The NRS Pike and the Intex Excursion Pro are both recreational, sit-on-top inflatable kayaks designed to be used as kayak fishing platforms. Yet the Intex Excursion Pro Inflatable Kayak sells for less than $200 on Amazon while the NRS Pike Inflatable Kayak sells for $1000. So really what is the big difference, and is the Pike worth the extra cost? Let’s dive right into a comparison of the two kayaks. Lets look at the Intex Excursion Pro versus NRS Pike Inflatable Kayak in depth.
Intex Excursion Pro Kayak Specifications
Price: $200 (USD)
Length: 10’
Width: 36”
Weight: 37 lbs (17 kg)
Capacity: 220 lbs (100 kg)
NRS Pike Inflatable Kayak Specifications
Price: $1000 (USD)
Length: 12’ 8”
Width: 38”
Weight: 48 lbs
Capacity: 375 lbs
Portability of the Pike vs Intex Excursion Pro
Both the Intex Excursion Pro and NRS Pike come in nice backpacks. But the NRS Pike is 11 lbs heavier than the Intex Excursion Pro. This does make a difference when moving it around. That said, the NRS Pike has nice padded straps on the backpack to help carry it around.
Neither the backpack for the Excursion Pro nor the NRS Pike come with much extra room in them. This is often a bit of a sore point for me. I would really like a bag with some extra room so that when you are tired and finish paddling, you don’t have to do this perfect fold-up job to get it back in the bag.
The only downside regarding portability and setting up the Excursion Pro is the pump. The pump is very small which makes it difficult and back-breaking work to pump the kayak up too often. So you would need to upgrade the pump if you wanted to use the Intex Excursion Pro regularly.
NRS Pump is Incredible
On the other hand, where the NRS Pike really shines is with the pump. It comes with the NRS Super 2 HP pump, which has two settings. It has a preliminary stage that lets you fill the kayak with air easily and quickly. And at the point where the air pressure gets higher, you can switch to an easier setting for topping up the air. This is very useful because the NRS Pike needs to be filled to 8 psi in some parts.
Comfort of Intex Excursion vs NRS Pike
The Intex Excursion Pro is a pretty open platform, it's a soft kayak and a comfortable boat. The seat has an inflatable butt pad to it, so it is comfortable. There is a booster included so that you can raise the seat higher. In my experience this doesn’t particularly add any comfort, it just raises your center of gravity. The seat has virtually no back support whatsoever, which means that you have to actively sit forward. The second you lean back the seat collapses! Having no back support can get tiring on a long paddle trip.
The comfort of the NRS Pike is a serious step up from the Excursion Pro. There are a couple of reasons for that. There is so much more room in the kayak. It’s the kind of kayak that can accommodate a person of almost any size. The foot pedals in the NRS Pike are real foot pedals, they are raised and provide great support for the ball of your foot. Not only does that help your comfort, but it also impacts your performance.
NRS Pike Kayak Seat vs Intex Excursion Kayak Seat
The NRS Pike's seat is incredibly comfortable. It is an elevated framed seat, which means that if there is water in the boat your bum will not get wet. The seat also provides excellent support. You can adjust the seat into different positions for kayaking, fishing, or simply lounging in your kayak. It is just a really comfortable, decently-sized seat.
Stability of Intex Excursion vs Pike
For a lot of recreational paddlers, the stability of a kayak is an important factor. But for the Intex Excursion Pro, stability is not something you need to worry about. It is a very stable kayak, even for me who is 30 lbs over the maximum capacity. Having said that, I would probably not go for the Excursion Pro at my size because it is a little cramped – I would go for one of their slightly larger versions. But it is a stable kayak.
Wider and More Stable
Now the NRS Pike is 2” wider than the Excursion, and generally speaking, the wider the kayak is the more stable it is. And 2” is enough to make a difference. If the Excursion Pro is stable, the NRS Pike is very stable. In fact, when I was testing the NRS Pike I quickly learned that it is almost impossible to flip this kayak. You are more likely to fall out of the seat than flip the kayak. It is designed to be stood on so that you can stand up and fish or use it as a paddleboard. It deserves top marks for stability.
Performance Comparison
The Excursion Pro is a weak-performing kayak and is very slow. This is partially because of its design. It is only pumped up to 1.5 psi, meaning it is soft and mushy, which costs you speed. The speed of the kayak is not improved by the paddle it comes with. The paddle is so flexible that if you try and paddle fast with it, the blade literally starts to fold in half.
The other problem with the Intex Excursion Pro is that it is not able to handle wind very well. This is because the front is flat. There is no keel, or edge, that cuts through the water. The bow is not held in place when the wind hits it.
NRS Pike Performs Better
The NRS Pike, unsurprisingly, performs much better than the Excursion Pro. That being said, it is not a performance machine or a high-speed kayak. It is a 38” wide kayak so it will be pushing more water, and therefore going slower than a narrower kayak. Those looking for speed are not going to purchase this kayak.
While not a speed-demon, the NRS Pike is much faster than the Excursion Pro. And there are a few reasons for that. Thanks to the drop stitch flooring you can pump this up to 8 psi, and the tubes go to 3 psi. That means the kayak is stiffer overall and feels more like a hardshell kayak than the Excursion Pro. This allows it to move more efficiently in the water.
On top of that, at the front, the NRS Pike has a bow keel that cuts through the water in a similar way to a hard shell kayak. It helps you keep a straight line and stops you from being blown around as much by the wind. More importantly, the bow will stay in place and cut through the water whenever you take a paddle stroke or get blown by the wind. It is just a much more efficient kayak in the water.
Features Comparison
The Intex Excursion Pro comes with a number of different accessories. It has three mounting pads, one of which is a phone or GoPro mount, and there are two fishing rod holders behind the seat. These are nice features. However, as a taller paddler, I would be nervous about knocking the phone off the mount as my paddle comes awfully close to it.
Similarly, the rod holders are not ideal. When paddling I was hitting the rod holders with my elbow. The holders are also not very deep, so it would be easy to accidentally knock your whole rod out. An expensive mistake to make!
In contrast, the NRS Pike has five YakAttack mounting platforms. There are three up front and two behind the seat. You can attach any type of accessories such as fish finders, rod holders, etc. They are positioned in a much better way than with the Excursion Pro as they are farther away. But there is just more space in this kayak in general.
The other thing that the Pike has is a bungee system at the front and back, with a daisy chain system that you can customize. If you want to bring gear along with you there is a lot of opportunity for that. And with the increased capacity compared to the Intex Excursion Pro, you can really bring a lot of gear.
Fishing Comparison
Whether you are a core angler or just someone who wants to throw a line every once in a while, the Intex Excursion Pro is definitely an inflatable kayak you can fish out of. Now, as I said, I wouldn’t trust the rod holders, but it provides a stable platform and is suitable for fishing. That being said, you have to be careful fishing with this kayak because of the inflatable tubes and flooring. The Intex Excursion Pro inflatable kayak is very much a recreational anglers kayak. You might like the idea of taking a rod out in a kayak with you, but you are not really getting it for fishing.
The NRS Pike, on the other hand, can easily be converted into a fishing machine by using the mounting plates and extra space that you have. But mostly, this kayak is durable. It has an EVA floor pad to provide extra protection. But even without that, NRS has a track record of making durable boats. They have been making white water rafts for a long time. And that is why the NRS Pike has a three-year warranty; it is durable.
The fact that you can stand and fish on the NRS Pike is huge. That might not appeal to everyone, but as a core angler, there are huge advantages to being able to stand up and fish. The higher vantage point allows you to see further and cast further. So top marks for fishing friendliness here.
Which Inflatable Fishing Kayak?
It might have sounded like I was really talking down the Intex Excursion Pro inflatable kayak and talking up the NRS Pike inflatable kayak, but the reality is that the NRS Pike is $800 (USD) more expensive, so of course you can expect the NRS Pike to be a better kayak.
Does that mean that the Excursion Pro is a rubbish kayak? Well, for some people yes, depending on what they like to get out of kayaking. It is the type of kayak I call a “gateway kayak”. It is a kayak that lets people try out kayaking in an affordable way. If they enjoy it, and want to paddle more, it won’t be long before they need to upgrade.
The NRS Pike, at $1000 (USD), is an investment for a lot of people. It is a lot of money to spend just to experiment with kayaking. I'd say the NRS Pike is more of a lifetime kayak. If you treat it well, there is a good chance this kayak will be with you for all of your paddling years. It is durable, and can satisfy the needs of recreational kayakers from beginners right through to experts.
The NRS Pike is a versatile kayak that allows you to go touring, camping, fishing or just float about. The only thing that neither of these kayaks does is rough water. The reason they do not handle rough water well is because they are what we call “bucket boats”. They do not have any drains in them, so will just start to fill up with water…like a bucket!
NRS Pike Worth the Extra Money?
Is the NRS Pike worth the extra money? That 100% depends on what you want from a kayak. The Intext Excursion Pro is exceptional value as a gateway kayak, as long as you are using it for the right reasons, and just want to get on the water and enjoy getting outdoors. If you want to take your paddling to the next level, have a bit more fun with what you paddle, or take your fishing to the next level, you might want to upgrade to the NRS Pike. It is much more comfortable, more durable, and overall a more enjoyable experience, making it worth the higher price tag.
Check out my NRS Pike Fishing Kayak Review post.
PFDs/Life Jackets: NRS Zen PFD
Kayak: NRS Pike, Intex Excursion Pro
Dry Suit: NRS Axiom Dry Suit
