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European Boating Industry (EBI) represents the recreational boating and nautical tourism industry in Europe, which encompasses the following subsectors:

• boatbuilders (building motorboats, sailing boats, yachts, personal watercraft, and other recreational boats)
• engine manufacturers
• equipment manufacturing
• refit and maintenance companies
• boat dealers and importers
• marinas and yacht harbours
• boat charter and rental companies
• water sports rental companies
• other related companies

European waters count at least 6 million boats, 36 million regular boaters and over 10,000 inland and coastal marinas. The European recreational boating industry is made up of 32,000 companies (predominantly SMEs) which directly employ over 280,000 people. The sector is a key contributor to tourism and to local economies in coastal and island regions, and Europe is an important exporter of recreational boating products.

EBI is made up of the national associations representing the recreational boating industry in Europe, in addition to several individual organisations as sustaining members. More information about membership options can be found here.

EBI Strategy 2026-2028

In January 2026, EBI adopted a new strategy for the period until 2028 to better represent the boating industry in a fast-changing environment characterised by a push towards sustainability, changing consumer trends, digitalisation and global market challenges.

The updated mission statement representing this shift is:

Advancing a sustainable boating and nautical tourism industry Made In Europe.

Policy Areas

EBI works on a set of key strategic areas for the future of the boating industry, under the following three clusters:

You can find more about what we stand for in our position papers here.

The boating industry in Europe is a dynamic and competitive sector and a significant contributor to the European economy. The total industry is made up of boatbuilders, engine manufacturers, equipment manufacturers, trade and service providers and consists of approximately 32,000 companies, directly employing over 280,000 people.

The boating industry is mainly made up of small and medium-sized enterprises (97% of businesses are SMEs) and a small number of large companies (over 1 000 employees). On its own, the boatbuilding sector consists of 3,600 companies employing over 82,000 people. The production of recreational craft is very diverse and ranges from series to one-off boats, which are built-to-order.

The boating industry is also a highly internationalised sector. Traditionally, European companies have exported mainly to other countries within the EU and to the US. New markets are emerging, however, and European companies are increasingly exporting to Asia, South America and Russia.

With over 37,000 km of inland waterways and more than 70,000 km of coastline, Europe offers the perfect environment for the 48 million European citizens who regularly participate in recreational marine activities (36 million of whom are boaters), as well as countless numbers of tourists. Over 6 million boats are kept in European waters while 10,000 marinas provide over 1 million berths both inland and in coastal areas.

Source: ICOMIA Statistics Book - For sale on www.icomia.com