Preveza - Cleopatra or Aktio boatyard for winter?

[Garold]

We want to leave our boat for 6 months over winter at one of the Preveza boatyards.

I asked Aktio, Cleopatra and Ionian Marine for availability and prices.

After some on line research I presumed that Aktio would be the cheaper of the three and Cleopatra would be the more expensive.

As it happens, Ionian do not have availability and Cleopatra is marginally cheaper than Aktio. This was a bit unexpected.

I’ve spoken to a few people and opinion is split over which to choose.

Since I do not tend to do my own annual work (antifoul, polishing, engine servicing etc) on the boat I’m veering towards Cleopatra since they are reputed as ‘very professional and well organised at looking after absent owners boats’.

The main recommendation that I’ve heard for Aktio seems to be that they are friendly and allow you to do your own work - and my wife just reminded me that I’ve never got round to it in previous years.

Can anyone pitch in with any further views/opinion? And maybe some personal experience if possible.

I will have to make my own decision in the end, but I’d appreciate some more info if possible.

Thanks

Garold.

 

[sailaboutvic]

Regarding cleopatra, just keep it in mind that any work you need doing for out side contractor you be paying the cost that the marina charges them , if all you want is to put then boat on the hard and go home and if has you said there not Much different in cost I would go for cleo .
Our choice has always been Ionian yard and although they said in a email they are full , I think if you turn up now and was willing to pay a deposit you might find they will find you a place .
Aktio ok but it is a dirty yard an you could be put on hard grass which mean when it rain it could be wet , also there the donkey to consider , not that they will bother you , but there crap all over the place , but you can work and stay on board plus you can get contractors to work without an extra charge .
What are you plain ? are you planning to stay on board for any time? as again I not sure if Cleo will let you .

 

[cynthia]

Yes, Aktio is friendly and you can do the work on your own boat, however they have now started imposing a charge for work carried out by professional workers in the yard. I think it is not quite a high as Cleo. The cradling and security at Aktio are excellent and we have been loyal customers of Aktio for many years and have enjoyed good, friendly service, however, Vic is right it has not got the same standard of facilities as the other yards re hard standing, toilets, showers washing machines etc (present, but not of a high standard). If we didn't have the customer loyalty rating I'd be making enquiries at Ionian as they seem to be very highly rated.

 

[Mistroma]

Regarding cleopatra, just keep it in mind that any work you need doing for out side contractor you be paying the cost that the marina charges them , if all you want is to put then boat on the hard and go home and if has you said there not Much different in cost I would go for cleo .
Our choice has always been Ionian yard and although they said in a email they are full , I think if you turn up now and was willing to pay a deposit you might find they will find you a place .
Aktio ok but it is a dirty yard an you could be put on hard grass which mean when it rain it could be wet , also there the donkey to consider , not that they will bother you , but there crap all over the place , but you can work and stay on board plus you can get contractors to work without an extra charge .
What are you plain ? are you planning to stay on board for any time? as again I not sure if Cleo will let you .

No problem staying on boat in Cleopatra yard though they make a small charge of 2 euro/day to cover showers, water and electricity. I think it would be a problem if they didn't allow owners to live on boat as there's no nearby accommodation. Big problem without a car and not very convenient even with a car. Cleopatra do have a few rooms but they are almost always booked and also fairly expensive for a basic room.

I said "owners" above as I did meet a couple who were sorting out work for friends who owned a boat in the yard. The yard would not allow them to sleep on board as they did not own the boat. I believe that they were monitoring progress on agreed work plus odd bits they were doing (washing, cleaning, stocking up).

 

[Garold]

Thank you for the replies so far. Most helpful.

To answer your question Vic - if I had my choice we would leave the boat when it’s lifted in Oct and not return until April. I’d probably prefer to contract the yard to do the antifoul, anodes, hull polishing just before we go back in the water for next year.

We’ve never had a boat out of the water for the whole winter before but if the boat is in the water throughout winter I feel compelled to visit once a month to check that everything is all good and frankly that’s just a pain.

It’s looking like Cleopatra would be the best choice for us.

Garold

 

[sailaboutvic]

Thank you for the replies so far. Most helpful.

To answer your question Vic - if I had my choice we would leave the boat when it’s lifted in Oct and not return until April. I’d probably prefer to contract the yard to do the antifoul, anodes, hull polishing just before we go back in the water for next year.

We’ve never had a boat out of the water for the whole winter before but if the boat is in the water throughout winter I feel compelled to visit once a month to check that everything is all good and frankly that’s just a pain.

It’s looking like Cleopatra would be the best choice for us.

Garold

If there not that much in the price , I agree Cleo be your best bet , it a well organized and clear yard .

 

[duncan99210]

I’ve kept the boat in Ionion for the past few years; happy customer. But that’s not an option for you. I’ve also worked on a mates boat in Cleo. The yard itself is a little less chaotic than Ionion in layout and approach but the end result is much the same. They do have an in house workforce which does good work if you keep an eye on them. I wasn’t overly impressed with their mechanic who was competent enough but a bit slap dash (he did a compression test but used petrol engine papers for the tester so the pressure figures weren’t actual, just showed that all cylinders were about the same...).
No idea about yard commission for outsiders, last time I used an outsider at Ionion there was no hint of this. But I have heard it reported by others. Ask the yard, they should tell you what they do.
When I was looking at which yard to use, I visited all three and I was least impressed by Aktio. Both Cleo and Ionion gave me clear, printed quotes; Aktio talked to me, muttered a figure (much the same as the other yards) and grudgingly wrote it out on a scrap of paper. Simply didn’t feel right. I’ve freinds who swear by the place and they do have a customer room which is open all the time where you can sit and use Wi-fi, chat etc. Neither of the other yards have that!

 

[alexsailor]

It is very simple:

Cleopatra- fancy
Ionian- moderate
Aktio- not fancy at all

 

[Hardmy]

Cleo makes at first sight attractive offers, but as soon as you are in there you have to pay for every little thing. You are not allowed to choose who works on your boat, instead they will send you their preferred tradesmen at their prices. They are not necessary the most skilled people, and it doesn't mean that all items on the to do list will be processed. When you have a rendez-vous for crane-out/in you are to adhere to it. They have no flexilibity if for example you have a technical issue and you aren't able to make it. If you have bad luck, you might wait 2-5 weeks for the next appointment! However the facilities are clean and they have the best crane driver.

Aktio is a much more friendly/familial atmosphere, I like the donkeys and goat walking around. It really feels like Greece! I didn't have any bad surprises with the bill, and in the end it was much cheaper than next doors. I was allowed to choose who works on my boat (foc) but they seem to change the policy. They extended the hard standing area several times, and are still full. The underground is not as stable than Cleo, and my boat moved a bit during the winter. I didn't like it at all, they corrected it as soon as it went noticed.

Ionion seems to have good reputation but I didn't try myself.

 

[jimbaerselman]

I've watched all 3 evolve over the last 30 years.

Toss a coin.

It's quicker . . .

That's the beauty of close competition

JimB

 

[FirstAway]

We have kept our boat in Cleopatra for 3 years now, We have always found the lifting and storage very professional.

For maintenance we use a mixture of diy and outside contractors, certainly it is a little more expensive to use external workers but I feel more confident about the quality of work. We had a bad experience with an anti fouling and polishing job they did for us and certainly would not use them again for that.

 

[Tintin]

Mmm, Cleopatra.

That'll be the place that an 85 yr old friend left his Lagoon 38, with a request to replace skin fittings, check the nav lights, and antifoul.

The yard launched her just before I turned up to deliver to Venice, having charged the owner in full, amd substantially, for the work.

A quick check showed no work done on skin fittings, with one cracked backing nut. After much arguing and a bit of shouting they lifted her. That was when I discovered they had antifouled all of 20cm below the waterline, and hadnt made any attemlt to even pressure wash her when she was lifted.

Days later they finally finished the skin fittings, then before re-launch tried to charge for the re-lift and launch, the skin fittings, and a "contractors" fee on me for doing the anti foul.

All eventually resolved, but a bunch of thieving cheating scum in my book.

Oh, and they hadn't even checked the nav lights, the masthead tri needed a new bulb and was wobbly.

 

[sailaboutvic]

Where once you had a choice of three yard you down to one really now , the charter fleets have done a good job of taken up all the available spaces .
Ałl the yards have extended and it a supply and demand now so the prices have gone right up .
It's also happened in all the other yards in that area, even lefkas marina since sun sail moved in has the same problem .
I would still suggest the Garold go to Ionian yard asap with ready cash in his hand and talk to them face to face , offer to pay a deposit. He might be surprise .

 

[Garold]

An update.

After much consideration I have decided to use Cleopatra.

However, following our successful dealings over our new batteries with IBA (Ionian Boat Assistance) at Nidri, I’ve decided to let them organise the lift out and also the winter servicing and maintenance work in the yard. Apparently they usually have quite a few boats in Cleopatra for winter.

I heard mixed reviews of Cleopatras own works team so I thought that having one external contractor who could do all our winter maintenance work would be a better arrangement.

Also, I’m sadly not confident about the Brexit deal and so I wanted to have the flexibility to leave the boat out of the water longer if necessary. If we have a hard Brexit, I don’t want to waste any days in Europe doing organising or maintenance on the boat - I just want to be sailing!

So, sometime in the middle of October we will leave our boat at Nidri with IBA and they will just sort everything out. We will then return to the U.K. to hopefully return next Easter to a shiny, well serviced yacht ready to sail. Fingers crossed.

Garold

 

[Inachos486]

Have tried all three over the past 10years. First Cleopatra; Clean and efficient but too in your face . As previously said, they would only allow a restricted work force on site and I think they made a charge to them which would be passed on to you. Ionian; OK but not over friendly and not very flexible with lifting out dates. Aktio; Not as tidy as the others but the staff very friendly and the chandlers there very helpful. Showers and toilets very good. Very happy here now and hope to stay for the foreseeable future.

 

[fliti]

If you look back some years, you will find my sorry tale of appalling experience with work carried out by the mechanics at Cleopatra. To the previous comment about thieving scum, i would add dangerously incompetent and viciously aggressive against any complaint. Leave your boat there if you have to but dont let their workforce near it.