Visitor pontoons and costs

[PhilipF]

Talking to some fellow boaters recently, I mentioned I wondered why so many were interested in crossing the Channel, whereas I considered the West Country a greater draw.

One agreed, but made the interesting point that while many complained about the cost of fuel, he considered the cost to moor up a factor to consider. He has a strong point in my experience, which indicates it can be well over double the expense to moor up overnight this side of the water as compared with France.

On the same issue, I reckon local communities could benefit by providing mooring pontoons for day visitors. Calstock for example, up the River Tamar, has a "keep off" sign on its one available tie up - not in any case easy to do when we did try. Places like Fowey and Dartmouth, on the other hand, I found very welcoming - no charges for visits of just a few hours, which are very likely to bring business to traders of the district.

 

[Major Catastrophe]

It's a council problem. Charge for parking so that people shop elsewhere.

Where I live, Crewe charges for parking, Northwich, Sandbach and Nantwich don't. So, I don't shop in Crewe.

You need to change the attitude of the local council.

 

[hlb]

Yep. That's the problem, they used to be Public Servants. Now your just a profit centre.

Salcolmbes answer to dropping visitor numbers, is to start a water born shop!! Charges more in line with facilities are not considered.

 

[Bandit]

It is an advantage.

Guernsey has about 250 visitors berths including rafting outside on the Swan pontoons, Jersey about the same because they value visitors and the benefit to the whole comunity including total spend etc. is huge. Look at the french marina attitude to visitors they make the effort and provide the berths dedicated to visitors in most marinas.

It seeems it is much easier to let a berth by the year than by the day to the loss of visitors by providing long term parking rather than short term visitor berths. From the point of view of the comunity a short term view but visitors do not provide the same no effort revenue as a long term berth to the Marina operator (not nescisarily the comunity).

The French have a policy to
A/ Provide lots of marina berths because they are to the benefit of the local marina and

B/ To provide Visitors berths because they are also of great benefit to the comunity.

It would be nice if the UK did the same and then I might cruise there.

It seems in the UK first try and build houses on the reclaimed area and if you cant a small marina with houses around as a parking lot.

The more vsistor berths within reason the more everyone can cruise and enjoy life.

It is one thing making a long voyage and having to raft up at a push but I would hate to make a long trip and not be able to get a berth and have to turn back.

 

[Talbot]

One of the reasons I avoid UK Marinas (apart from the cost) is that I will be parked in somebodies vacated permanent berth, and there may not be another boat with visitors within 100 yds. Personally I like rafting and being able to meet others with like interests (investigating the pattern on the bottom of wine bottles seems to be a shared sport).

There needs to be a culture change driven by the councils.

 

[Poignard]

We usually spend as much time as possible sailing the French coast and, whilst there, we spend money in restaurants, shops and chandleries, and on car-hire and excursions. Arrive in a UK marina and we feel as if we are being ripped off from the moment we check in.

But it is a market and, whilst people are prepared to pay, the owners of UK marinas will be happy to charge "what the market will bear".

Your point about nobody around to socialize with in some UK marinas is a good one. I suppose the idea is that you go and do your socializing in the over-priced, over-hyped bistro.

 

[hlb]

Could not agree more. Other folks marinas are the most miserable places on earth. Umm. except for pontoons that have been taken over by livaboards, now thats the pits.

 

[Dyflin]

I'm really amazed that the UK marinas don't provide visitor/short term berthing. In my home marina in Dun Laoghaire they seem to keep the hammerhead berths and linear berths free for visitor use, I suppose the idea being that any visiting boats will be unfamiliar with the area and so a hammerhead is easiest to tie up to.

If you don't fancy the UK marinas, come west to the land of liquid sunshine!! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[Poignard]

I guess the idea is that a big marina operator eventually gets to own them all and you have to be a resident of one of them. There won't be any visitor moorings, as such. When you visit another area you will just occupy an empty resident's berth.

Those of us peasants who are not in the scheme will have to anchor where best we can, in increasingly smaller anchorages! /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[gjgm]

but why should marinas offer visitors berths if they can get annual contracts, unless visitors are more profitable(at which price point everyone complains)? Or how would you feel if you wished an annual berth to be told, sorry, but we like to keep 5 empty for passing traffic. If annual supply exceeded demand, then of course the economics change.