Taking out a mooring, water or dry, is it cheaper if you are part of sailing clubs or RYA?

[thvoyager]

Looking for a mooring at the moment, before I make a choice, can I just ask if it is better to start a contract with being a member of various sailing clubs or RYA or what have you?
Any tips for getting good deals and anything I should be aware of?

 

[Sandy]

Nope. Moorings are somebody's 'property' you will rent it or the right to park your boat on the seabed. RYA or club membership will not make it any cheaper. Membership of a club might, just might give you access to one of their moorings.

You don't state where you are located or where you want to have a mooring. That will have a big impact on cost.

 

[Tranona]

Impossible question to answer. There are so many different types of mooring and types of organisations that run them, including individuals that own their own moorings. However all have to pay something to the owners of the seabed - Crown, Duchy, harbour authorities etc.

If there are generalisations, those owned or run by clubs tend to be lower cost, as are some owned by local authorities. Straight commercial operations are generally the most costly. Actual prices depend on first location - popular places like south and southwest coast, clyde tend to be more expensive with east coast just below. Marina berths most expensive, followed by walk on berths, then mid river pontoons and deep water moorings then drying moorings.

As for actual prices for a 35' boat you can pay as little as £500 for a seasonal mooring in an out of the way place to £10k pa for a marina berth in a high demand area.

No easy way of getting "good deals" as it is the individual who decides on whether a deal is good or not. Many providers offer incentives for different types of contracts which may make one offer better than another. The only thing you do is carry out research. A good starting point is the annual survey of marina prices published by PBO. This gives a good guide to the costs in different locations and generally the scale of charges for non marina moorings follow the marina charges - so all moorings in the Hamble are more expensive than say in Milford Haven.

 

[The Q]

To moor a 25ft sailing boat at my sailing club is about £300, a motorboat twice that. Per year...
A commercial mooring nearby in the same village that size is likely to cost £1500.. per year..
Club membership £150 for a family...
That's bare moorings without electricity and water, in the club's case you need to row across the river.
But the club gives you, free car parking, toilets, showers, drinking water for topping up water tanks, sailing racing, and social events..

From what I've seen elsewhere most clubs are cheaper for mooring, but many have restrictions and or benefits that are different to a commercial mooring.

 

[Daydream believer]

Looking for a mooring at the moment, before I make a choice, can I just ask if it is better to start a contract with being a member of various sailing clubs or RYA or what have you?
Any tips for getting good deals and anything I should be aware of?

Like many posters you fail to give enough info.
WHAT AREA do you want the mooring

 

[Jacana139]

Looking for a mooring at the moment, before I make a choice, can I just ask if it is better to start a contract with being a member of various sailing clubs or RYA or what have you?
Any tips for getting good deals and anything I should be aware of?

My opinion only.
Don’t think the RYA are any help. In fact I had very little benefit for the couple of years I was a member of the RYA.
If the sailing/yacht club has moorings they are generally available on a non-profit basis so there is usually a benefit there. eg: Weymouth Sailing Club, the various clubs in Poole, Cargreen on the Tamar etc etc
Next in the cost are council/harbour authority which often have wait lists and are sometimes limited to local residents.
Private moorings obviously have a profit element built in and have prices dependant on demand, desirability and how fancy the facilities are.
My recommendation would be to choose which of the above you like and get on the waiting list. You may have to sit out a couple of seasons on a mooring that isn’t your first choice but sometimes the list moves quicker than expected. Good Luck!

 

[thvoyager]

Like many posters you fail to give enough info.
WHAT AREA do you want the mooring

Hey, good point. Liverpool to Lake District, so North West England. For now.
I am going to look up some sailing clubs, I need to get getting out with other sailors and getting first hand experience. But also get the vessel moored up in a non fancy spot for the winter.

 

[Daydream believer]

That is our moorings off the list then

 

[Gsailor]

I have always laid my own moorings.

Many sit on the seabed to this day (i left them).

Forget RYA.

A club mooring will need to be checked by you. I bought one years and it would not have held my 26 footer in F1.

DIY or pay someone with chain and sinkers that you provide is my answer.

I always DIY'd.

Massively over engineered. Very large heavy chain links. Costs more but givrs peace of mind. Sinkers dug in( in drying moorings). Swivels oversized because they are a weak link.

Good bouy.

Snubbers.

 

[Tranona]

Hey, good point. Liverpool to Lake District, so North West England. For now.
I am going to look up some sailing clubs, I need to get getting out with other sailors and getting first hand experience. But also get the vessel moored up in a non fancy spot for the winter.

Much more limited choice than other parts of the country, although there are a number of relatively modestly priced secure marinas suitable for keeping a newly acquired boat secure for the winter while you sort out what you want to do and how you want to use it.

Have you actually bought the boat? where is it located? and if not where you want o keep it how are you going to move it from one place to another? These issues are often bigger challenges than actually buying a boat.

 

[TSB240]

I can't think of many if any all year non drying moorings in the North West. Most boats are now taken off moorings on the Menai, Holyhead and Conwy. I can't speak for the Mersey. I suspect it is just virtually impossible to get any form of insurance cover other than third party and wreck recovery for any of these areas at a reasonable rate, There may be an exception with a few on the River at Conwy and at Menai Bridge but recent storms have seen some go adrift in both cases.

 

[Refueler]

Hey, good point. Liverpool to Lake District, so North West England. For now.
I am going to look up some sailing clubs, I need to get getting out with other sailors and getting first hand experience. But also get the vessel moored up in a non fancy spot for the winter.

I would strongly support you check out sailing clubs in the area you wish to sail. Your opening question indicates you are a starter in boating. Joining a club will be the best thing you can do to get ahead and capable with a boat.

Its worth noting that many clubs have membership conditions that favour local people, If you live outside of a radius from the club - you may have to go through a more involved application to join.

 

[Fimacca]

Join a club to learn. Ask around locally. people know.
A friend of mine enquired on moorings local to him recently, and ended up with a free useable folk boat! The owner had just died and they wanted it removed..........

I have also rented private drying moorings. Don't believe what the seller says- row out and check drying heights and swing for your size before you part with your cash for the year. Caveat emptor ! I was stung once - and just once....

 

[SteveA]

I would strongly support you check out sailing clubs in the area you wish to sail. Your opening question indicates you are a starter in boating. Joining a club will be the best thing you can do to get ahead and capable with a boat.

Its worth noting that many clubs have membership conditions that favour local people, If you live outside of a radius from the club - you may have to go through a more involved application to join.

Our club, on the edge of Morecambe Bay, is registered as a CASC and doesn't favour local people - in fact we have several members who live in the NE but prefer sailing the Irish Sea. We do have non drying moorings but insurance usually only covers from April to November with boats on the hard over the winter.

 

[Refueler]

Our club, on the edge of Morecambe Bay, is registered as a CASC and doesn't favour local people - in fact we have several members who live in the NE but prefer sailing the Irish Sea. We do have non drying moorings but insurance usually only covers from April to November with boats on the hard over the winter.

You are lucky ..... during my sailing UK - I moved through 4 clubs on South Coast ... each one had Local Resident preference. Each had not only a total max membership - but that was split into majority local - minority 'Distant' ....
The only time I did not find this was when I moved to a Marina based non club mooring.

 

[dankilb]

Never seen a discount offered for moorings based on any membership (or other criteria - i.e. 'no concessions'!) - unless, as above, that is membership of a club giving access to their own cheaper moorings…

We’re presently in Liverpool Marina. Plenty of spaces, but not ‘cheap’. Before we were on the hard at Rhyl YC and that had to be among the cheapest hard standing around (couple of quid per m per month). Not many moorings afloat available along the N Wales coast now though (you did say the other way from Liverpool and that’s sensible especially with school holiday traffic etc.).

 

[C08]

Have you thought about Blundelsand SC at Formby, Fleetwood, overwinter at Fiddlers Ferry (exciting river trip,) or up the Weaver to Jalsea Marine or the other boatyard moorings at Northwich.

 

[Marceline]

in the Ribble area there's Preston Marina and Douglas-Marine

 

[Marceline]

Have you thought about Blundelsand SC at Formby, Fleetwood, overwinter at Fiddlers Ferry (exciting river trip,) or up the Weaver to Jalsea Marine or the other boatyard moorings at Northwich.

oh wow - can sailboats get all the way up to Northwich ?

 

[bignick]

Or on the Lakes themselves. No tide, so you won’t be limited to certain weekends while you learn.