Newburyport Whale Watch

Massachusetts sets 12 as the minimum age to operate a motorboat without direct adult supervision, if the operator satisfies the applicable boater safety certificate rule; personal watercraft operators must be at least 16. A child under 12 may operate a motorboat only while accompanied on board and directly supervised by a certificate holder at least 18. Direct supervision requires visual contact and verbal communication at all times while underway.

Certification is phased by birth date under Massachusetts General Laws chapter 90B, section 9E: people born after January 1, 1989, have been covered since April 1, 2026; those born on or before that date must comply by April 1, 2028. Rental operators set their own minimums, so confirm when booking.

Source: Massachusetts Environmental Police and Boat and Recreation Vehicle Safety Bureau (mass.gov)

Yes. Massachusetts requires a boater safety certificate, rather than a boating license, for motorboat and personal watercraft operators born after January 1, 1989; those born on or before that date must comply by April 1, 2028. Personal watercraft operators must be at least 16. Children under 12 may operate a motorboat only under direct onboard supervision by a certified adult age 18 or older.

Rental customers are not generally exempt, and temporary rental certificates are only under consideration for lower power boats. Exemptions include direct supervision, qualifying nonresident certificates, merchant mariner credentials, certain military and commercial fishing operators, and recent boat buyers carrying a temporary certificate. Massachusetts Environmental Police administers the program.

Source: Massachusetts Environmental Police (mass.gov)

From Newburyport, you can boat the Merrimack River and Newburyport Harbor, head through the river mouth to the Atlantic off Plum Island, or explore the shallower tidal waters of Plum Island Basin, Plum Island Sound and the Parker River. Cashman Park provides the city’s launch just outside downtown.

The harbor channel runs from the Route 1 Bridge through the jettied entrance to the Atlantic, the open-water option. Plum Island Basin has no water at low tide and is mainly suited to small boats. The shallow Parker River follows a marked channel through Plum Island Sound toward Ipswich Bay.

Source: City of Newburyport (cityofnewburyport.com)

From Newburyport, boaters can make day trips to Sandy Point State Reservation for swimming, sunbathing and fishing; Long Island in the Crane Wildlife Refuge, where private boats can use the dock and visitors can explore gravel roads and grass trails; and Gosport Harbor in the Isles of Shoals, the archipelago’s only viable anchorage. The Shoals are specifically described as reachable from Newburyport on a calm summer day, with Star Island and its Oceanic Hotel nearby. At Long Island, private watercraft must land at or beside the dock.

Source: Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (mass.gov)