For cruising we always had an inflatable. Our best, in our opinion, was the Achilles with inflatable floor, the last dinghy we carried on sv Watermelon.
Because Peter insisted that we not tow our dinghy, we deflated it and stored it even when we were only going on a day sail to the next bay "up the road". With the inflatable floor and a 12V dinghy inflating pump, we had the boat in the water less than 1/2 an hour after dropping anchor. The dinghy also stored easily without those board floors to find a place for.
Achilles at the time we bought it was the only hypalon dinghy with a fully hypalon floor as well. We can vouch for the greater durability of the hypalon in the tropics.
Downside of the inflatable floor - it's a bit "squirrely" compared to the hard keel of a RIB or the inflating keel of a dinghy with floor boards to keep the keel deep. In other words, getting into and out of the dinghy needed a bit more care or the dinghy would zip out from under your feet. It took some time to get used to it, but then we were okay and no more missteps.
The other reason we liked the Achilles was that we carried only a small, 4 HP outboard, so the (much) lighter Achilles still moved well with the small outboard. And carrying the outboard and dinghy up the beach in significant tidal areas was a snap - THE most important feature for us.
Now, with davits on the power cat, we have a RIB. And because our boat is an indulged child, it's not just any RIB, it's an AB with aluminum hull. About 50 pounds lighter than the comparable GRP hull (and perhaps $1,000 more expensive, though I might be exaggerating). For us, two old cruisers past their prime, it's nice to still be able to carry the dinghy up the beach. Still using just a 4 HP outboard.
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