The Bottom Line
Pros
- Detailed information about most private and public marinas
- Templated format provides needed information at a glance - with no clutter of advertising
- Color photos of each marina and regional locator maps
- Provides good information about nearby shoreside resources
- New editions include DVD with additional photos and resources
Cons
- Does not include chart sections for marina location
- Does not include approach or harbor information (requires separate cruising guide)
- Some ratings seem subjective, based more on optional features than on quality
Description
- Full, large page on each marina
- Well organized by local regions
- Separate guides available for 8 Atlantic and Gulf coast areas plus 1 for Pacific Northwest
- Information provided by Atlantic Cruising Club reviewers, not advertisers or marina owners
- Good descriptions of shoreside resources for food, recreation, marine services, transportation, etc.
- Focuses primarily on docking facilities but includes some marinas with mooring fields
- Included DVD offers full search capabilities and many more photos of marinas and surrounding areas
Guide Review - Atlantic Cruising Club Guides to Marinas
This new series of marina guides from the Atlantic Cruising Club offers a wealth of information for boaters cruising in unfamiliar (and even familiar) waters. A full page is dedicated to each marina, providing all the information a boater needs to choose a stopping point while underway. For each is included:
- Basic information: location, telephone, VHF channel, email address, etc.
- Marina facilities: rates, fuel, slips, moorings, power, cable, wi-fi, heads and showers, pumpout, etc.
- Marine and boatyard services onsite and nearby
- Restaurants and accommodations nearby
- Recreation and entertainment nearby
- Provisioning and services (including post offices, libraries, churches)
- Transportation services
- Medical services
- Setting description
Compared to most cruising guides, such as MapTech’s Embassy Guides, the ACC Marina guides have much more complete information on each marina and nearby facilities. But because these guides lack other information such as chart sections and information on channels, approaches, anchorages, etc., you’ll still need to carry a cruising guide for complete information. Boaters who have moved to electronic navigation, however, may prefer the ActiveCaptain guidebook found free online and integrated into iPhone apps and navigational software.
The DVD included in the new editions includes everything in the book (in 1.4 GB fully installed) plus a large number of color photos of each marina and the nearby places and amenities. These photos give you an excellent sense of the marina environment and the flavor of the location to help you choose a marina most to your liking. Best of all, the DVD’s search functions let you search as wide an area as you like to locate only those marinas that meet your exact multiple criteria. For example, you can search the area to find a marina that has a pumpout station, sells diesel, has wi-fi, can repair your sails, and has both a grocery store and a post office within a half mile. When you have special needs as most cruisers often find they do, this can save you hours of thumbing through cruising guides and making phone calls trying to meet your needs.
Prices vary from $34.95 to $39.95 for the latest color editions with included DVD - the DVD only for $19.95.
