The Best 2 Person Paddle Boards to go out and have fun on the water together
You want to go out on the water together, but your current board cannot take the weight and bends through, which makes paddling around together rather slow. Does this sound familiar to you? Then you need to check out great multi-person paddle boards to make sure you will have a great time together on the water!
A good tandem paddle board has a higher weight limit than a regular board and will be able to support both you and your friend or partner. Maybe you have read my guide about the Best Giant Paddle Boards before, but these are not all so handy when you are going out with just two people.
That is why I have written this guide specifically on the best tandem paddle boards, so you can see which boards are suitable for 2 people and that will be able to carry your weight. Of course, this will still depend on the total weight of the riders. If you are with two small/lighter people a normal Bluefin Cruise could already be able to carry you, but this won’t work for all people.
What is important in tandem paddle boards?
There are some things you should pay attention to when purchasing a tandem paddle board, to make sure you can get on the water together and that you can get started with paddling right away. I will make a short summary of the different important topics and what you should be looking for.
Maximum carrying capacity
The maximum carrying capacity is the most important, as the inflatable paddle board has to stay stiff and not bend through the water. This would cause a loss of speed and could get you wet feet or, worse, even damage the board. Just weigh yourself and your intended paddling partner and take into account a 10% margin because you might want to take a child, pet or some luggage along.
Now you know what maximum weight capacity you are looking for, don’t bother looking at tandem paddle boards that have a lower maximum weight capacity.
Inflatable Paddle Board Size And Shape
Of course you also need the paddle board to be big enough so you both have space to paddle; just finding a small and thick board that has a high carrying capacity is not enough. I would not recommend a board under 11′ long for two persons, so you can be sure you both have enough space to move and not bump into each other.
A two person paddle board should definitely be longer than 11′.
The shape of the tandem SUP is important for the purpose. Is the board wide and more round, or does it have a pointy nose and is it less wide? This makes a big difference on the speed you can reach together.
If you want to have fun and extra stability, pick the wide board that is also round. Are you planning to be fast and furious together? Then choose a pointy and narrow board. (Multi person paddle board are also available for even more exciting and entertaining water adventures!)
The complete package
Last but certainly not least is the complete package you have to pay attention to. I have seen many two person paddle boards or multi person boards, and the vast majority of these boards include little or no accessories.
Keep in mind the budget you have for the total package, as you will often need to purchase extra paddles and leashes. It would be the best tandem paddle board or most multi person boards ever if it came in a whole package!
If you already have a paddle and/or leash this is of course easy, but if you do not own any yet it might be an expensive total price you surely should take into account.
The Best 2 Person Paddle Boards
Now let’s get started on the best 2 person paddle boards on the market. This is also slightly difficult for me, as I try to make this a worldwide article and like in the giant paddle boards article, there are a lot of boards that are available exclusively in Europe and are harder to find elsewhere.
I’m trying to select only boards that are available everywhere, if a board is not available anymore or you have a better suggestion for huge board that is available worldwide, please let me know in the comments below the article. You’d be doing me a great favor as it is impossible to keep up with all the 2 person paddle boards that are available on the market.
So without further ado, we’re jumping straight unto the top 3 for a more fun paddle boarding!
Bluefin Cruise Tandem 15′
The Bluefin Cruise Tandem 15′ is the first board that comes to mind when thinking of a two person paddle board. This board has listed a maximum carrying capacity of 240 kg / 529 lbs, which should be enough for two persons in almost every case.
The size of 15′ x 36″ or 456 cm x 91.5 cm offer a very big platform with surely enough room for 2 persons plus luggage and a pet or child. The long and pointy shape ensures you can reach decent speeds on the board, even though it is quite wide. It also gas a large deck pad for more fun with your friends!
The setup with carbon side rails and three fins will make it easy to keep a straight course on the water and with 7 carrying handles it will be comfortable to get the board to the water. No paddle board wheels or paddle board carrier needed in this case!
My favorite thing about this 2 person paddle board is that there are 2 fiberglass 2-in-1 paddles and 2 kayak seats included, so when you want to sit down and paddle together you can easily do this. There is only 1 SUP leash included, but you can purchase a second one and attach it to one of the kayak seat D-rings or onto two paddlers with a carrying handle if you want to.
With the action camera mount you can also film your adventures together, which can be a lot of fun to watch at home and relive your adventures.
One thing that you have to pay attention to is the different versions (2019 and 2020) and the different price settings for these boards per country. The 2019 version includes only one paddle, has a different design and has 5 carrying handles instead of 7.
Also keep your eyes on the current Bluefin offers, as they might offer discounts on this particular board. Currently there is an offer for £125 /€125 off on the tandem, but this offer seems to be for Europe only. As far as 2 person paddle boards go, this is by far the number 1 choice on the market!
Gili Manta Ray 12′ Paddle Board
The Gili Manta Ray 12′ SUP board is also a great board to get out on the water together with friends or family. The 12′ can be used as a 2 person paddle board or to go out together with children or pets, the 15′ can be used for a whole group of friends to go out on the water.
The board is 12′ x 45″, so a lot wider than the Bluefin Cruise Tandem for extra stability. It can carry up to 329 kg / 725 lbs, which should always be enough for at least two people. The board also has 5 fins and some high quality accessories, where even two paddles and two pumps are included.
If you plan to go out with your children like in the video above, you see that you can have fun with the whole family on this board even.
The board has 10 carrying handles and an extra big cargo net on the front of the board and a smaller one in the back, so you could take all your camping gear for an exciting camping trip on that island in the middle of the lake! Really romantic and you should surely try it out some time.
The Gili Manta Ray paddle board does not include a leash, so you’d also need an extra one for a second person to go out on the water safely. It has a huge textured deck pad to keep everyone on board safe! The quality of the board and the accessories are high as you can expect from a great brand like Gili and this board is definitely great as a 2 person paddle board.
Bluefin Cruise Carbon Tandem 15′
“Really Tom, the other Bluefin Cruise Tandem version?”, is what you probably are thinking. Although I do love this board there is currently also a major issue on availability with many giant paddle boards and multi person paddle boards.
The reason behind this is that because of the COVID-19 situation companies like Amazon refuse to pack and ship heavy packages, so big paddle boards are rarely available right now. Let me elaborate on this with the exact notice Amazon sent to their big board sellers:
“In order to protect the well-being and safety of our employees and to ensure our continued adherence to guidance from local and international health authorities regarding social distancing, we are temporarily limiting receiving, restocking, and shipping for products that require two people to pick, pack, or ship. This applies to parcels and individual products weighing more than 15 kg.“
As you can understand this removes a huge part of the market, so my choices for this guide on 2 person paddle boards are a lot more limited than they would be in normal circumstances. Hopefully now you can understand why I picked the Bluefin Cruise Carbon Tandem and that it is not just because I am a really lazy person.
The Bluefin Cruise Carbon Tandem SUP is now available on their website and can also be found on Amazon. Due to the