Let’s be straight: constructing a superyacht infrastructure is a relatively big investment. Cutting corners would lead to unadapted and unsuitable facilities and in fine, financial disasters.

Unlike regular harbours, superyacht marinas need to address two types of customers: the usual crowd of recreational boaters, visitors and the general public; and secondly, large numbers of crew members and captains arriving with super and mega yachts.

To enhance the appeal of the marina, it is crucial to provide ancillary facilities to address the captains and crew needs and make their stay as pleasant and easy as possible. F&B, watersports, fitness facilities, crew lounge, shuttle services to the main POI are example of things the onboard crew would appreciate. More than a berthing facility, it has to provide an entire eco-system creating a foster visitation.

Before building a superyacht marina, comprehensive technical feasibility and engineering assessments are required. This evaluation of the suitability of the site is an essential step of the global project masterplan, to fully evaluate how the construction would serve the targets of the development. Dredging needs, anchoring systems, marina protection, power supply and custom-engineered mooring systems are examples of criteria that could positively or negatively impact the masterplan, so they require early scrutiny.

It is commonly agreed that the items mentioned above are industry standards. However, they are often neglected during the planning stage, resulting in misevaluation of the initial capital expenditures and therefore projected ROI model.

Even the best-equipped marina in the most attractive location would never thrive without the right people managing it. The operation team should have a strong understanding of the highest hospitality standards: teams should be trained to answer positively to any request. Any front of house staff, from a member of the technical team to a waitress in a restaurant could be the first contact crew and captains could have with the marina.

Unlike the traditional smaller boat markets, it is quite rare to have a direct discussion with a superyacht owner. The Managing team would generally deal with the captain’s or owner’s representative. Making their life, and all the crew’s, easy will definitely have a positive impact, resulting in positive word of mouth, which can only add to a marina’s desirability as a destination.

Finally, overall cleanliness and sustainability practices in a marina is not to be neglected. Embracing them in a superyacht marina project is more than clever; it’s forward-thinking. Mitigating the impact of boating activities is one of the best guarantees of attractiveness and prestige. It is even a crucial element of future business model as it has been developed in our article “building for the future”

MM&C is built around a team of experts in marina Design, Construction and Operation in order to have a 360-degree understanding of what makes your project a success. Feel free to be in touch: contact@marinamanagementconsulting.com.