SUGILITE – 36’ Hallberg Rassy sloop – 5’ 7" draft – August 2004
Subject/Area: Wintering options in S. Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar and The Netherlands.
Dear SSCA;
This year we sailed from Elburg (fairly close to Amsterdam in The Netherlands) to Smir, Morocco. We had a fabulous trip that I will try to detail in another letter or people can read about it on our website at SteveAndJan.com. This letter I will focus on wintering options.
Last year we wintered our boat in Elburg (N52 28’, 005 50’E) located on the Drontermeer channel. This channel is on the East side of Flevoland – the large island East of Amsterdam in the middle of the Markermeer. There is only one commercial marina complex in Elburg called Yachtcenter Elburg (Tel 0525 68 28 00). Good points are that it is a 1) very professional yard, 2) excellent security, 3) fairly well stocked chandlery, 4) very good price 5) ability to store your boat inside a building and 6) a very cute walled town to stay in. Negative points are 1) very limited English spoken, 2) transportation from Amsterdam is train, change train, then bus, and 3) non-existent internet service. Boats out of the water are placed into very sturdy metal stands and you have the option of storing your boat indoors. Our charges for 9 months including haul out, unstepping the mast, pressure wash, storing the boat inside, re-stepping the mast and re-launching in the spring were 1,766 Euros. No additional charges for our in-the-water stay for several days on either end while we de’ and re’ commissioned SUGILITE.
This year as we headed South we began to search for wintering options in Portugal, Spain, Gibraltar and Morocco. The important points for us as we evaluated marinas were the following: 1) Hard-standing facilities, 2) Security, 3) Professionalism, 4) Price, 5) Internet Service, 6) ability of the yard personnel to speak English, 7) a well stocked chandlery. We kept notes and at one point rented a car for a couple of days to check out some marinas that we wouldn’t have time to sail to.
A note on price: This is a very difficult comparison and much of it will depend on your particular circumstances. Each of the marinas has a different way of calculating their charges and most of these very on just when a marina will go off high season rates to low season rates. This varies all the way from Septemer 1st. to as late as October 31st. I have copies all of the literature and brochures we collected and if you want more detail, please see it on our website where you can download it. The prices we show below are for hard-standing only, including lifting and re-launching from September 1st to April 30th with all discounts and taxes applied. They do not include electricity/water charges while on the hard, in-water charges while we were getting ready to be pulled, pressure washing or and other maintenance work. They are based upon our length 11.3M, width 3.5M and depth 1.7M.
Portosin, Portugan (Club Nautico). A small marina with an excellent reputation. English was good and they have a marina WIFI network for internet. But we though the price was too high to consider at 4,038 Euros ($4,996).
Cascais, Portugal. A modern fairly new upscale marina with lots of shopping and restaurants. Only an hour by train to Lisbon. Several small marine stores located in the marina. The adjacent town is very upscale with trendy shops and restaurants. They had hard-standing available, but my notes do not have the prices. Price for in-water berth 3,123 Euros($3,864). Security was very good with locked pontoons. English was very good. Excellent internet access in town where you could plug in a laptop at the internet café.
Portimao, Portugal: Located on the Algarve coast, the hard-standing area is across the river from the main marina and our ratings are based upon the situation at the hard-standing area as the main marina was very modern, clean and seemed to be efficiently run. The hard-standing area, though, looked like the developers at one time had great plans, but they just never materialized. Security was limited with open gates. Boats were typically only supported with wood sticks. English was very limited. Great Internet in town. Could not find the chandlery, but there must be one somewhere. Price 2,199 Euros ($2,720).
Vilamoura, Portugal. A very successful planned community started more than 20 years ago and very touristy and upscale. The marina yard staff was probably the most professional we encountered. Security was excellent. But we were told that we could only keep our boat on the hard until the end of January. At that time we would have to move into a slip, which they could arrange for us. Since then, we have heard through other cruisers, that they tell this to everyone, and once you are in the yard, you will be able to stay without being moved into a slip. This might be true, we don’t know for sure. English and internet access was excellent. Marine store at the yard. Price assuming 9 months of hard-standing 3,422 Euros ($4,234).
Lagos, Portugal was one of our favorite places. Other cruisers though found it a little too touristy. Lots of restaurants and fun shops. Cute town and the place has been discovered by the English. Lots of English park their boats in Lagos and use them as condos. Security at the hard-standing yard was excellent with electronic fences and constant video recording. English was excellent and there were a couple of fairly good marine stores at the yard. There was a marina wide WIFI network. Price was 1,911 Euros ($2,364). You could even join the local health club with a wonderful swimming pool for 210 euros per month (which included up to 3 additional crew), or 550 euros per year.
Rota, Spain (Atlantic Coast) is one of eleven marinas owned by the Junta de Andalucia along the Atlantic and Southern Mediterranean coast of Spain. All of the eleven marinas charge the same rates but not all of them are equal in facilities. Only Rota and Chipiona are worth considering, both on the Atlantic Coast. We chose Rota finally as our wintering spot. A great little town, with lots of free cultural events most every night in the summer, two Mexican restaurants, great beaches, fair internet access, a couple of smallish marine stores, fairly good English spoken and a clean marina with good security. Price is 1,508 Euros ($1,866). It is next door to the American naval base. It is 1.5 hours by bus to Seville and then another 2 hours by fast train to Madrid. If you buy your train ticket within 48 hours of your plane ticket, you can get a 20% discount.
Puerto Sherry, Spain (Atlantic Coast). The pilot guide speaks highly of Puerto Sherry, but they looked at it five years ago when it was still being developed. Since then, the developer has gone bankrupted and the place looks like a bombed out shell of a city that hasn’t been touched in years. Basically a disaster. If you really want to stay there, the price is 1,766 Euros ($2,184).
Aguadulche, Spain (Mediterranean Coast): Highly recommended by many cruisers and books. However, we felt the place was a bit junky and run down and we were not comfortable with the security as it seemed to be wide open to the public. We were not able to find a marine store, but in that part of the world with all of the development in S. Spain, they must be near by. Price 1,997 Euros ($2,470).
Marina Bay, Gibraltar: No hard-standing available in Gibraltar. Security was only fair as the general public has access to the docks. Best source of parts (albeit very expensive) in that part of the world. English is spoken everywhere. Excellent internet available with a marina wide WIFI network. Price 1,323 Pounds ($2,423).
Port Marina Smir, Morocco. Very modern marina and not used much because of the high prices. The king keeps his boat there, so the army and police are prolific keeping security high. Couldn’t find internet access. English was very good. Price 24,982 Dh. ($2,848).
Associates Steve (KD7YXB) and Jan (KD7YZS) Burkholder