Best Inflatable Touring SUP for Camping 2021

Best Inflatable Touring SUP Boards 2021

sup touring lake superior — Copper Harbor Coastline

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What is a touring paddle board?

A touring paddle board covers more distance with equal or less effort. They glide through the water with efficient ease yet remain stable.

Touring paddle boards are the best choice for:

Long distance
Camping expeditions
Big heavy paddlers
More speed

The touring board profile is shaped between the all-around board and the racing board. Touring boards are longer, narrower and have a pointed nose compared to all-around boards. But a touring board is not as long and narrow as a racing paddle board.

A touring board combines the best aspects of the all-arounder and the race board. Faster than an all-around board and more stable than a race board. Touring paddle boards are the best choice if you like to take long day trips. And they are perfect for SUP camping and multi-day expeditions.

A touring paddle board combines the best characteristics of the “all-around” board and the race paddle board.
Faster than an “all-around” and more stable than a race board.

Touring paddle boards are best suited for:

Paddlers who like to paddle longer distances of 2+ miles.
Paddlers who want to go on camping expeditions.
Big guy paddlers.
Paddlers who want a faster paddle board but not a race board.

Touring paddle boards are good for paddlers who want more speed but don’t want a race board

What are we looking for in a touring paddle board?

Length of 12’6″ to 14′
Width of 30-32″
High Weight Capacity
Large Deck Pad
Plenty D-rings For Storage

Best Inflatable Touring SUP Boards

Red Paddle Co Voyager

12’6″ x 32″ x 5.9″
Weight 27lbs
Weight Capacity 330lbs
Warranty 5 Years starting with 2020 models

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12’6″

Red Paddle Co is one of the top inflatable paddle board manufacturers in the world. Red Paddle Co boards are known for quality, durability and innovation. The Voyager is a great choice for the serious paddle board camper and one of the best inflatable touring sup boards you can buy.

The Voyager is a big stable paddle board. It glides well and paddles easy. What I really like about the Voyager is the larger deck and weight capacity. There is plenty of room on the deck for a long mulit-day expedition. And with a weight capacity of 330lbs it can handle the needs of larger riders.

This the board you want for stability and moving lots of gear.

For its size the Voyager glides well. Not super fast, but comfortable to paddle. As far as performance it is the stability that stands out. The Voyager always feels stable. Even when the water gets choppy or when loaded with gear. Stable and comfortable in all conditions.

This is the board you want for stability and moving lots of camping gear. It’s not fast but not slow either, it never drags in the water. The Voyager has plenty of features and D-rings for securing gear. It is very stiff when inflated and top quality all the way around.

Starting with 2020 models Red Paddle Co offers a 5 year warranty with product registration.

You can’t go wrong with Red Paddle Co. The only negative I have about the Voyager is the price. It’s on the expensive side for some buyers. Still a great value because it is one of the best inflatable touring paddle boards made. You get what you pay for.

Read: How to choose a sup paddle

Read: What’s better? a 12’6″ or 14′ touring paddle board?

Starboard Touring Deluxe DC

12’6″ x 30″ x 6″
Weight 24lbs
Weight Capacity 240lbs
Warranty 2 Years

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Starboard is one of the top paddle board manufacturers on the market. Their innovation and quality is impressive. The Touring Deluxe DC is one of the best inflatable touring sup boards on the market.

Starboards attention to detail is impressive.

The Touring Deluxe is a fast touring board, stable with good tracking and glide. Perfect for long expeditions with gear.

The profile of this board tapers down quickly to the turned in nose. Good for speed and glide. Indeed this is easy gliding paddle board. Not as fast as a racing board but still glides well.

…one of the best performing inflatable touring boards on the market.

The Deluxe features Double Chamber Technology that makes the board stiffer and provides extra safety during emergencies. If the outer chamber leaks you will stay afloat with the inside air chamber. (I have never had an inflatable leak.)

The construction methods and materials were specifically designed to create a super stiff but lightweight inflatable paddle board. The stiffer the board the better it will perform in the water. The result is one of the best balanced performing inflatable touring boards on the market.

With a weight capacity of 240lbs you may have to be careful with heavy gear. It depends on your body weight.

Nixy Manhattan G3

12′ 6″ x 30″ x 6″
22lbs
Weight Capacity 350lbs
2 Year Warranty

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Nixy makes a quality paddleboard at a reasonable price. They don’t offer the bells and whistles some brands do. But they deliver with a good product.

The Nixy Manhatten performs like a touring paddleboard should. It glides and paddles easy. The 30″ width may be challenging for some paddlers.

Be realistic when you access your athletic ability. With time your balance will develop but this is not the paddleboard for everyone. Young athletic paddlers shouldn’t have a problem.

Quality and reasonable price is a hard combination to beat.

One obvious indicator of quality is the maximum air pressure of an inflatable paddleboard. The Nixy Manhattan inflatables to 20psi.

Any inflatable SUP board that inflates to 20psi must be well constructed. And the higher air pressure makes the paddleboard stiffer.

A rigid, stiff paddleboard will perform better in the water. So air pressure is a critical factor for inflatable SUP boards. Nixy also added carbon rails for an even more rigid ride.

30″ width may be a challenge for some paddlers

Another plus for me is the lightweight of the Manhattan. This comes in handy if you ever go on a paddleboard trip that has portages. A few pounds in weight makes a difference when you have to carry your paddleboard and gear down the trail.

Don’t overlook the Nixy Manhattan if you want a touring paddleboard. The quality and reasonable price make this a great choice.

Blackfin V

12′ 6″ x 32″ x 6″
30lbs
Weight Capacity 485lbs
2 Year Warranty

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Blackfin is the premium line made by iRocker. iRocker’s standard paddleboards are very good and the Blackfin line has even more features.

The Blackfin V has an incredible weight capacity of 485lbs. So you can carry all the gear you ever need.

If you are serious about SUP fishing trips the Blackfin V is your paddleboard. There are attachment point for a fishing rack and a sandspear anchor.

The Blackfin V has attachment points for a fishing rack and sandspear anchor.

This paddleboard is loaded with features. Eight multi-use action mounts. 20 D-rings for storage. A large deck pad. And two larger bungee systems.

In the water the Blackfin V performs as expected. Plenty of stability and easy glide. Carbon rails where added for more performance.

The package included is top notch. I like the wheeled carry/backpack that has plenty of pockets. I also really like the carbon travel paddle that weighs only 27oz.

Blackfin has done a great job with the Model V. Anyone looking for a touring SUP board with plenty of features will love this paddleboard. For many fisherman this is a dream come true.

Sea Eagle Needlenose 14′

14′ x 30″ x 6″
34lbs
Weight Capacity 275lbs
3 Year Warranty with a 180 free trial period

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The Sea Eagle Needlenose is one of my favorite inflatable paddle boards for long paddles. The Needlenose glides easy and tracks a straight line. You cover a lot of distance with each stroke.

Exceptional tracking and easy glide for long distance flat water paddling.

What separates the Needlenose is the unique displacement type nose that cuts through the water. The nose is a hard plastic razor-pointed tip that slices through the water. Other inflatable touring board have a pointed nose but the water still passes under the nose.

The Needlenose has a flat bottom with no nose rocker so it literally slices through the water. The hard pointed nose really makes a difference. This board glides fast and easy.

When sup camping I put the heavy gear near the nose. This forces the nose down into the water to “slice” through the water better. It makes a difference and improves glide even more.

The small bungee system is a problem when camping with the Needlenose. I bought a cargo bungee net and extra bungees and made it work.

The problem with the Needlenose as far as SUP camping is the small bungee system. There is no rear system and the nose bungee system is small. I found a way around that by using a cargo bungee net I found on Amazon. It works fine, but Sea Eagle needs to address this issue.

The Needlenose come in three different lengths. 11’6″, 12’6″ and 14′. The 14′ Needlenose provides the best glide, tracking and stability. And has more float volume. I can only recommend the 14′ model.