Ship's tender

Okay kiddo, so have you ever seen a really big ship like a cruise ship or a ferry? Usually, they can't get close enough to shore to drop off all the passengers and supplies that they carry. So, they use a smaller boat to transport things between the big ship and the shore. This smaller boat is called a "tender".

Think of it like a car that drops you off at school. If your school is far away from your house or if there's no parking near your school, your parents might drop you off in the car and then go park somewhere else. The tender works the same way for ships! It can hold around 10-15 people and some cargo, and it takes them from the ship to the shore (or vice versa) where they can safely disembark or load up.

Tenders are really important for making sure that people and supplies can get safely back and forth between the ship and the land. Plus, they're a lot of fun to ride in!