Best Place to haul-out in Turkey

[OzzyCouple]

We will be in Turkey in a few months and have been looking at the various marinas and prices. Does anyone have recommendations?

Thanks in advance for your reply!

[chuckr]

We are in Kusadasi and will haul here in the spring. we are full time liveaboards - no idea how it will go but they got a lot of boats here they hauled and painted - and no idea on cost as we have not negotiatied anything yet as it is a bit early
be interesting what other folks have to say

[OzzyCouple]

Thanks for the info...if you get any quotes for haul and paint, that would be wonderful. Also, do they allow you to work on your own boat while out of the water?

Cheers!

Jim & Deb
S/V Torrente

[Summersail]

Hi OzzyCouple
We are also an Aussie couple with a 44' Helia we bought in France in 2014. We had it delivered to Turkey and since have made our way over a couple of months last summer along the south western Turkish coast and north through the Dodecanese. We quickly learned to avoid islands with mass tourism and try to anchor or moor at the town quay. Much like many cruisers I guess, because of the huge nightly costs now charged in flashy Turkish marinas, we avoid them.

Over the 14/15 winter we left the boat in the water at Finike. We chose Finike because we wanted to sail up the Turquoise coast via Kastelorizo after reading about it on line. It was a lucky decision. The Finike marina is secure and well protected, nothing flashy but efficient enough and easy to get to by taxi from Antalya. The airport transfer takes about an hour and a half and is not expensive. They have good toilet/shower facilities and a couple of chandlers that can do more or less anything needed. The best thing about Finike is that it has a very eclectic group of people from all over the globe that live on board. We didn't do this but from all accounts it is a friendly place to rug up in over winter. Not that it's that cold being so far south. Price wise, it was very good value, definitely at the lower end, and far better value than anything else we could find along the Turkish coast all the way up to Ayvalik. If you are interested in the amazing history in this part of the world and don't feel the need to change your t-shirt for dinner, it's recommended. The town itself is a bit shabby, definitely not a tourist magnet and only with a couple of good places to eat. Offsetting this however is its great working-town market and definite lack of pretence.

This winter our boat is in Leros at Leros Marina Evros. It's also a great facility with about 650 boats stored. It is very popular and consequently chock a block. Last year we left our boat there in July and August when we returned to Australia, then after another month sailing up to Samos and Ikaria and back, lifted and stored it on land from October. We researched everywhere on the Turkish coast and checked out Pythagorion in Samos, but all were either more expensive and no better (in our opinion). In particular, the Turkish marinas, which although they looked really good, were super pricey for a cat. We could have booked a **** hotel room for the same nightly cost. There are a couple of marinas on Leros and I can't comment on any others, but Evros is very good. Great guy called Harry who is friendly and professional, very good marina staff and technical stuff. If you have a big boat they can handle it with a massive lift. The restaurant has a good view over the marina and is Good for coffee and a beer but don't expect haute cuisine.

We are returning again in June this year and heading west across the Aegean. Hopefully we can find another place as good and as good value as these two.

Happy sailing.



Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[AngeW]

Hi thanks for the information - we are a couple of kiwis heading across maybe to Leros for next winter, so this was useful. Any comment on the refugee situation that we should know?
I'd recommend Cleopatra Marina in Preveza for price and quality. Near a budget airline served airport too. Will look out for you guys as we head the other way! Ange


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[athene]

I'd also put in a vote for Kusadasi. It's ideally situated for cruising the Turkish coasts both north and south and for the Dodecanese and northern Aegean islands.

We spent six years based there and can particularly recommend Ozbek in the yard for hull clean and paint. At that time it was around €800-900 for clean and polish and two coats antifouling for a 44 foot monohull.

Nearest airport is Izmir, which is about 35 minutes by taxi but has the advantage of Easyjet flights throughout the season.

GORDON KNIGHT

[chuckr]

[QUOTE=AngeW;2017561]Hi thanks for the information - we are a couple of kiwis heading across maybe to Leros for next winter, so this was useful. Any comment on the refugee situation that we should know?
I'd recommend Cleopatra Marina in Preveza for price and quality. Near a budget airline served airport too. Will look out for you guys as we head the other way! Ange

Migrants -- well we sailed from the Corinth Canal across, up and down and though the Greek Islands. And yes saw a ton of migrants and the only place that was any concern was Kos city dock but they security to keep them at bay and off the docks. But you will see a lot and no issues as the Greeks have done a great job of keeping them in specific areas generally but not always.

[chuckr]

Originally Posted by athene

I'd also put in a vote for Kusadasi. It's ideally situated for cruising the Turkish coasts both north and south and for the Dodecanese and northern Aegean islands.

We spent six years based there and can particularly recommend Ozbek in the yard for hull clean and paint. At that time it was around €800-900 for clean and polish and two coats antifouling for a 44 foot monohull.

Nearest airport is Izmir, which is about 35 minutes by taxi but has the advantage of Easyjet flights throughout the season.

GORDON KNIGHT

Gordon -- when was the last time you paid that. I will haul this year and the admiral has informed me that do to my advanced age and dexterity that seems to be waneing away she said I had to hire someone this year.

Which company does Ozbek work for. There is also a machine shop in the corner next to east marine store. Have you had any work done there. I want them to pull my variable pitch prop and do a rehab on it.

Oh and we have been told get the work done before Easter as after that they get busy and prices go up.

thanks

[athene]

Originally Posted by chuckr

Gordon -- when was the last time you paid that. I will haul this year and the admiral has informed me that do to my advanced age and dexterity that seems to be waneing away she said I had to hire someone this year.

Which company does Ozbek work for. There is also a machine shop in the corner next to east marine store. Have you had any work done there. I want them to pull my variable pitch prop and do a rehab on it.

Oh and we have been told get the work done before Easter as after that they get busy and prices go up.

thanks

Sorry to hear of the waning dexterity (I presume the admiral isn't up to it herself?). That price I mentioned was in winter 2010-11. Ozbek Paint is the name of the firm and the proprietor was Turgut Ozbek (little English but nice man to deal with, especially if you share a çay or two with him. Give him my regards if he's still in charge).

As regards engineering, we did have some work done by Ferudun Yakamoz (I think that was the name); proceed with more caution here and get everything in writing as we had a bad experience once and the guy responsible got fired! He (rejoicing in the name of Nobby!) refurbished our Volvo fresh water pump, almost certainly not using the replacement bearings they charged us for, and we had to return to Kusadasi from Evdhilos to have the job redone.

If he's still there, Nadir the yard manager is a great help in getting satisfaction if things do go pear-shaped.

If you have some spare time after layup, do think of hiring a car and driving down to Heraklia on Lake Bafa for a couple of days. It's a magical place and there's a great pension by the lake there.

GORDON KNIGHT

[Barra]

Originally Posted by Summersail

Hi OzzyCouple
We are also an Aussie couple with a 44' Helia we bought in France in 2014. We had it delivered to Turkey and since have made our way over a couple of months last summer along the south western Turkish coast and north through the Dodecanese. We quickly learned to avoid islands with mass tourism and try to anchor or moor at the town quay. Much like many cruisers I guess, because of the huge nightly costs now charged in flashy Turkish marinas, we avoid them.

Over the 14/15 winter we left the boat in the water at Finike. We chose Finike because we wanted to sail up the Turquoise coast via Kastelorizo after reading about it on line. It was a lucky decision. The Finike marina is secure and well protected, nothing flashy but efficient enough and easy to get to by taxi from Antalya. The airport transfer takes about an hour and a half and is not expensive. They have good toilet/shower facilities and a couple of chandlers that can do more or less anything needed. The best thing about Finike is that it has a very eclectic group of people from all over the globe that live on board. We didn't do this but from all accounts it is a friendly place to rug up in over winter. Not that it's that cold being so far south. Price wise, it was very good value, definitely at the lower end, and far better value than anything else we could find along the Turkish coast all the way up to Ayvalik. If you are interested in the amazing history in this part of the world and don't feel the need to change your t-shirt for dinner, it's recommended. The town itself is a bit shabby, definitely not a tourist magnet and only with a couple of good places to eat. Offsetting this however is its great working-town market and definite lack of pretence.

This winter our boat is in Leros at Leros Marina Evros. It's also a great facility with about 650 boats stored. It is very popular and consequently chock a block. Last year we left our boat there in July and August when we returned to Australia, then after another month sailing up to Samos and Ikaria and back, lifted and stored it on land from October. We researched everywhere on the Turkish coast and checked out Pythagorion in Samos, but all were either more expensive and no better (in our opinion). In particular, the Turkish marinas, which although they looked really good, were super pricey for a cat. We could have booked a **** hotel room for the same nightly cost. There are a couple of marinas on Leros and I can't comment on any others, but Evros is very good. Great guy called Harry who is friendly and professional, very good marina staff and technical stuff. If you have a big boat they can handle it with a massive lift. The restaurant has a good view over the marina and is Good for coffee and a beer but don't expect haute cuisine.

We are returning again in June this year and heading west across the Aegean. Hopefully we can find another place as good and as good value as these two.

Happy sailing.



Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

I think I might have seen your Helia at Leros Marina while we were there (you werent or I would have said Gday).

I hope they didnt put you near the fishing boats or you will find quite a mess when you get back ... We were still finding old fish bones high up in the rigging weeks later

I would recommend any of the other 3 yards at Leros but not Leros Marina Evros if you want any work done.

Leros is a great greek island to spend some time on to boot.

Re the migrants yes there were lots on Leros and elsewhere but they were all well behaved as any crime would have seen the deported. I do wonder if that may change now that the borders are beginning to close further north though leading to a bottleneck in Geece. The Greeks certainly cant afford to support them long term and desperation may increase.

[EllesBelles]

Originally Posted by OzzyCouple

We will be in Turkey in a few months and have been looking at the various marinas and prices. Does anyone have recommendations?

Thanks in advance for your reply!

A lot of people haul out at Yacht Marine in Marmaris. Not very conveniently located, but perhaps the cheapest place in Turkey.

Another option are the Setur Marinas (the new one in Kas is the nicest, with GREAT facilities and service-conscious polite English-speaking staff). We've stayed there and recommend it highly. They can haul out your boat and store it on the hard or keep it safely in the water (which is unusually clear and resulting in little or no hull growth there) for you.

[chuckr]

We are currently on the hard in Kusadasi -- We are using Tuncay Acar of Yes Yachting -- we got bids from different guys and talked to a couple of professional captains who maintain the boats they are hired for and we selected Tuncay.
He has made sure no work is done until an estimate of cost and he has on more than one occasion suggested there is work that I can do myself. And I did or are doing some work myself.
We are got our variable pitch prop rebuilt, our windlass rebuilt, refrigeration check, chain was taken to be regalvanized - If we need work done Tuncay will make it happen
On the cost side we hauled in late Feb and the prices are a bit negotiable as there is a lack of work now.