which marina ???

[jon and michie]

Hi - can anyone recommend a marina to berth in ?
My wife and I live the north of England and have a marina within 8 miles of where we live on the humber but we feel its too close to where we live and the thought of sailing in brown sludgy water really doesn't appeal to us.
So we are thinking areas in the south of England like Torquay which is about a 5 hour drive.

any opinions are welcomed

Jon

 

[sprocker]

Hi Jon,

We're in Torquay marina (MDL), and cant fault it (Once you get over the price!). Always clean, staff all very helpful and friendly. Torquay is an OK place, plenty of pubs/eateries. It can get a little boisterous on Friday/Saturday nights in the town, but we've lived here for a few years and never had anything that bothers us.

Brixham marina is just across the bay, also MDL, and a little cheaper than Torquay.

If you go with MDL you also get the freedom berthing aspect which is great if you like to cruise.

The coast down here is superb, loads of small coves/bays to anchor up and relax.

I'm from York originally, and 'return home' trips can be done in 4 1/4 hours with decent traffic.

 

[rafiki_]

We are based in the Midlands, and for us, anything over a 2 hour drive is a no-no. A few years ago we had a boat on the Norfolk Broads, when our daughter was young this was perfect, lots to do and see. Downside was the travelling, 3 hours each way, which just ground us down in the end. More recently we had a boat an hour away on the River Severn. Fantastic for the maintenance and cleaning, and we could "pop" over at our convenience, but we got bored with the cruising area. We are now at Portishead, 1.5 to 2 hour drive depending on the Brizzle traffic. We would rather be on the south coast on the Solent, but cannot face the A34 on a Friday.

 

[Richard10002]

A 5 hour drive each way will "do your head in" after the novelty wears off, and you won't use the boat much.

For me an hours drive was manageable, and a couple of hours was irritating, but tolerable. So Glasson Dock or Fleetwood were fine at an hours drive, and Pwhelli/Abersoch tolerable at 2 hours or so, on a good day.

I now have a narrowboat moored 10 minutes from home - being on the boat able to cruise, or not cruise, is more important to me than location.

 

[maby]

I don't think you can go wrong with any of the MDLs, but as others have said, I would not be happy travelling so far - it would restrict our use of the boat too much.

 

[Wavey]

If I was faced with a 4 - 5 hour drive to get to the boat then that's the time I'd seriously consider having one in the Med instead.

 

[burgundyben]

If I was faced with a 4 - 5 hour drive to get to the boat then that's the time I'd seriously consider having one in the Med instead.

Valid point.

But it depends how you use the boat, HLB be lived up north and kept Mucky Farter in Plymouth, he used the boat for weeks, then went home for months. In which case the 4 hr drive is no bother.

 

[southseaian]

Have you considered the Essex/Suffolk rivers? When we lived in York we kept our boat in TichMarsh marina near Walton on Naze.
There also marinas on the Orwell down from Ipswich. Other rivers too including the Blackwater and Alde.
What you have there is a great cruising area with plenty of places to visit locally for short passages plus the Thames up to London and across to Holland or along to Dover and beyond for channel cruising.

 

[maby]

Have you considered the Essex/Suffolk rivers? When we lived in York we kept our boat in TichMarsh marina near Walton on Naze.
There also marinas on the Orwell down from Ipswich. Other rivers too including the Blackwater and Alde.
What you have there is a great cruising area with plenty of places to visit locally for short passages plus the Thames up to London and across to Holland or along to Dover and beyond for channel cruising.

I can certainly recommend Woolverstone - it's a lovely place. I'm not sure that the OP will benefit much from the reduced distance - connectivity to the motorway network is not good, so it may be fewer miles, but similar time.

 

[jon and michie]

Thank you for the comments so far very much apprieciated - I have considered the med but don't think I would get there often enough to benefit from the boat - as for the drive down south I don't think it would really bother me as I work an average of 6 months in the year so I am not too restricted to get back home in a rush.
I was thinking more of south coast where generally the weather is better than up north in summer months and as my boating skills/experiences increases maybe sail over to France on the odd weekend etc
I haven't got a boat yet as I am still looking for one but I am trying to do as much research as possible.

thanks again
Jon

 

[paul salliss]

Thank you for the comments so far very much apprieciated - I have considered the med but don't think I would get there often enough to benefit from the boat - as for the drive down south I don't think it would really bother me as I work an average of 6 months in the year so I am not too restricted to get back home in a rush.
I was thinking more of south coast where generally the weather is better than up north in summer months and as my boating skills/experiences increases maybe sail over to France on the odd weekend etc
I haven't got a boat yet as I am still looking for one but I am trying to do as much research as possible.

thanks again
Jon

 

[paul salliss]

A quick shout for Portland, loved it there a few weeks back, a gateway to a whole multitude of great places east and west / south west

 

[Momac]

have a marina within 8 miles of where we live on the humber but we feel its too close to where we live

My boat is moored half a mile from home. Still have that 'got away from it all' feeling when at the marina.
Can't deny the Humber is brown .
.

 

[adey]

It's probably quicker and cheaper to get to the Med than the South coast from Ooop-Norf.
It's not as crazy as it sounds..

 

[rubberduck]

If I was faced with a 4 - 5 hour drive to get to the boat then that's the time I'd seriously consider having one in the Med instead.

+1

 

[sprocker]

It's probably quicker and cheaper to get to the Med than the South coast from Ooop-Norf.

Maybe as quick if you're not too far from a UK airport that will fly you to the med, but surely it cant be done cheaper?

SWMBO and I regularly drive from Torquay to York and back on a tank of diesel (£70 ish), can flights be had so cheaply these days?

 

[lisilou]

How about Brixham Marina? MDL so you can take advantage of the freedom berthing (or whatever they call it). Some lovely anchorages around that neck of the woods not to mention Dartmouth and Salcombe within easy reach. Never been a berth holder there but have visited a few times and we love it. Roughly 3 1/2 hrs from The Solent and roughly 2 1/2 hrs from Falmouth (obviously depending on speed and conditions). From there, you can go east or west without too much of a trek along some stunning coastline.
We're in the Solent which we love simply because there are so many places to simply 'hop' to for the day or longer...whatever takes your fancy.
What sort of berthing budget do you have?
L

 

[SEARANGER ANCASTER]

what about west coast of scotland ? we have a few people in Ardrossan where we keep our boat that come from down your way and further.In fact one guy comes from Norwich which is about 6 hours away.

 

[jon and michie]

Maybe as quick if you're not too far from a UK airport that will fly you to the med, but surely it cant be done cheaper?

SWMBO and I regularly drive from Torquay to York and back on a tank of diesel (£70 ish), can flights be had so cheaply these days?

I have looked into using the med and by the time I have factored airport parking costs and flight costs, time to get me to an airport and time spent flying and check ins etc it would be far easier for me just to go down south.
As I said earlier I work an average of 6 months a year - However because it isn't what you would say a regular job I could get a call anytime to go to work so I cant book flight tickets in advance because of this and therefore cheaper airline tickets are not available at last minuete.
This is also my reasoning of picking the south coast if I cant get to the med where it is warm I am thinking of the next best location.

I did ponder the west coast of Scotland as it has beautiful scenery - However I generally work off Aberdeen and know how cold it can get.

A big thank you to you all - this is giving me much food for thought.

jon

 

[dj43]

Hi - can anyone recommend a marina to berth in ?
My wife and I live the north of England and have a marina within 8 miles of where we live on the humber but we feel its too close to where we live and the thought of sailing in brown sludgy water really doesn't appeal to us.
So we are thinking areas in the south of England like Torquay which is about a 5 hour drive.

any opinions are welcomed

Jon

Hi I think this depends on what sort of boating and boat you are planning on we were previously moored on the east coast for three years, coast line very bleak, safe havens few and far apart, as others have mentioned some good cruising grounds but we would average 80 to 100 nm each trip out and very much weather and tide dependant,
Been on the south coast for three + years now , our boating has completely changed, we still enjoy the longer trips out channel isles and West Country , but tend to spend more time using the boat as a holiday home ,trips out and around the Solent even in bad weather you are not going to experience anything more than uncomfortable,
In general boaters on the south coast (Solent )seem less adventuress , and few venture out off lake Solent where as on the east coast boating is more restricted people seem to do more boating on the inland waterways, with the occasional long cruise when weather ,tides and time allow,
Ref travelling see my thread on how far, as if you are planning on a regular commute of several hrs, can get hard if you boat all year round as we do.