Should I complain?

[Kristal]

Spent last night at a well-known and very costly marina, after taking some friends for a little power jaunt on the River, and am looking at almost £40 for the privalege. However, a few things I wasn't terribly happy with:

1. The finger pontoon we were given is less than half the length of Crystal's LOA - we are being charged for the whole length (11m), yet the pontoon allotted to is is more suited to her LOD (10m). With a bowsprit and bumpkin/mizzenboom to contend with, we are sort of hanging off the end of it.

2. None of the electronic gate locks work, and have been obviously 'bodged' to stay open, which doesn't do much for one's peace of mind when in a highly public area of Central London - you can see from a mile away that all the pontoons are accessible if your average opportunist thief wants to have a crack at all the nice yachts.

3. We had to wait in the lock for over twenty minutes, and weren't informed why. There is clearly some work going on with the lifting bridge here, but they could have told us why weren't going anywhere fast.

All this, and I was prepared for an overnight charge of about £25, which I think is reasonable for this marina. Closer to £40 is rather a lot for an overnighter, especially with the above taken into consideration.

Should I complain? Will it do any good?

/<

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

Might you have been in spitting distance of Tower Bridge by chance? The lock seems to work only when full up with boats and a long wait in the lock (or indeed outside in a stiff current/lumpy water) seems par for the course. I gather the wait and operating methods are to do with being a draw dock which works differently and they are stuck with it courtesy English Heritage.

I've paid about £25 with 'leccy for 8.3m.

 

[Kristal]

You would be correct. I'm not so worried about the lock thing, it was quite pleasant in actual fact, on a reasonably nice day... but the other stuff is really annoying...

 

[PhilF]

you try getting a decent hotel room there for £40

 

[ashanta]

£40 quid's still steep. After all, you have already paid for you accomodation in terms of your boat you just want a safe berth for the night.
Regards.

peter.

 

[ShipsWoofy]

[ QUOTE ]
you try getting a decent hotel room there for £40

[/ QUOTE ]

But you do not have to take your own room to a hotel do you?


It seems Marina's are just taking the proverbial now. Ooop north I get charged £6-7 for a night on the wall with water and lekky, cheaper on a mooring. The marina's think it is ok to charge near £20 for the same privilege.

I would always choose a wall berth or a mooring, much nicer than staying in a car er boat park!

 

[Evadne]

a) Yes its a rip-off and you should complain. I always thought Bucklers Hard was the most expensive marina in existence, outside of St. Tropez, min. charge 38 feet on 20' long pontoons, but now I know otherwise.

b) It won't make a blind bit of difference as long as boat owners continue to patronise their grotty establishment. But it's worth a try.

 

[pragmatist]

[ QUOTE ]
Should I complain? Will it do any good?


[/ QUOTE ]

Well yes to the first and no to the 2nd so it depends if letting off steam makes you feel better or worse. It is a total rip-off - I have been looking at some marinas and seeing that you could get B&B for less than an overnight berth. Plainly voting with feet is the only method and with the UK overcrowded I doubt this will help.

In terms of London I expect you know more about berthing there than I do but have had good reports of Limehouse & Surrey Docks and believe the former is discounted for CA members (but may be wrong).

Perhaps we should start a campaign and ALL leave Britain (oh I wish) that would tell the marina operators ! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[sailing_gibbon]

I would complain, last time i visited we weren't even allowed out of the lock in to the marina propper and we got a substantial discount.

It is arguably one of the worst marina's (baring location) , unfriendly , ridiculaously expensive and its locking in and out times are a joke. They only open the lock during daylight hours which is very usefull on the Thames where it takes 6-7 hours to travel from the Medway.

I would suggest limehouse or better still South Dock as they lock in or out 24/7 depending on tidal height.

 

[Cornishman]

Re: Should I complain? You bet you should

Definitely complain.
In your letter (use some official looking notepaper!) tell 'em you are researching a prog on how London will welcome visitors to the next Olympics, should you get 'em, and how appalled you are at being treated thus.

Copy to the Mayor of London (ole wossisname), the tourism board, Seb Coe, BBC 1's Watchdog etc etc (you got any clout there?) /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

 

[Kristal]

Re: Should I complain? You bet you should

I've got a BBC email address, being a staff member, which I must admit I've abused to get better service before...

Well, I shall definitely write - we have just come to the last few days of our winter berth at Limehouse, which I absolutely adore, and have perfect service every time there... at half the price! It didn't help that we traipsed around to the absurdly-overpriced Pub and waited twenty minutes to be noticed by a waiter - we politely declined to order and left and went to the impeccable Indial instead.

I think these places are just spoiled because they can get away with it with tourists, visitors etc. and can justify their prices with their location.

 

[Cornishman]

Re: Should I complain? You bet you should

Good on you - let's know if you get a reply

 

[graham]

Definitely complain if your not happy, not enough of us do.

Regrettably as long as they can fill their undersized/overpriced pontoons they are unlikely to act on your suggestions.

 

[PhilF]

quite right, bad analogy, try parking your car for 24 hours near tower bridge

 

[Sybarite]

London hotels - the worst in the world...??

I had pre-booked and prepaid over the net a 3 star hotel. On arriving without so much as looking at me the scruffy unshaven desk clerk said "Where's your voucher?" I gave him a copy of the e-mailed confirmation with booking reference. He said that he hadn't received this and that he didn't have a room. Under pressure he found another but very inferior to what I had already paid for. I said it was unacceptable. I asked him to contact the booking agency which he refused to do. He refused me the right to use a phone - my mobile was out of range. I again complained and he said that my booking (which he didn't have - right ?) was cancelled and that I should address myself to my (..!..) agent. As there was a no -show clause I asked him to give me a note that I had turned up. He refused.

It was only when I said that I was going to the police that he found me the room.
Three star and 9'2" x 7'3" (excluding the entrance) for two people. The web site showed spacious rooms newly renovated.

The worst I have come across. Pembridge Palace Hotel, Bayswater.

John

 

[snowleopard]

by all means complain, but to your second question - will it do any good - no chance.

demand for marina berths exceeds supply and they can charge what they like and get away with it. no amount of complaint over excess charges will do any good until people vote with their feet in large numbers.

realistically, let's say you are selling your house and the market is booming as it was a couple of years back. you are asking 200k and a punter comes along and tells you it's too expensive and he thinks 120k would be more reasonable. you know that someone will pay the full asking price next week - what do you do?

 

[Kristal]

Well, am writing a letter today. Watch this space for the response - if I even get one. I wonder if perhaps I should mention that I have been tempted to write to the yachting press about it? Then, should they choose to ignore me, I could write to YM, which poses a little more of a threat (though admittedly only a little...)

/<

 

[PhilF]

time spent/ versus money, def not worth it

 

[IanPoole2]

This marina always seems to be empty to me. Now I know why!

 

[ChristianR]

Hey Kristal did you complain already? I couldn't get back to my boat this evening because all of the gates had been locked and my access key was left on the boat!