Healthy boat snacks.

8 Healthy Boat Snacks for Adults

Written by Diane Byrne
June 29, 2023

Depending on the type of boat you’re on, you may not have the space or amenities to prepare a whole meal. Or you may not want to be cheffing, you’d rather instead spend your time enjoying the boat ride.

We get that, so we’ve devised these eight boat snacks for adults— many of which are healthy, too.

  1. Veggies & dip
  2. Cheese & crackers
  3. Frozen berries & grapes
  4. Fruit kabobs
  5. Homemade trail mix
  6. Popcorn
  7. Pinwheels
  8. Pasta salad

Each item is no muss and no fuss, and none requires heating or cooking onboard. Even better, each of these boat snacks is low or no waste. So here’s your first Pro Tip:

A reusable food container from home that can sit in a cooler is the most cumbersome item you’ll need— and you won’t even need it for everything on this list.

Explore boat rentals near you or at your favorite destination

1. Veggies & dip

Veggies and dip.

Whether you slice up your own or buy a self-contained assortment from the market, veggies are perennial crowd-pleasers. If you’re a do-it-yourselfer, make your preferred dip recipe. Even if you’ve always bought the pre-made dip, plenty of simple recipes are available.

Or, keep it ultra-simple with a bottle of ranch or blue cheese dressing—unopened before boarding, even simpler (read: no refrigeration needed).

2. Cheese & crackers

Cheese and crackers.

Speaking of blue cheese, select your favorite cheeses and pack chunks, cubes, and/or slices for your next boat outing. Cracker options run the gamut from traditional soda crackers to those fun fish-shaped treats named for a fishbowl pet. Yet another option: rice cakes.

3. Frozen berries & grapes

Frozen fruit.

These are the ultimate adult boat snacks because they’re further family-friendly, making your job as Mom or Dad much easier. Freeze handfuls of grapes, blueberries, blackberries, and/or strawberries the night before your boat trip.

Pop ‘em in a container or directly on ice, then pop ‘em in your mouth onboard. An extra benefit of putting them right on ice is that the melted berry-tinged remainders won’t harm the environment.

READ MORE: Top 7 Beaches in the Florida Keys

4. Fruit kabobs

Fruit kabobs.

Elevate your adult boat snacks game by putting various chunky fruits on skewers. Whole strawberries work well, as do cubes or rounds of watermelon, honeydew, and cantaloupe. Bonus: This concept easily extends to veggies, too. Think tomatoes, cucumbers, cauliflower, and more.

5. Homemade “boat mix”

Trail mix.

You might know boat mix by another more popular name, trail mix. Grab your favorite nuts, dried fruits, granola, sunflower seeds, and other crunchy or chewy ingredients and blend them together. (If you want to add a few chocolate chips in as well, don’t worry. We consider chocolate its own food group.)

6. Popcorn

Popcorn.

Who doesn’t like popcorn— the natural fiber fills you up! Pop it at home and sprinkle it with your favorite seasonings. You might have to keep an eye toward the sky while you’re munching away onboard, however. Seagulls are known to steal snacks like this. Plain popcorn is not harmful to them, rest assured.

Pro Tip: Are you a boat owner? Start renting out your boat to make an extra income easily. Many boat owners are gravitating toward boat-sharing as it is flexible work and you report to yourself.

7. Pinwheels

Pinwheels.

Pinwheels bring out the kid in all of us due to their colorful nature and fun shapes. They can be as humble (and delicious!) as peanut butter and jelly or as sophisticated as layers of lettuce, roasted peppers, cheese, and sliced lean meats like chicken breast.

8. Pasta salad

Pasta salad.

Want something a little heartier? Pasta salad is a great go-to! Just make sure to bring a salad onboard without mayonnaise (especially on hot days). Even if you buy one, you can load it up with lots of your favorite chopped veggies for more flavor and color.

Now that you’ve got a great list of snack foods to bring with you on the boat, let’s get you on the water. Find your next trip at Destination Guides and other boating resources here.

About us

Boatsetter is a unique boat-sharing platform that gives everyone— whether you own a boat or you’re just renting — the chance to experience life on the water. You can list a boat, book a boat, or make money as a captain.

List your boat & start earning an avg. of $20K yearly with Boatsetter


Browse by experience


Explore articles