California Canoe & Kayak

The guys here are amazingly nice! My friend had a bit of phone drop in the water issue and was quiet distraught as you can imagine! The owner compted our kayak rental because of it. Now that’s customer service! Will definitely be back and always refer friends here for business

Had a great experience renting paddle boards and kayaks here on Feb 15^th. Have spent a lot of time on the water and so the rental staff let us get right out there. The guys working at the front desk recommended a fun 5 mile route. We were the first ones in for the day and rented the boards in about 15 mins. No issues returning the boards and they gave us a bit of a discount on what ended up being a longer return paddle against the wind.

Years ago, we rented a kayak here and had a good time on the water — not the most scenic area we have kayaked, but they made it easy and it was fun to get a different view of the area. When it came time for us to buy a kayak, we checked a few places and ended up here. We tried out a few kayaks on practice runs and decided to order two of the lighter weight Hurricanes. Great customer service at a fair price. When we eventually needed work done on one of them, they did a beautiful repair in time for us to do a planned trip to Mono Lake to kayak and camp on one of the islands.

After an all-​day board meeting, indoors, we ended the day with a group paddle with California Canoe and Kayak. They supplied everything, double kayaks, spray skirts, life jackets and a brief lesson on paddling. A great way to build team spirit and get the blood flowing after too many hours sitting around a table.

Excellent service and selection. The staff is very knowledgable and friendly. They have quite a variety of sea kayaks, sit on tops, paddles and pfd’s. I like to peruse the Hobie kayaks, sups and apparel. Their awesome location makes for a pleasant shopping experience.

Wow you guys actually prompted me to go thru the entire reset process on my Unilocal account for this one.
Congrats, you earned it!
Going to have to write a bad review here unfortunately.
These are kayaks guys. Not sailboats. Get over yourselves. And yes. I’ve been sailing and kayaking the bay for about 12 years.
I actually purchased a kayak from them a number of years back. Did they care to ask? No. Just patronization. That’s all I got.
Initially talking to these guys about renting a few sit on tops for a trip in the bay. No problems, some paperwork etc.
Called to lock in the dates and was told I had to take one of their high priced kayaking classes.
Asked to talk to the manager to see what the big change was here as dates were set as were more importantly expectations.
Enter the patronization~
I was rudely greeted with how policies were changed and that there is all sorts of liability etc… «Cracking down» was the terminology used. I guess there’s a big effort to have semi suicidal people do a run on this place to go out and kill themselves in the bay… I have heard this was an issue?
Now I can understand if there is someone out there that blankly has no idea what they are doing, but to blindly and more importantly RUDELY turn down rental business with your quick and ridiculous kayaking questions it absurd. Get over yourselves. Again, this is a kayak.
Also, it was really great to be informed that you’ve been around forever. That doesn’t mean you’re going to be around forever with this poor attitude and customer service.
I am wondering how many people that are turned away based on the attitude decide to just head out anyway and in danger. Where you could point someone in the right direction with just a hint of good customer service and ensure everyone can enjoy the bay.
Spreading the word about this place.
My advise. Go elsewhere…

I took their 5 day beginner class at the Trinity River. The staff was very professional and I learned A LOT of skills. I would highly recommend this class to anyone looking to get into the sport or just to have a great time on the river. No previous experience required.

Go for the evening paddle! Great folks and they know what they’re doing. If you always wanted to get started OR are a seasoned veteran, you’ll love this place! Get your paddle on!

Great staff.
The view while kayaking was kinda ok… We got to lazy to drive to the city … But still wanted to go kayaking. So for scenery skip this place. But they do have a lot of restaurants nearby which is always a plus and parking was super easy too.

Objectively, this is a great place to rent a kayak in the Estuary. But, despite the high rating I’m giving it, I’m not happy with my last experience using a rental certificate bought at a charity auction.
It was a rental certificate that had expired many years ago and on a lark I asked if there was a possibility of honoring it. To my surprise they said «no problem». The problem occurred when I returned the rental and checked out with the owner. He said that the more recent rental certificates are only for singles and although my certificate said «any kayak» he was only going to give credit for a single. When I said that his employee had told me the certificate would be honored for a double, he said that he can’t control everything his employees say. On followup with the owner he said that this will not happen again because he trained his employees on how to handle expired certificates.
My rating was based on
great place +5
took expired certificate +2
changed rental terms after rental –3

Walked in, man at the register didn’t greet, no one wanted my business, didn’t listen to anything I said regarding what I wanted and what I was looking for, no one asked me questions to better understand my needs. Long story short, worst customer service and they blew me off. I rarely give 1 star reviews to anyone. I would have rather had the new stock guy help me than any of the retards in the front.
If someone is looking to purchase, you should probably take advantage of a possible sale and do your job.

My wife and I originally called here looking to buy a used kayak, and Keith spent around 15 mins with me on the phone, listening to our needs and talking through the options he could provide. He runs a business, and spent this long on the phone with a random prospective person! Point one for good service.
Fast forward, we landed on two boats that we were interested in and drove to The CCK store to check them out. Keith just wrote us a rental slip (no payment required to test out boats, since we were prospective buyers, I guess), and we spent at least an hour testing and retesting two different boats. The guy on the dock helping us, also, was funny, helpful, and professional. Point two for good service.
Once we decided that we were going to buy one of the two boats, we asked if he could go down in price. He said no. Oh well, we tried. He does have to make a profit to survive, after all. He did ask us what we do for work, though (we’re a teacher and national parks intern), and in the process of getting paddles to fit us and a PFD for my wife (all used equipment) he decided that he was going to do whatever he could to keep our purchase total to $ 1000! He marked down the PFD a lot to make it happen. Bonus point for going above and beyond to help new boaters get outfitted to have fun.
We finally got he boat outside, it was after 6 (when they were closing), and he ended up throwing in a set of straps for our car, since he said that our straps sucked (they had been really annoying for us in the past), as well as some mesh bags for us to hold drinks in when we’re out on the water. Another bonus point for clearly REALLY wanting us to have the best time possible in our new boat! Thanks Keith! We’ll definitely come over from SF if we need anything!

Went for the paddleboarding for beginners class as a total newbie and had a blast. Mitch gave great instruction and was attentive to the individual needs of everyone in the class — giving us tips, correcting form, making sure we were comfortable on the board and water — and shared his passion for paddleboarding, which was very inspiring. Plus, he was just an all around awesome person, which makes any class happen.
And the pretty much still water of the harbor made it great for first time paddleboarding.
Also, CCK is really a great shop filled with genuine, nice, fun, and passionate people. I thought I left my gloves in the life vests after the class, and they went through each vest to find them. And those were a lot of vests!!!
The paddleboarding class and CCK really went well beyond my expectations. Thank you CCK for an incredible and memorable experience.

I arrived at this store thinking I was going to be dealing with a normal sales person but I was 100% wrong. JT hooked me up with my first used kayak and accessories for an amazing price. «We are kayakers before salesmen,» is one quote that stuck out to me the most. This store is amazing and they will ensure you get only what you need and not try and sell you some fancy items you dont.

I thought I wrote a previous 5-​star rating over a year ago when I had purchased a kayak but I don’t see it here for some reason.
Well here is another one, they continue to offer the best customer service, everyone that works there is helpful and pleasant. Whether you are buying or just renting one for the day it seems they really try to find just the right kayak, SUP (Stand up paddle board) or hobie sailor, for your needs/​limitations/​wants.
Anytime I have been out with my kayak it seems everyone renting whatever kind of vessel is having a really good time. The estuary is the best spot I can think of in the SF Bay for enjoying all the SF favorite water sports, but especially SUP’s and Kayaks because you are so close to land (in case you fall in the drink and cannot get back on, although I have yet to see that). It is calm and the scenery is unbeatable; sailboats large and small, rowers, uscg vessels, container ships and ferries against the city background.
You can get here by ferry, amtrak or a short walk from Bart, there is also parking across the street from the shop.
Speaking of the estuary we have a huge problem with trash (especially single-​use plastic) in the bay and it is very evident here in the estuary. If you see garbage, grab it with your paddle blade. I call it clean kayak fishing, bring a small bag, then scoop it up on your bow and slip it in the bag. It’s even easier on a SUP, let it rest on the top of your board.
Have fun out there!

First time going stand up paddle boarding I was debating going kayaking since I’ve been before and wanted to try something new.
Parked in nearby parking garage and walked out and there were shops, restaurants and the store. Parking ended up being $ 4.50 we were there for around an hour and a couple minutes.
Signed the liability form located outside the store and went in to turn in the paper where they then hold your license or credit card.
Then he told me to go down to the dock where we could grab the rentals the workers helped us get on and then we were off. I went with my little brother he fell in the water within a couple of minutes. When boats pass by they send waves towards you and make it hard to balance but it’s a beautiful view of San Francisco buildings and bridge we were gone for about 50 minutes. Were we then docked and again and paid and we were done it was an easy way to rent and our total for the two of us was 43 dollars. Thanks!

A dear friend referred me here after I mentioned I wanted 1) a roof rack and 2) a stand-​up paddleboard (preferably in that order, as the reverse is tricky).
I popped in mid Sunday afternoon and Mitch, the SUP guy, helped me get the correct rack, didn’t try to upsell me (which had happened at REI the week before), and then installed said rack in about an hour, suggesting I take a seat at Forge and grab a beer and relax. The price was right, and frankly, having the rack installed was a huge bonus.
Mitch then listened to my minimal experience in SUP, talked about what kind of paddling I want to do (mostly just for fitness, not racing), and was able to recommend a ton of boards for me, making a list of said boards with their prices.
Fast forward a month when I get a phone call from Mitch, telling me if I’m still interested in boards, many of the ones he recommended are in the store and I’m welcome to come give them a whirl. I show up and am helped by another employee, Mike, who gives me the specs on three different boards and hangs out while I paddled around to try them out.
Customer service for the win. Still not sure what board I’m going to get (decisions, decisions!) but seriously, these cats have ensured I’ll be Unilocaling their praises (pun totally intended).

Wonderful customer service here. Came in about 3 months ago to buy a couple of items and found some things on sale… plus checking the pricing of life vests vs. REI and West Marine and they are right in the same ballpark. Then today went and rented a kayak for the teen boy so we could go out together (I brought my own). They were great — friendly, and charged us for a bit less time than we actually took. Hooray — that definitely makes me want to recommend them and bring back my friends to rent from them so we can paddle!

The economics: Kayak rental and sales stores are few and far between so unless you are willing to travel a significant distance you are stuck with what a local store offers and at the price they are offering it at. Retail space at Jack London Square is very expensive — guess who eventually pays for that.
And the realities: If you show up at Oakland CCK you will be expected to buy something. And if you rent a kayak from CCK you will be questioned ad nauseum about your skills. Why? Because there is a constant push to sell you one of their classes, or maybe a series of classes — classes you must have or you will not be safe. And then you will be given the talk about how they want to sell you their classes for your own good, because they care about you.
Car salesmen could learn a thing or two from CCK.

A friend and I went to this place because we wanted to try something new. We decided to try stand up paddleboarding.
First of all, at Jack London you can either find street parking or pay at a lot. You shouldn’t really have to difficult of a time looking for parking.
CCK has a cool little shop located right outside of Kinkaids restaurant, it’s hard to miss. They offer free lockers for you to put your stuff in while you are in the water. After you store your valuables, you walk down to the dock and decide what to rent. The staff is very knowledgeable about what will be best for you. Just tell them what you are looking for and what you are concerned about and they will recommend something for you. As for us, we were concerned about stability in the water and not falling because it was our first time doing SUP. SUP costs $ 20 for an hour rental. This includes the board, the paddle, and a nice little floaty vest in case you fall in the water.
You don’t need to take a class, even if you are a beginner. My friend and I had never done SUP and we caught on after about 10 minutes in the water. The estuary is beautiful and not too many boats that you have to deal with. We also liked learning here because you don’t have to deal with waves and getting in the water. SUP is so much fun and its a great workout. Your hour will fly by and you’ll definitely be hooked!