Considering move to Mallorca

[SwedeSkipper]

I am new to this forum, and would like some advice from you fellow forumites.

Having been boating for all my life in Sweden, I am now considering moving my boating to Mallorca. I understand the UK weather has been underwhelming this year, and the same goes for the Swedish weather (this year and many before). I am currently the owner of a 37-foot sportscruiser, has had it for 8 years.

Given the fortunate strength of the Swedish Crown in relation to the Euro, buying a used boat in Spain can actually give me plenty of boat for my money. I have a window of opportunity I would like to assess. But there are many questions I need to get answered before I make the leap.

My plan is to sell my boat in Sweden (it suits our needs here, but we will need bigger boat in the Med to make it work – thus no use transporting old boat to Med), buy a used boat in Spain, have it there all year round and travel to Mallorca in the spring, summer and autumn.

My questions (sorry if some of them are silly):

Mooring/Marinas

1. Costs: I understand I will have to rent or buy a mooring in a marina. I have seen brokers offer moorings (approx. 15*5 meters) at 100 – 200 KEUR. How does the moorings market work? If you buy a mooring, do you only get the right to use it until the “Concession” ends? What happens after the expiry of the concession? How has the market for moorings developed over the past years? I suspect the financial crisis has impacted mooring prices. Will sellers of moorings be open to haggling? If a mooring is listed as “15*5 meters”, is that strictly 15*5 or is there some kind of margin. When you measure your boat, what is included in the 15 meters? Bathing platform and pulpit? What can I expect the yearly fee to be?
2. What marina would you recommend? A marina in Palma will give me the benefit of a large selection of restaurants and services, as well as a short trip to the airport. Will road traffic be an issue with regards to noise and air quality? (I plan to live aboard the boat in the marina.) Which marinas have pool?

Legal/Insurance

1. Do I need to register the boat in Spain? I understand a lot of UK people with boats in the Med have them registered in the UK (or at least fly a UK flag).
2. Are there any taxes, fees or levies that need to be paid in Spain (I do not plan to spend more than 182 days per year in Spain… I do have a job)
3. Will I need a yacht master licence or similar?
4. What about insurance. All you UK people, do you have your boats insured with UK insurance companies?

Cruising

1. Are there normally guest moorings in marinas? Will you need/be able to reserve these in advance?
2. Are you permitted to drop the hook anywhere? I think I have read about buoys being available as well.
3. What about black water? Are there emptying stations in the marinas?

Maintenance

1. I assume I will be able to have my boat in the water year round with yearly lift for anti fouling – is this correct?
2. How do you keep your gelcoat from being faded and matte? I guess the sun can be quite hard on the gelcoat.

Sorry for this lengthy post. I will appreciate all input I can get from you. Of course, if you feel there is other issues I should address, please speak up!

Thank you!

 

[erik_plus8]

Not in a position to answer your questions, but my thoughts are similar to yours since I also live in Sweden, in Göteborg. Boating season is short by default but the last years, beacuse of the weather it has been downright ridiculous. And lurking around on this forum really sends the mind spinning - what if...??? We have over the years visited many different cities, countries, islands in the Med, with Mallorca being a favourite and to have an own base somewhere there - would be fantastic!

What boat do you have now and what are you looking at? I sometimes have access to a 42ft sportcruiser and that boat is maybe on the large side here in Sweden but could probably feel smallish in the Med, when also being used as a summerhouse

Best of luck with your plans - keep us posted. There should be a wealth of knowledge here to help with your questions.

 

[SwedeSkipper]

@erik_plus8

Thanks for your thoughts. Seems you have a great employer.

I live in Stockholm (where I use the 37 footer) and spend considerable time on the west coast as well (21 ft open sports boat).

Current boat is Windy 37 Grand Mistral. In the Med, I will be needing 3 cabins and 2 heads, so I guess I will be looking at a 50+ feet... Would like to avoid flybridge. Any suggestions?

 

[Hurricane]

I'll try and answer some of these but I may get some of the detail wrong with regard to Sweden. Others will probably come along and add their comments – this is just the way I see it – we berth on the mainland.

Firstly marinas
Mallorca (and all the Balearic Islands) are expensive.
You can rent or buy but everyone "heads over" to the Balearic Islands in July and August so those months demand a premium which will get added to annual berthing in some form.
If you buy a berth, I’m not sure what happens at the end of the contract – there aren’t many test examples yet but I suspect that you get first refusal on renewing a new lease.
The financial market has impacted the prices and I believe good deals can be had but remember that there is still the demand for spaces in July and August.
In our marina, you can berth a boat 10% longer than the berth’s nominal length but you must allow 3% for fenders on the nominal width. I believe that other marinas operate similar measurement stats.

Legal etc
A lot of confusion here.
But if you keep the boat privately registered, you should be able to register it on a non-Spanish flag (UK I believe is the cheapest) without any problems.
The big problems in Spain come when you try to register the boat as commercial or try and do any form of charter with the boat.
There are changes afoot but I strongly suggest that you stick to a properly privately registered boat.
If you keep to private registration, the only taxes I can think of would be the G4 tax(I think it’s called). I see it as a kind of local community tax that contributes to the local infrastructure. In our part of Spain, it’s very small and included in our marina service charges.
If you register the boat in the UK (and this bit needs checking for a Swedish citizen) you will only need an ICC (International Certificate of Competence). Very easy to get – a Day Skipper course will automatically provide one but the RYA ICC is only a test on the back of the application form – crazy really!!
I assume you are already a competent skipper (but if not you should do some form of tuition.
Insurance is straightforward – just use your existing company and tell them where you intend cruising – that’s all I do.

Cruising
There generally seems to be a good supply of guest berths but as I say above in July and August the islands fill up.
Dropping the hook and buoys – seems to change annually but I believe this year the buoys are back. I believe if there are no buoys and unless otherwise stated, you can anchor in the sandy bits without disturbing the weed.
Black water is a big issue in our marina but I think we are an exception. Our marina bring a trailer along to the boat and pump us out for free whenever we want.
Otherwise – it’s the 12 mile limit and pump it out yourself!!

Maintenance
Yep – boat in the water all year round and lift annually for antifoul etc.
Now here’s a big one – the Med waters are warmer and more susceptible to barnacle growth so you may want to get the underwater metalwork (props etc) cleaned – especially later in the season. On the islands, I believe people use divers. We get cheap lifts in our boatyard.

As far as gelcoat is concerned my recommendation is – stick to white and treat with a non wax (A Glaze for example). Coloured gelcoats don’t, IMHO, work. If it has to be coloured, I believe that Allgrip do a paint that works but if you are buying, I would keep off coloured gelcoat.

Finally, have a look at our mainland Spain marina (Sant Carles) – dirt cheap – great community and the islands are only 4 or 5 hours away. We have a berth holder forum that you can sign up for free and see what we all think – www.scmchat.com

Good luck

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Hurricane has answered your questions very thoroughly but I would like to add a few things. I spent 5yrs with my boat in Majorca until recently and I would thoroughly recommend it. I agree that a berth in Palma is very convenient as it will be only 15-20mins taxi ride from the airport and there are nice cruising areas within easy reach of Palma. I berthed at this marina http://www.clubdemar-mallorca.com and again I found it very convenient and secure with good facilities on site and within easy walking distance in Palma. There is absolutely no necessity to buy a berth unless you absolutely want to. You could rent a 15m berth in Club de Mar for about €12k per year. Club de Mar has a nice pool too. Yes it is close to the Paseo Marittimo road but we didn't find it a problem. What is a problem all over the Med but especially in Palma is fouling of sterngear. I had my props cleaned 3-4 times a season by a diver.
No you don't need to register your boat in Spain but as Hurricane says, I would advise against offering your boat for charter as it will then potentially become liable for 12% matriculation tax. Yes you need some sort of International Certificate of Competence to demonstrate your capability to drive your boat safely. Yes I insure my boat through a UK company so you could insure yours thru a Swedish co.
I'm going to argue a bit with Hurricane here on visitor berths. During July/Aug it is almost impossible to get visitor berths in some more popular marinas (Ibiza for example). Some marinas operate a reservation system but others don't. To be honest, May/June and Sept/Oct are the best times to go boating in the Balearics. Most bays are free to anchor in but some are closed to protect the seabed and some have mooring buoys for which there is a charge
Yes boats tend to stay in the water all year round and just be lifted for a few days once a year for antifouling, because onshore hard standing space is v limited. Agree with Hurricane. Coloured gelcoats may fade in the Med sun so white gelcoat is the best.
Agree also with Hurricane that Sant Carles is a much cheaper option than a marina in the Balearics. This is fine if you spend long periods on your boat and can cross to the islands at your leisure but if, like me, you can spend only long weekends and occasional 2 week holidays, IMHO it is better to be be based in the islands so you can go boating there immediately

 

[SwedeSkipper]

Not in a position to answer your questions, but my thoughts are similar to yours since I also live in Sweden, in Göteborg. Boating season is short by default but the last years, beacuse of the weather it has been downright ridiculous. And lurking around on this forum really sends the mind spinning - what if...??? We have over the years visited many different cities, countries, islands in the Med, with Mallorca being a favourite and to have an own base somewhere there - would be fantastic!

What boat do you have now and what are you looking at? I sometimes have access to a 42ft sportcruiser and that boat is maybe on the large side here in Sweden but could probably feel smallish in the Med, when also being used as a summerhouse

Best of luck with your plans - keep us posted. There should be a wealth of knowledge here to help with your questions.

Reason for choosing Mallorca over mainland Spain is that it is easier (still not easy) to get flights from Stockholm to Palma - apart from Mallorca being a nice place of course.

I'm both on the east and the west coasts of Sweden. I use my Windy Grand Mistral in the east, and that is the one I am considering to put up for sale. The Windy meets my needs here in Sweden perfectly, but in Mallorca I will need 3 cabins and 2 heads, so I guess I am looking at 50+ feet.

 

[SwedeSkipper]

Thanks

Hurricane and Deleted User,

Thanks for your input. I will digest and surely come up with other thoughts and questions.