Cruise Series
Designed from river DNA for flatwater fun. The Hoss and Straight Up bring real rocker, real outlines, and real river-informed capability to boards built for lakes, coastlines, and casual river floats. Lightweight woven drop-stitch makes them noticeably lighter in your hands without sacrificing durability. Immediately fun. Never limiting.
Complete Kit Included · Versatile Rocker · Ocean + River + Flatwater · 5-Year Warranty · From $999
Everything You Need. Nothing You Don't.
Built for Every Condition You Will Actually Encounter.
The Hoss is Hala's widest, most stable board: the natural starting point for first-time paddlers, yoga on the water, fishing from a confident platform, or carrying kids and dogs across a calm bay. The Straight Up is narrower and faster, built for ocean swells, intermediate rivers, and distance paddling with equal ease. Most boards marketed as all-around are designed for flat, calm water. These two are built for the real world: flatwater mornings, open-ocean afternoons, and Class III rivers in between. Both ship as a complete kit: LeverLock adjustable paddle, dual-action pump, center fin, repair kit, and Backcountry Rolling Backpack. Everything you need to paddle tomorrow.
Hoss or Straight Up?
Find Your Cruise Series Board
Two boards, the same complete kit and the same versatile rocker. Their outlines are proportional — the real difference is size and feel, not shape. The Hoss is the bigger, more stable board with a longer glide; the Straight Up is narrower and nimbler. Here is how to choose.
Hoss
Hala's widest, most stable board — and the longer of the two, so it carries a longer glide surface that tracks and covers water. A wide, confident deck keeps first-time paddlers, yoga, fishing, kids, and dogs steady. Same versatile rocker as the Straight Up, just more board underfoot.
Best for: First-time paddlers · Yoga · Fishing · Kids & pets · Stability + glide
View the HossStraight Up
Narrower and shorter than the Hoss — less board to move, quicker edge-to-edge, and easy to handle, especially for smaller paddlers. It shares the same versatile rocker and a proportional outline, trading a little of the Hoss's glide surface for a livelier, more responsive ride on ocean swells and moving water.
Best for: Nimble handling · Smaller paddlers · Ocean swells · Surfing · Responsive all-water
View the Straight UpQuick Decision Guide
Want the most stability and glide? The Hoss is wider and longer — the most stable board Hala makes, with a longer glide surface for tracking and covering water.
Want a livelier board that's easy to move? The Straight Up is narrower and shorter, so it's nimbler, quicker edge-to-edge, and simply less board to manage — great for smaller paddlers.
Want rivers too? Same versatile rocker on both, and both handle Class III — the Straight Up's shorter, nimbler outline turns quicker, the Hoss's width adds stability.
Ask our teamIn the box
Your Cruise Board Arrives Ready to Paddle
Every Cruise Series board ships as a complete kit — the board, a paddle, a pump, a fin, and a travel bag, all in one box. Unbox it Friday afternoon, be on the water Saturday morning.
The only Hala lineup that includes a paddle.
Nothing extra to buy to get on the water.
The Board
Lightweight woven drop-stitch with versatile rocker for lakes, coast, and rivers.
LeverLock Paddle
3-piece adjustable alloy paddle. Included on the Cruise Series and nowhere else.
Dual-Action Pump
Inflates on push and pull. Full pressure in under 10 minutes.
Center Fin
Snap-in fin for tracking and glide on flatwater and open ocean.
Rolling Backpack
Your whole setup in one wheeled bag. Plane, trail, no rack required.
Before you paddle
Round Out Your Setup
Your kit covers the gear that gets you moving. For safety, we recommend two more items before your first trip — neither is included with any board.
A Leash
The single most important safety item. It keeps your board with you if you fall — without one it can drift faster than you can swim, especially in wind, current, or open water.
Flatwater & ocean
Coiled ankle leash — stays out of the water and out of the way while you paddle.
Rivers & moving water
Quick-release waist leash. Never use an ankle leash on moving water — it detaches instantly around a rapid or strainer.
A Life Jacket (PFD)
A properly fitted personal flotation device is essential safety gear, and many areas legally require one on board. Choose a low-profile PFD made for paddling so it stays out of your way.
Check your local rules
Requirements vary by state and water type. When in doubt, wear it.
Fit matters more than size
Snug enough that it will not ride up over your head when you are in the water.
Shape strategy
More Maneuverable Than You Think. By Design.
Every Hala board is built around a deliberate rocker strategy, and the Cruise Series is no exception. Versatile Rocker is not a compromise between performance and versatility — it is its own strategic shape.
Versatile Rocker
Versatile Rocker puts significant curve at the nose and tail, concentrated close to the tips, with a long flat section through the middle. That flat center gives you efficient hull speed and tracking on flatwater, open ocean, and distance runs. But the high tip and tail rocker is what makes these boards genuinely fun: it lets you lift the nose over swells and chop, and gives you the tail lift to pivot, spin, and play. The flat middle handles efficiency. The tips handle everything else.
True All-Water Capability
Flatwater mornings, open-ocean afternoons, and Class III rivers in between. These boards earn the all-water label because they were tested on all of it. If your idea of versatility means paddling only one water type at a time, any board can do that. If you actually want to paddle everything, the Cruise Series is built for exactly that.
Inflatable Advantage
Your entire Cruise Series setup fits into the included Backcountry Rolling Backpack. Take it on a plane. Store it in a closet. Walk it to the beach. No roof rack, no trailer, no seasonal storage bill. Inflatable boards have come a long way, and these perform at a level that will surprise you.
Is this you?
Who Paddles the Cruise Series
The First-Time Buyer
You want everything in one box so you can just paddle. The Cruise Series delivers exactly that — no second trip to the gear shop.
The Multi-Water Paddler
You paddle lakes, bays, coasts, and rivers, and want one board for all of it without compromise.
The Yoga + Fitness Paddler
You want a stable platform for on-water yoga or a workout. The Hoss gives a wide, confident deck; the Straight Up gives you a push.
The Traveler
You want to paddle on vacation without renting. The Backcountry Rolling Backpack packs your whole setup into one wheeled bag you can check on a plane, so your board goes where you go.
Looking for more technical river performance or expedition capability? See the full whitewater lineup or the Adventure Series.
5-Year Warranty. Complete Kit. A Team That Paddles.
Why Hala?
Hala Gear has been building inflatable boards since 2011. Every Cruise Series board ships with glued-and-welded construction, a 5-year warranty, and the complete kit detailed above — including the paddle, so you can get started the day it arrives. Most paddlers will still want to add a leash and a PFD for safety. If you have questions about which board fits your water and your goals, our team is easy to reach and actually paddles what we sell.
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