Porto d Pisa

S

statgar

Well-Known Member
Joined
27 Nov 2004
Messages
131
Location
Bristol UK
Visit site
Has anyone had any recent experience of this Marina in Tuscany? it was newly opened in May 2013 and was featured in MBY. I am thinking of taking my boat there in July and leaving her for the season until next year. Very competitive berthing deal but it seems quite deserted and on a flat coastline that seems uninteresting. I am a bit worried that it may not be properly open and that there will be a lot of construction going on. I really would appreciate any comments on either the Marina or cruising area.
 
statgar said:
Has anyone had any recent experience of this Marina in Tuscany? it was newly opened in May 2013 and was featured in MBY. I am thinking of taking my boat there in July and leaving her for the season until next year. Very competitive berthing deal but it seems quite deserted and on a flat coastline that seems uninteresting. I am a bit worried that it may not be properly open and that there will be a lot of construction going on. I really would appreciate any comments on either the Marina or cruising area.
Click to expand...
I don't know about the marina but no matter how good it is the cruising area isn't worth it imho
 
statgar said:
I really would appreciate any comments on either the Marina or cruising area.
Click to expand...
Sorry, no 1st hand experience on the marina.
And yes, you need to crunch a few miles to find nice cruising areas (though the whole Tuscan Archipelago is well worth burning some fuel to reach it).
But just in case you would be interested, Ryanair flies to Pisa.
And Tuscany has to offer some stunning inland places - not to mention food and wine.

Good luck if you would decide to go ahead, and don't forget to tell us about the experience! :encouragement:
 
I was berthed in the Arno (the river which the marina is located on) for two years. Great access to Pisa from the UK and a 30 Euro taxi from the airport. The area is a little dull, but that is actually a good thing - berthing is far cheaper than the surrounding areas. We were in a sailboat and a few hours north is La Spezia, which is fantastic. Being so open the access to the marina can get a little hairy, saw a boat rip its rudder off on a shallow bar.

I watched the marina being built, and pretty sure it is now finished. The local area is a bit bland, but food and wine is cheap and great, as it is properlly Italian and not too touristy.
Portovenere is our favourite place to cruise to. You can leave the cold British weather in the moring, and by the afternoon you can be anchored in the most beautiful area in the world. Bit further north is Portofino. Worth a visit, but they tried to charge us 250Euro for a swinging mooring. Might be due to our boat being too old and ugly to fit in to the area...

I would go for it, try a season and see what you think!
 
MBM_Greg said:
they tried to charge us 250Euro for a swinging mooring. Might be due to our boat being too old and ugly to fit in to the area...
Click to expand...
Nah, Portofino is indeed awfully expensive, but they surely don't discriminate based on the boat appearance.
I've been there recently, on a stunning 20m vessel (not my old tub!), and they asked us 370+VAT (that's a whopping 451 Eur total).
...though they didn't have any surcharge for that day, which was when the traditional St.George's fire were scheduled.
So, almost a bargain, according to the marina lady...! :eek:
 
statgar said:
Has anyone had any recent experience of this Marina in Tuscany? it was newly opened in May 2013 and was featured in MBY. I am thinking of taking my boat there in July and leaving her for the season until next year. Very competitive berthing deal but it seems quite deserted and on a flat coastline that seems uninteresting. I am a bit worried that it may not be properly open and that there will be a lot of construction going on. I really would appreciate any comments on either the Marina or cruising area.
Click to expand...
We are currently berthed about 50nm north of Pisa at La Spezia and I can tell you that the coastline between La Spezia and Pisa is as flat and straight as a very straight and flat thing. I believe it's very similar for a long way south of Pisa too. The coastline north of La Spezia is interesting with some classic cruising destinations like Portofino, Rapallo and Portovenere but you're going to have to cruise 2-3hrs to get there from Pisa and with the price of diesel at €1.70/litre, you don't want to have to do that. Not only that but the coast is completely open so there's no protection from the weather if it comes from N, S or W. There are a few plus points though. Elba and the Costa Smerelda are within cruising range if you had a few days to spare. There is a lot of boatbuilding knowledge in the area so fixing or improving your boat would be easy. Also there are plenty of flights to Pisa from London with BA, Easyjet and Ryanair and if you fancied exploring inland, Tuscany and the mountains north of Pisa are well worth hiring a car to see, not to mention Florence of course. With regard to Pisa itself, once you've seen the leaning tower and eaten an overpriced pizza, you've done it
 
Can I ask how big your boat is and what the berthing deal is?
The marinas further north are expensive if you rent through the office but find a private owner and it's more reasonable.
I imagine the marina at Pisa will be pretty dead in terms of restaurants and nightlife, especially out of season.
Viareggio, La Spezia, Lavagna, Chiavari and Rapallo are all easily accessible by train at very reasonable cost. (We pay 9 euros each way for the 1.5hr ride to Chiavari if we book a week or so in advance)
Make sure you can get flights out of season too. If you live in London it's probably not a problem, but then I'd be flying to Genoa and berthing there.
 
adey said:
Can I ask how big your boat is and what the berthing deal is?
Click to expand...
adey not sure if your question is addressed to me or the OP but I'm currently paying €2000/month for a 20m berth in Porto Mirabello in La Spezia but thats a short term deal as we are moving on to Sardinia in July. Yup I find that expensive
 
Sorry, I meant the op.
One other option for him is to berth in Pisa for the summer then move north for the winter. I was paying 400 euros all in for 12m in Chiavari over the winter which is not too bad.
 
adey said:
Can I ask how big your boat is and what the berthing deal is?
The marinas further north are expensive if you rent through the office but find a private owner and it's more reasonable.
I imagine the marina at Pisa will be pretty dead in terms of restaurants and nightlife, especially out of season.
Viareggio, La Spezia, Lavagna, Chiavari and Rapallo are all easily accessible by train at very reasonable cost. (We pay 9 euros each way for the 1.5hr ride to Chiavari if we book a week or so in advance)
Make sure you can get flights out of season too. If you live in London it's probably not a problem, but then I'd be flying to Genoa and berthing there.
Click to expand...
My boat is a Fairline Phantom 46 14.5 metres Pisa is quoting eur 8k for a year ex August including 4 months out of the water which is a good price. My boat is currently in Sardinia and I want to cruise north through Corsica & Elba then leave the boat in Italy for the winter and cruise south next year to the Almafi coast where I will probably leave her until the following season as I am hoping to get to Greece. I don't really want to go further north than Elba as it is out of my way, although handy for Pisa airport, and I would like to get some nice short cruising trips in in September and August. Somewhere around Porto Vecchio would be good but they are talking eur 12k, I hadn't thought of trying private berth holders so I'll start searching now any ideas anyone about websites? Thanks to all for the input so far, invaluable as always.
 
statgar said:
My boat is currently in Sardinia
Click to expand...
statgar, I am going to move my boat to Marina di Olbia next month for the summer. Any tips for the area or recommendations where to cruise/eat?
 
Deleted User said:
adey not sure if your question is addressed to me or the OP but I'm currently paying €2000/month for a 20m berth in Porto Mirabello in La Spezia but thats a short term deal as we are moving on to Sardinia in July. Yup I find that expensive
Click to expand...
I left my boat in Marina Dell' Orso, Poltu Quatu last week and going back out this weekend to cruise the Maddalenas and then back up to Ajaccio and later to Italy. Whilst I only had a couple of days in the area, from Alghero, I was just blown away probably the most amazing cruising area that I have ever seen. I hope you agree and have a wonderful time there,
 
statgar said:
I left my boat in Marina Dell' Orso, Poltu Quatu last week and going back out this weekend to cruise the Maddalenas and then back up to Ajaccio and later to Italy. Whilst I only had a couple of days in the area, from Alghero, I was just blown away probably the most amazing cruising area that I have ever seen. I hope you agree and have a wonderful time there,
Click to expand...
€9207 + VAT for a 20m boat for the month of August only:eek::eek::eek:
 
statgar said:
I left my boat in Marina Dell' Orso, Poltu Quatu
Click to expand...
Beautiful marina indeed, very secluded and with stunning cruising grounds just round the corner.
But for Deleted User information (and anyone else possibly interested), forget the convenience of Olbia marina, which is at walking distance from the airport.
I would rather recommend Poltu Quatu for occasional overnighting, than as permanent berth, to anyone who is thinking to fly back and forth frequently.
 
MapisM said:
But for Deleted User information (and anyone else possibly interested), forget the convenience of Olbia marina, which is at walking distance from the airport.
Click to expand...
Er are you saying I shouldn't go to Marina di Olbia now? I've paid the money its too late:eek:
 
Ops, sorry, in hindsight I can see why you misunderstood.
What I meant is that Poltu Quatu is nice, but nowhere near as convenient for transfers as Olbia Marina (which is also very nice, anyway).
It can take quite a while to reach Poltu Quatu from the airport, particularly in Jul/Aug, when the Costa Smeralda road can easily remind you of the London trafffic....! :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top