Boat transport Finland to UK or Channel Islands

wizzer

Well-Known Member
Joined
27 May 2004
Messages
267
Location
Ever sunny Cornwall
Visit site
I’m looking to buy a 32’ motor cruiser in Turku, Finland, which I have recently been to view and to sea trial. The problem I have is that if I buy the boat now, I am faced with leaving it in Turku, Finland until next Spring as the prospect of a 1300 nautical mile sea passage through the Baltic, Kiel Canal & North Sea at this time of year is not very appealing, or indeed sensible.
Ideally, I’m looking for someone with a low loader, who is going to Finland to deliver a boat & at the moment has no return load, if that’s you, or if you know anyone who can help, then please let me know.
 
Finland exports Botnia Targas and Sargos to UK and France, probably the best place for delivery for you is Carteret or Dielette.

A surprising number of secondhand boats go from CI to Scandinavia.

There are UK built boats and secondhand UK boats going to Scandinavia so an established network for transport.

I was in Carteret a couple of weeks ago and there was a Bulgarian truck picking up a 34ft boat to take it to Denmark I was talking to.

Drop me a Private Message with your name and email I might be able to put you in contact with someone in the trade in CI and France, you will need to get the documentation right to avoid paying duty.
 
I’m looking to buy a 32’ motor cruiser in Turku, Finland, which I have recently been to view and to sea trial. The problem I have is that if I buy the boat now, I am faced with leaving it in Turku, Finland until next Spring as the prospect of a 1300 nautical mile sea passage through the Baltic, Kiel Canal & North Sea at this time of year is not very appealing, or indeed sensible.
Ideally, I’m looking for someone with a low loader, who is going to Finland to deliver a boat & at the moment has no return load, if that’s you, or if you know anyone who can help, then please let me know.

A long shot, but during Dusseldorf show there will probably be boats going back and forth so there might be a change to arrange something when they close the show. That would obviously mean finding a place to keep the boat for a short while, probably on both ends. Otoh, only a few months more and you could drive it back under her own steam? Turku Archipelago and the Swedish coast are very nice.
 
Motoring the boat back in the Spring is really appealing to me but I’m concerned about paying for the boat & then not being able to see it or do anything constructive for a few months while she is in Finland. The current owner has been very helpful & has offered to cover the costs of winter storage. The Finish broker has also been extremely helpful & I enjoyed visiting Turku very much, a wonderful place, but just a bit remote from Cornwall
 
Motoring the boat back in the Spring is really appealing to me but I’m concerned about paying for the boat & then not being able to see it or do anything constructive for a few months while she is in Finland. The current owner has been very helpful & has offered to cover the costs of winter storage. The Finish broker has also been extremely helpful & I enjoyed visiting Turku very much, a wonderful place, but just a bit remote from Cornwall

All understood. Just in case you have trouble arranging the transport and have any worries about the storage, let me know and I can check if I know the yard, etc. Is the boat still in the water?
 
All understood. Just in case you have trouble arranging the transport and have any worries about the storage, let me know and I can check if I know the yard, etc. Is the boat still in the water?

Hi
The boat is now out of the water at Satava Marina, I have visited and met both the owner & the broker, both of whom I have great respect for. I just feel a bit iffy about paying in full for the boat & not being able to do anything with her for several months. It’s not a trust thing, I’m more than happy with that side of things. I’m very capable of bringing her home by sea, something I would relish. I’d just like to get her home soon so that I could start to sort a few minor improvements in advance of next season
Any local advice would be much appreciated
Cheers
Wiz
 
Channel Island 32, 2004 boat, proper boat & looked after well by her second owner.

That is a Proper boat, well done wizzer. Yes it would be a great Trip to bring Her back. I agree with your concerns about leaving Her etc. It may be worth 'punting' the transport to the agency 'Shipley' it is an internet thing where transport people bid for the work. 'Saraband' of this Forai put Me on to this a two or three years ago. I had to get a 9 metre RIB from Spain at the time. Traditional boat movers quoted in the region of £4000. Through the 'Shipley' scheme it cost £1750. It may be spelt Shiply by the way!
 
Hi
The boat is now out of the water at Satava Marina, I have visited and met both the owner & the broker, both of whom I have great respect for. I just feel a bit iffy about paying in full for the boat & not being able to do anything with her for several months. It’s not a trust thing, I’m more than happy with that side of things. I’m very capable of bringing her home by sea, something I would relish. I’d just like to get her home soon so that I could start to sort a few minor improvements in advance of next season
Any local advice would be much appreciated
Cheers
Wiz

When I bought my boat from the UK back in 2012, I used Peters & May who picked up the boat from Swanwick and delivered it onto a dockside at Turku. Timo and his team at Satava took it from there reassembling the missing bits after transportation and keeping it for me for a few weeks before I sailed her to Lake Saimaa. They are well respected and did an excellent job. Unfortunately I have very little knowledge of the local transport companies but I'm sure Timo has the best knowledge of the available transport options.

Fwiw, At Dusseldorf boat show I had a chat with these people and their prices seemed surprisingly reasonable -> http://sleepy.de/en/home/

They would probably load the boat on a trailer and drive it into a ro-ro in Turku. You could then have it delivered eg. somewhere on the North Sea coast of Germany and drive home from there.

Hope you get it sorted to your satisfaction, If there is anything I can help you with, just let me know.
 
Well, the deal is done.
I’m looking forward to seeing my “new” Channel Island 32 back home in the UK.
Still looking at transport options. Maybe a truck back as far as Calais or even Southampton. Or ....... wait until Spring & motor her home.
Either way, I’m afraid Magenta will now be offered for sale; superb boat, Seaward 25, 2005, will be advertised on the appropriate YBW medía soon.
 
Congrats on the new boat.
There are lots of us with boats wintering ashore in Scandinavia. Is it in a shed or outside?
Assuming in a heated shed or properly winterised by the previous owner it should be fine till the spring. If you have plenty of time the journey back could be a once in a lifetime opportunity. You might not even rush to br8ng it the whole way
 
Congrats on the new boat.
There are lots of us with boats wintering ashore in Scandinavia. Is it in a shed or outside?
Assuming in a heated shed or properly winterised by the previous owner it should be fine till the spring. If you have plenty of time the journey back could be a once in a lifetime opportunity. You might not even rush to br8ng it the whole way

A very interesting comment. The boat is currently ashore in an covered store at the marina. She has been properly winterised - as I am informed by both the broker & the vendor. I do relish the thought of bringing her back by sea but I’m itching to get my hands on the boat. Winter storage is paid for up until the end of May next year. I need to carefully consider my options; I would be spending a considerable sum on getting her nearer home (Calais or even Southampton) soon. Perhaps it would be more sensible to spend that money on upgrading the electronics before I collect her.
I assume it would be at least the end of March before the Baltic marinas would be back in business (for fuel etc en route) and the Baltic itself would be free of ice?
 
If your destination is Chanel Islands then no VAT on nav aids or other work in Guernsey and only 5% in Jersey.

Its a long way Finland to CI unless you have no work commitments.

If you said to various transport Co,s CI 32 Finland to Uk or Normandy anytime before end of April something will come up.
 
A very interesting comment. The boat is currently ashore in an covered store at the marina. She has been properly winterised - as I am informed by both the broker & the vendor. I do relish the thought of bringing her back by sea but I’m itching to get my hands on the boat. Winter storage is paid for up until the end of May next year. I need to carefully consider my options; I would be spending a considerable sum on getting her nearer home (Calais or even Southampton) soon. Perhaps it would be more sensible to spend that money on upgrading the electronics before I collect her.
I assume it would be at least the end of March before the Baltic marinas would be back in business (for fuel etc en route) and the Baltic itself would be free of ice?

Congratulations on the new boat!

If she is not in a heated shed, a few precautionary steps should be taken. We had our first boat in a covered (but cold) shed for eight winters without issues, but we did take out all the loose soft furnishings for the winter. We also had pots of salt to trap moisture. Engines and domestic systems should be fine, I’m sure they’ve winterized them properly.

The temp variations can sometimes be a bit extreme, which can cause problems due to moisture.
 
Here she is, in the shed in Turku

Congratulations, it looks fine and seaworthy. Great adventures for you...

See the direct message of your ybw post, possibly I could help you.

NBs
 
Last edited:
Top