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Anchoring/Marina's in Europe/Also Agent

Discussion in 'General Yachting Discussion' started by Lenny, Apr 29, 2017.

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  1. Lenny, Apr 29, 2017
    #1
    Lenny

    Lenny Member

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    Planning on spending two season in Europe. I have an 80' Trawler/Motor yacht. The boat has crossed the Atlantic 7 times on her own bottom. Zero speed stabilizers and 5000 gallons fuel, draws 7.5 feet. We also tow a 26 foot tender. We have three in crew. We will NOT cross, but ship the boat. Insurance, fuel, and wear & tear as much as paying for shipping.
    We will start the trip in June 2018, in the Balearic Islands. Cruise the Balearic Islands, cross to mainland Spain, cruise up the Spanish coast, cruise the French and Italian Coasts. Put the boat someplace for the winter in Europe. Second season Croatia and Greek Islands.
    We enjoy both anchoring and marinas.
    What are your thoughts about availability of anchoring spots on our journey. I know there are many marinas, but in the season might be very difficult to find space. Since we have the towed tender, no problem to anchor and run into town.
    Also the crew only speaks english, so suggestions for an agent or agents in these areas, greatly appreciated.
    We will also be chartering, but the charter agent for the clients will need to make the dockage arrangement.
    Thanking you in advance.
  2. AMG, Apr 29, 2017
    #2
    AMG

    AMG YF Moderator

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    Hi, do you want a listing of the 1.000 best anchorings or what..?
  3. Lenny, Apr 29, 2017
    #3
    Lenny

    Lenny Member

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    Thank you that would be very kind!!!!
  4. AMG, Apr 29, 2017
    #4
    AMG

    AMG YF Moderator

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    Well, it is like if I asked you where I can park a car in the USA..? I think you will get good advise when you arrive.
  5. Pascal, Apr 29, 2017
    #5
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    I m kind of in the same boat as we may be shipping the lazzara 84 i run to the med next year and I m starting to do some research. In all fairness i think this is a Valid question

    From my own research there are plenty of anchorages but rolling is often and issue so zero speed or gyros are a big plus

    Dockage seems pretty cheap compared to what we pay in the US but indeed availibitly may be limited and planning ahead critical

    Aktiv kaptain dot com (correct the spelling :) ) has an increasingly amount number of data for the med and is a great source of details for both anchoring and marinas (has contact info and links to all marinas)

    There are a number of website with good info too, use google

    For pre planning and research I ve been using garmin blue charts on my iPad wit the med charts which are reasonable. The blue chart app comes with aktiv kaptain markers

    Some areas have restrictions on anchorages like distances etc. do your homework as it vary from location to location

    Chartering seems be highly regulated in some countries, again do your research before doing any

    I hope this thread gets contributions from those who have done the med
  6. Ken Bracewell, Apr 29, 2017
    #6
    Ken Bracewell

    Ken Bracewell Senior Member

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    There are loads of anchorages along that entire route- you could likely do the entire trip without using a marina if you want to.
    IMO the best agent for Northern Europe is Lunautica (I also like them for France and Spain). There are loads to choose from in Italy. For Croatia, use Luka at LP Yacht Support. Mike Economou in Greece. And based on the current situation, you may want to avoid Turkey.
  7. AMG, Apr 29, 2017
    #7
    AMG

    AMG YF Moderator

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    OK, I have "done the Med" a little, from Portugal to Greece, and lived aboard a yacht for five years. But not a single night at anchor outside, always docked in a port. Of course you can find a lot of information on the net these days, but again, I prefer to listen to locals and go from port to port. With an 80-footer you can get in almost everywhere except for smaller fishing harbors and sleep without somebody at watch...
  8. Lenny, Apr 30, 2017
    #8
    Lenny

    Lenny Member

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    Thanks everyone for the information.
    Pascal: You said dockage is inexpensive compared to the USA. Just some general guidelines of price?
    AMG: I thought that in the season, it would very hard or almost impossible to obtain dockage. How large a boat did you cruise on? How did you find space in congested areas like the south of France?
  9. Pascal, Apr 30, 2017
    #9
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    From what I ve seen $2 to $3 a foot seems to be the average in most marinas whereas here in the US $4 to $5 is what you ll pay in the northeast, florida , Bahamas

    I don't like making reservations a long time ahead. Cruising is about freedom and being tied to a schedule isn't fun... whether we re on our own boat or running the 84 with owners or charter guests we try to keep things open so that we / they can enjoy places they like without the pressure of a schedule. That said there are places where you have to reserve ahead of time.

    This is why we anchor so much. We spend a lot of time in the Exumas and typically 90% on the hook. The med will be a bit different as a lot of it has to do with land based things

    I'd like more feedback about last minute dockage availability
  10. AMG, Apr 30, 2017
    #10
    AMG

    AMG YF Moderator

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    OK, if you like to visit St Tropez in August, you will need to bring extra cash. I have been on boats between 70' and 95' and booked on a short notice most of the time. In most Marinas the owners let out their slips when they leave for more than a day so it is a constant turnover of available dockage.
  11. amgscrap, Apr 30, 2017
    #11
    amgscrap

    amgscrap Member

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    We have cruised the Med twice in the Summer. Each time when we took delivery of a new boat made in Italy and the UK. We also liked our freedom and only made reservations more then a few weeks in advance at a few places including St. Tropez and Monaco. Reason is we really wanted to go there. We did use an agent who did a great job in getting us a nice dock. They also got us space at marinas as we were traveling, taking a lot of stress away.

    One thing to be aware of the electricity at many marinas is dismal to say the least. It seems that every marina has a different plug that must be used. Thus we would have to splice a cable to attach the plug. Further the volts were low and the amount of amps available also. We had to run our genny most of the time.

    We wanted to also go to Capri and each time no matter how long in advance I and the agent tried, we could not get a reservation. The second trip we tried a year in advance. We were told it was too far in advance and we tried each month until we were told they were booked solid. We went there anyway. We saw one of the dock people on their tender. After an exchange of money we got our dock but only for a night. Really do not understand how anybody but season renters get any space there.
  12. Liam, May 3, 2017
    #12
    Liam

    Liam Senior Member

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    I went in Capri in 2008 and 2015 (see profile picture). The last was with a 58 footer end of July.
    We paid 450 EUROS a night and spent about 50 EUROS of electricity which with AC at night stopped in the morning.

    Different plugs, you have to carry adapters for smaller and bigger units, but usual its medium size all the way. (Unless your boat is very big 100 feet plus).
    Many marinas carry the adapters, **** I also have the medium adapter on my ten meter sport cruiser.

    Up to 80 feet Capri is okay, once you go above this you need some connections. If you can avoid August in the popular marinas, and South of France from mid April till end May (Monaco ATP1000 tennis, Cannes Film Festival, and Monaco Grand Pris. It gets worse in that order. I had a client who came down with a Maiora 26 some years ago and it was a week before Monaco Grand Prix and he told me from St.Tropez to San Remo there was not a hole of a berth left to park a 20 footer.

    Capri is worth a night but I think Ponza further North has so much more to offer. Eolian Island further South also offer more natural beauty and are less commercial.

    I am located in Malta if you are in this direction send a shout.
  13. Marmot, May 10, 2017
    #13
    Marmot

    Marmot Senior Member

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    Will any reader with direct experience of Med marinas that prohibit generator use please tell me which ones they are.
  14. Ken Bracewell, May 10, 2017
    #14
    Ken Bracewell

    Ken Bracewell Senior Member

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    I've never had an issue running the gens
  15. Marmot, May 10, 2017
    #15
    Marmot

    Marmot Senior Member

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    Thanks Ken. I keep hearing tales of marinas banning generator use but so far no one has identified which ones.

    I wonder if the real story is based on a threat by marina management to kick a boat out for creating pollution.
  16. Capt J, May 10, 2017
    #16
    Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    It's probably not the norm for generator use to not be allowed. But, Probably someone that has a really dirty running generator or really noisy one. I ran some crew boats where the generators were so loud, nobody in the marina could sleep. We've all ran some that were pretty stinky.