Thoughts on Navily

[Irish Rover]

I ended up subscribing to Navily and am regretting it. I was trying to book a berth for a client using Navily and it didn’t work even after I’d subscribed. The client tried downloading Navily and it didn’t work for her either despite taking a card payment to ‘confirm the booking’.

PS, For those who were wondering what happened, calling up the port resulted in them telling me to go and use Navily as they couldn’t take bookings over the radio or the telephone. Bizarrely when we went in and went alongside the fuel pontoon they found us a berth.

I use the free version of Navily. I've only ever used it to book a berth twice. The first time I had no response from the marina after 12 hours so I messaged them on Navily and got a confirmation in minutes. On the second occasion I messaged the marina after 15 minutes, and again I got confirmation in minutes. Might not always work but the will be my MO in future.

 

[mjcoon]

In my twenty years old edition of Heikel‘s Greek Waters Pilot there are two ports that were in construction at the time and are finished and abandoned by now. I know twenty years is a long time, but for the full lifespan of a port?

Not an argument for anything obviously, just a curious fact in my opinion.

Perhaps the investment logic owed something to "The Producers"? ;-)

 

[Steve N]

+1 for www.noforeignland.com - as liveaboards, this site has the most relevant and up to date information on everything we need.

We use the app daily now.

 

[Zing]

Great App to share up to date information about anchorages. It’s been four years I’m using the free version in the Mediterranean. In this time it has become very popular.

One problem is that people don’t stick to navigational and cruising orientated information in their reviews. The other is that people “contribute” when they have nothing to add. This together creates a quantity of useless information that I don’t want to waste my time with. As a consequence I have almost stopped using the app which is a shame because it could be very useful.

Under navigational information I understand: Depth, seabed type, wind/wave shelter, gusts, underwater obstructions, traffic

Cruising orientated information could include: dinghy dock, supermarket, hardware/marine store, gas bottle exchange, restaurant/bar

Please correct me if I forgot something.

My advice: Be short and precise. Don’t jabber. I don’t care how your day was. Read the other reviews and if you have nothing to add then please don’t. Don’t tell me to anchor on the sand patches and not on the seaweed. I don’t care how much chain you laid out and if you backed up under motor. Don’t tell me there is good holding when you have been there in a Force 2. If you want to review restaurants, please go somewhere else.

Just my thoughts.

Have you ever tried herding cats? Life’s too short to fret about things like this.

Anyway there is a work-around. Load a lot or all the posts into your browser and do a word search. Say for ‘holding’ if that’s your concern or ‘groceries’ for example. Also having done that you can deploy your speed reading skills. Navily is a very useful tool. As an example I looked it up as I’m visiting Taormina soon and I got this tip of the VTS directions from the site:

https://www.guardiacostiera.gov.it/...s/manualiVTS/manualeutentemessina_inglese.pdf

 

[AndyDavies]

I moved a boat from the N Adriatic to Gib a couple of years ago, an area I'd never sailed. I bought the current Heikel, which by the 3rd day was consigned to a dark cupboard. Outdated, inaccurate and full of extraneous information - more on the history of the Appian Way than berthing facilities in Brindisi.
Navily, on the other hand, was excellent. Bang up to date information on depths by messaging users who had just visited ports saved us the embarassment of a grounding in Mazara del Vallo, marinas booked without issue and the dodgy ones called out by user reviews: Benalmadena apparently has a habit of accepting a booking for a 12m boat then, on arrival and despite the evidence of your own eyes, increases the fee as only 18m berths are available.
The currency and detail of Navily puts pilot books to shame, even if it means having to read about what people had for breakfast.

 

[Frogmogman]

I’m a paid subscriber to Navily. I find it to be a useful and worthwhile resource.

 

[Hooligan]

Nothing is ever perfect, certainly in boating. In my view Navily is the best app out there including NFL. I use the paid version because it has a couple of features I use as checks. Yes I agree with the OP that there are comments that perhaps reflect an emotion rather than a fact but tbh I do not think it is a great hardship as a reader and in any case it is life. The Heikl pilot books are out of date now in my view and much harder to use. What I love about Navily is that it is a great visual and place to go when you are in a new area or researching a new place to go. It allows you to see the lay of the land so as to speak really quickly and then you can research around that. The good thing though is that if you really do not like it there is absolutely no need to use it.

 

[bergie]

We've been pretty happy with NoForeignLand for the current cruise (April start from Berlin, now in Madeira archipelago via Norway, Shetland, Scotland, and the Spanish Rías).

I sometimes cross-reference with Navily, but it generally seems more cranky and less up-to-date.

In addition we of course use the anchorage charts wherever available. For Nordics, that's the Hamnguiden series. For Scotland, Antares.

 

[Leslie frank]

Navily has certainly had one major impact. There are swathes of the Mediterranean where it is now common practice to book marina berths through the app. Last year in Nice the staff told me it is their favoured method of communication now. Yes there can be a few tiresome comments but on the whole it is a positive thing. I often have been messaged by people who wondered if the anchorage I was in was too busy or too smelly. I find it very helpful. Much more so than the CAs Captains Mate.

 

[Shaddickp]

Kingsebi, your comments were identical to what I was thinking last week. I used Navily a lot in the Greek islands, but I realised I was reading more about the calamari served at Kostas's taverna than useful mooring info. I then started seeing pictures of plates of food! What is it with people they have to photograph their nosh before eating. But then to post it on Navily is a joke. I wouldn't mind, but when you are just looking for depth, seabed type, shelter, swell info etc. it's just frustrating, distracting, unhelpful and frankly does anyone care what some strangers plate if food looked like.
Ok I've calmed down now I've got that off my chest

 

[tat27]

I bought Navily for an Ionian cruise last week and used it extensively & updated it with my comments on Paleros and Little Vathi, to counter some feedback on the site.
I enjoy reading and planning beforehand and the app worked well, giving some alternative and additional information to comments on this forum & elsewhere.

 

[kingsebi]

Have you ever tried herding cats? Life’s too short to fret about things like this.

Anyway there is a work-around. Load a lot or all the posts into your browser and do a word search. Say for ‘holding’ if that’s your concern or ‘groceries’ for example. Also having done that you can deploy your speed reading skills. Navily is a very useful tool. As an example I looked it up as I’m visiting Taormina soon and I got this tip of the VTS directions from the site:

https://www.guardiacostiera.gov.it/...s/manualiVTS/manualeutentemessina_inglese.pdf

Thank you. Good advice. Also about speed reading. I agree that there is great information to be found.

 

[kingsebi]

Kingsebi, your comments were identical to what I was thinking last week. I used Navily a lot in the Greek islands, but I realised I was reading more about the calamari served at Kostas's taverna than useful mooring info. I then started seeing pictures of plates of food! What is it with people they have to photograph their nosh before eating. But then to post it on Navily is a joke. I wouldn't mind, but when you are just looking for depth, seabed type, shelter, swell info etc. it's just frustrating, distracting, unhelpful and frankly does anyone care what some strangers plate if food looked like.
Ok I've calmed down now I've got that off my chest

Thank you for your reply. Reassuring me I’m not going crazy.

 

[kingsebi]

The other day I looked up an anchorage (that I already knew) on Navily and one of the photos had my boat on it. That was nice.

 

[Koeketiene]

It's the problem with unedited information of all kinds - quality - different opinions, dodgy, unverified "facts", out of date info, irrelevant info, poor quality photos etc. But, it's cheap to produce.

A pilot guide by a single author or with a controlling compiler is much more likely to be consistent, but is more expensive.

And more likely to have out of date information.
By the time a pilot guide is available to buy the information it contains can well be up to 2 years old.

In the Med, I've found Navily handy to book a berth in advance.
For marina/anchorages related information I felt that NoForeignLand was more useful.

 

[Irish Rover]

And more likely to have out of date information.
By the time a pilot guide is available to buy the information it contains can well be up to 2 years old.

In the Med, I've found Navily handy to book a berth in advance.
For marina/anchorages related information I felt that NoForeignLand was more useful.

I use both, and I generally have a look at the pilot book as well for more relevant photos + Google earth when I'm visiting somewhere for the first time.

 

[svmayalena]

Don’t tell me to anchor on the sand patches and not on the seaweed.

We followed this advice in Skythos. Over half the boats anchored ignored and/or didn't know about this detail. They all dragged overnight into the bay or beyond to sea. It was quite hairy as the storm hit at 2am.

I also like when people say they anchored with x chain and place at y depth. I started adding that info to my reviews as I think it's very helpful.

 

[dgadee]

What I like about Navily is the anchorages and them taking swell and wind into account. If you are going somewhere but don't know it, that can be very helpful.

Pilot books concentrate upon marinas and harbours and give glancing mention to where you can put down your anchor. That was always my goal so those expensive books were rarely used.

Well worth the annual fee if you are in the Med and cruising about.

 

[Irish Rover]

What I like about Navily is the anchorages and them taking swell and wind into account. If you are going somewhere but don't know it, that can be very helpful.

Pilot books concentrate upon marinas and harbours and give glancing mention to where you can put down your anchor. That was always my goal so those expensive books were rarely used.

Well worth the annual fee if you are in the Med and cruising about.

Why do you need to pay? I'm using the free version and quite happy with it

 

[dgadee]

Why do you need to pay? I'm using the free version and quite happy with it

I am at home and my paid version ran out a few weeks ago, but I seem to remember that it gave a longer window of weather swell. I thought it was worth supporting it anyway.

On the booking side, it wasn't as effective as you would wish. Sometimes your attempt was ignored or came too late. I found phoning ahead was best. That was particularly the case with Italians - where we had to use more marinas than I would have liked due to the coastline.