and boating supplies. Not to mention it hosts boating events and other celebrations throughout the year. From there its reach gets into marinas, cruises, boat rentals, pro shops and so much more.
I could have spent hours exploring the showrooms of this impressive Hagadone campus but figured my time was better spent out on the water. At the risk of sounding older than I actually am, I spent most of the day cruising at 20 miles per hour, soaking up the sun’s rays while hugging the shoreline so I could admire all of the lakefront mini hotels, ahem, I mean houses. I caught myself actually thinking I wouldn’t want certain mansions because there were too many stairs to get from the house to the dock. Kind of ironic since I would love more than anything to just have even a single-wide trailer on some waterfront property, but we’re all human and it’s fun to nitpick a million dollar home.
Following a map I could see several options for lunch and ended up stopping at The Buoy Bar & Grill for a quick bite. There’s just something about eating on a dock overlooking the water after coming by boat.
After an enjoyable day on the water I returned the Barletta back to the Hagadone slip and again, I was amazed by the hospitality. If this dealership is this inviting and welcoming to someone just visiting, I can only imagine how good they must treat their customers.
Pontoon & Deck Boat Editor
