Southern Brittany as a base

[Cloven]

Planning to base the boat in Southern Brittany. Would appreciate contacts with anyone who has done the same for some inside info. Please PM if you are prepared to share your experiences.

Thanks for any replies.

Dave

 

[Danny_Labrador]

I would be interested to read also - in posts ?

 

[Roberto]

Hello,

a good starting point would be www.sagemor.fr
it is the company which manages quite a few marinas in this area (trinite, crouesty, port haliguen, locmiquelic, etc), they must handle possibly around 6/7 thousand places; then of course there are many other ports but I think one has to contact them one by one...

Things usually works like this: if you ask for a permanent yearly berth almost every port will tell you "sorry we are full, the waiting list is 999years long"... don't be put off: ask for a "visitor berth", and if done in advance (meaning end of year for the the following season) there usually are several possible solutions

the difference between the two is mainly price, a visitor place will often be charged at a monthly rate, and in the end will of course be more expensive than a yearly contract, but not too much (the sagemor site will give you an idea)
as an example, for my 12m boat I spend around 2 300 euro from march till november, a yearly place would be around 2000 IIRC

sorry can t help for ferry or flight connections with the uk..

 

[Ocean Hound]

Have spent 6-7 years there, over two boats and really enjoyed it. From L'Aberwrach down to La Rochelle, excellent value in terms of cruising potential and also costs ( at the time) were considerbaly less than the UK. PM me if you want a chat - would be happy to pass on what I've learnt. Subsequently moved on to Northern Spain, Galicia (even better) and now the Algarve.

 

[Sinbad2222]

Can't give you a personal experience but a friend moved his boat from a south coast MDL marina to La Roche Bernard and has no regrets.

 

[totopalm]

Recently did a recce by car, looking for a mooring for my
Trawler yacht for 12 months. I spent a week touring the
Marinas from Brest to Bordeaux. No chance, all the best
sited Marinas like Crouesty/Roche Bernard/Pornic/Les
Sable d'Olonne/Ile De Re/La Rochelle/Royan to name
just a few i visited had waiting lists some were 10year
some 5year, some 3year.Where you can get a mooring
is in Port Medoc, 90 miles up the Gironde estuary from
Bordeaux. It is only two years old, beautifully appointed.
They are having problems with wave surges into the
Marina, but told me they are fitting a Barrage across the
entrance this winter to cure the problem.
The Gironde estuary is very beautiful, and its not to far
to cruise North to Rochelle and good cruising grounds.
Bordeaux airport has cheap flights, the big minus for me
was the 90mile drive from airport to Port Medoc, and the
lack of live aboard folk in the Marina, I was there two days
and did not meet a boater to talk to. There are about 450
boats there, and room for plenty more. If you like peace
and quiet could suityou
Prices inc electricity example 9metre 3-75euros per annum
10metre 4-10/12metre4-60/14metre 4-95euros
My boat in 13 to 14 metre bracket 3,000euros per annum
about £2000 not bad compared to UK Marinas. Hope this
helps, come back to me for any more info. Tony