North Wales Marina.

[Robchapman]

As a prospective yacht owner (44ft) I would be very interested to hear readers views on the options of where to keep a boat with incurred costs in North Wales. Obviously I can get quotes from the main marinas for an annual berth which seems to be around £6000pa, but which is the best and what other options do people have. Do some move out to a mooring for the summer, if so where? What happens if you have an annual berth and you set off for a three month trip in the summer, do you get a refund?
As a first time buyer I would like to hear about some real costs and options involved in berthing a boat ie the standing costs before we get into the dark science of maintenance.

 

[Skylark]

Hi Rob, welcome to the forum.

I sailed around North Wales for around 20 years. I had a 30 ft boat on moorings in Conwy River and Holyhead sailing club and a 36 ft, then a 41ft in Holyhead marina. I moved to The Clyde as a consequence of Holyhead marina being destroyed by Storm Emma during the winter of 2018.

There are many tidal gates around North Wales but with carefully planning these are manageable. I always found the Ralf Morris Cruising Anglesey and Adjacent Waters to be the go-to resource.

River Conwy has two marinas offering tidal/restricted access. They seem pretty expensive given the access restrictions but popularity suggests otherwise.

Port Dinorwic has a marina with access to The Menai via a lock. I had a season there many years ago. Costs are reasonable. Very friendly berth holders. Depending upon berth allocation, it's possible to get a very dirty boat very quickly from falling leaves and mud towards the end of a season.

Caernarfon marina has appeal but you'd be waiting for dead mans shoes for a vacancy with a 44 ft boat.

Holyhead marina is unlikely to get rebuilt anytime soon. Great shame as it's a good location.

There's also Pwhelli marina but the entrance is shallow, access is not all states of the tide and, in my view, day-sailing options are few.

There are a lot of swinging mooring options in Conwy River, Menai Straits and Holyhead Sailing club. Hopefully, others will be along soon to give more up-to-date info on availability and contact details.

My current boat was too beamy to fit into Holyhead marina slings so I wintered at Port Penrhyn, Bangor. No issues there.

Hope this gives an overview.

 

[vyv_cox]

Pretty much as Skylark says. Port Dinorwic unlikely to have space, Victoria Dock definitely not. Pwllheli has vacancies and the entrance has been dredged recently.