%20(1).png){kind=spacer}
Where’s your go-to spot to tie up? Whether it’s a favorite hometown marina or annual vacation resort, celebrate their service with Marinalife’s highly anticipated Best Marina Contest! Send your choice of the top marinas of 2023 in two categories: Best Large Marina (over 100 slips) and Best Small Marina (under 100 slips). Submit your selections by October 2, 2023.
From small ports to luxury resorts, marinas are buzzing with news and exciting announcements. Constantly working to meet boaters’ needs from upgraded amenities to new restaurant openings, these properties continue to enhance facilities and make guests feel at home. Check out the latest happenings at the following marinas spanning coastal Florida to the Bahamas and Caribbean.
St. Augustine, FL
Windward Marine Group is taking Florida by storm with renovations and upgrades to their coastal properties. Just two miles from St. Augustine’s historical district, Camachee Cove is proud to announce its completion of the East Bulkhead project and concrete remediation project on the northeast side of the marina. The facility boasts 230 wet slips, four lift slips, high-speed fuel pumps and a service yacht yard.
Fort Lauderdale, FL
This facility offers an unparalleled boating experience that combines cutting-edge technology with luxury and convenience. The new advanced automated crane system ensures quick and safe boat storage for up to 249 boats, all within a Category 4 hurricane-rated facility designed to withstand winds up to 170 m.p.h. To elevate your experience, the marina proudly offers Admiral’s concierge services for a white-glove experience. Enjoy assistance with provisioning and discounted parts and services that ensure your boating needs are meticulously managed. The premier location provides direct access from the ICW and Atlantic Ocean and provides excellent service from proactive care to personalized attention.
Islamorada, FL
The Keys’ former Postcard Inn Resort & Marina recently reopened as the newly revamped Three Waters Resort & Marina situated along 15 acres of scenic oceanfront. The marina offers 18 transient slips accommodating vessels up to 80 feet and on-site laundry and shower facilities. Stock up on fishing supplies at Abel’s Tackle Box & General Goods, stay in an island- inspired guestroom, enjoy nine unique culinary experiences on-site and embark on a world-class fishing fleet.
Key West, FL
This hidden gem located along the Boca Chica Channel boasts a newly rebuilt outer rim. The marina consists of 33 slips ranging from 45 to 80 feet with floating finger piers, as well as hardwood decking and two tiki structures with open water views. In-slip pump out and daily ice delivery (two five-gallon buckets) is included with slip rentals. Enjoy upscale amenities and excursions such as scuba diving and ecotourism adventures.
Abaco, The Bahamas
This gorgeous resort destination located along Marsh Harbour celebrates the completion of a full renovation this year. Established in 1972, the resort was devastated by Hurricane Dorian in 2019, forcing temporary closure followed by a reopening in 2021. The new boutique hotel offers spacious guest rooms and suites with stunning balcony views of the 73-slip marina. Amenities include a heated plunge pool, gift shop and Snappa’s Bar & Grill waterfront restaurant.
British Virgin Islands
Chart your course for Scrub Island Resort, Spa & Marina, the ultimate haven for vessels up to 160 feet in the British Virgin Islands. The resort offers top-tier docking services at its full- service marina, along with indulgent dining outlets and a world-class spa. Shake off your sea legs in their ocean-view villas and suites. A complimentary ferry will take you to Marina Cay for fresh bites, cold beverages, snorkeling and views.
When boaters arrive at The Wharf in Washington, DC, they are greeted with upscale amenities and accommodations in the bustling neighborhood’s recent multimillion-dollar expansion. As the premier waterfront destination continues to grow, the marina is enhancing facilities to make boaters feel at home. Introducing the Floating Showerhouse, a collaborative innovation by Flohom and Seadwell — blending luxury design and convenience to elevate the guest experience.
Located on The Wharf’s Market Docks at the north end of the Washington Channel, the Showerhouse is a spacious floating restroom and shower facility with a cozy hotel feel. After enjoying a day on the water or exploring the District’s historic streets, marina guests can step inside the 30-foot-long, pristine-white, ADA-compliant facility, separated into four private washrooms, each featuring en suite showers, electric water heaters, toiletries and outlets for electronics.
Flohom, a startup that builds houseboats for upscale lodging experiences, partnered with Seadwell, a floating architecture and development company, to bring this concept to life. The unique floating structure is built with high-quality commercial grade finishes and high-end details.
“We’re creating a societal shift to the water,” says Flohom co-founder and CEO Brian Meyer. “This project is an example of a premier destination with a need to upgrade an amenity, and the marina didn’t have to go through the arduous process of zoning and planning on land to redo a bathroom facility.”
Michael Bruce, Flohom partner and founder of Seadwell, says The Wharf Marina was the perfect location to debut the first Showerhouse. Bruce led The Wharf’s waterside Development Team, overseeing construction of all marinas and public piers. This afforded him a unique understanding of the property’s needs as he collaborated with Meyer and the Wharf to replace the former restroom with a modern aesthetic and elevated user experience.
“What’s unique about this location is that it’s at the north end of the Potomac, so it’s a destination marina where guests are usually making a night of it and want to get changed and cleaned up,” says Bruce. “That’s why this marina really needed this key piece to complement the boaters’ experience.”
Weekends at The Wharf’s Market Pier are lively with vessels ranging from commercial charter operators and Carefree Boat Club members to day-docking transients. The new Showerhouse provides exclusive accessibility to marina guests in a safe, gated location.
“There’s a heavy amount of traffic down there and a lot of demand for nice facilities whether it’s to accommodate a guest of a commercial operator or somebody just grabbing lunch at The Wharf,” says Leigh Diemert, general manager of The Wharf Marina. “I think this is an incredible maritime innovation and new concept for real estate on the water.”
The Wharf boasts new restaurants, retail, green spaces, year-round attractions, and marina perks including a swanky boaters’ lounge, dock shop, and one of the only fuel docks on the Potomac River. Upcoming events and holiday celebrations include the Christmas Boat Parade held annually on the first Saturday in December.
The advantage of this style of Showerhouse or another type of floating amenity space is not only the fresh new look and guest experience, but also the convenience for marina owners looking to upgrade.
“A lot of marinas are built in close confines or have fully developed uplands, so there’s not a lot of space for them to upgrade or add amenities,” says Bruce. “There’s land restrictions, and due to higher water level issues throughout coastal regions, floodplain requirements have become more onerous.”
This type of floating facility provides another avenue for marina owners as they look to improve their property and reduce headaches with floodplain, zoning and permitting challenges. The process reduces land disturbances from construction zones, and the team works with developers and staff through the entire process to customize the property’s needs, design and functionality.
Flohom plans to expand to additional facilities in the future such as floating event spaces, dock offices and more, says Meyer.
“We’re excited to explore opportunities and shift society to a more water-centric lifestyle, and this is just one small example of the many things that can be done,” says Meyer. “This concept already exists and is prevalent in other parts of the world, so we aspire to modernize it for people here in the United States.”
Stay tuned for updates at flohom.com and seadwell.com
To inquire about a floating structure, please fill out this form.
.webp)
.webp)
The city of Brunswick, GA, may be small — but small-town pride from the local boating community is immeasurable. Located along Georgia’s gorgeous Golden Isles, the historic town has a lot to celebrate this year with the centennial of F.J. Torras Causeway, a major route connecting Brunswick to St. Simons Island, as well as the 30th anniversary of Brunswick Landing Marina. On July 13, the Golden Isles community commemorated the causeway's 100th anniversary with a day of live music, vendors and themed celebrations.
Both the causeway and spacious 387-slip Brunswick Landing Marina are local Torras family legacies. Since 1994, the Torras family has grown the marina into a top-notch facility and strong boating community ranging from local liveaboards to returning visitors from across the world.
Located along the East River, the property has prospered into a popular social hub with free weekly happy hours and events, some even coordinated by the marina guests such as the recent “Brunswick Landing Marina Summer Olympics,” where boaters competed in fun, creative games.
The community is so dedicated that a few marina members participated in the “Decades” segment of the city’s Causeway Centennial Celebration where they represented the 1980s with a choreographed dance to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” dressing the part and executing a hilarious yet fabulous performance at the event.
The family-owned marina is currently managed by Michael Torras, whose great-great-grandfather, Rosendo Torras, originally immigrated from Spain as a merchant sailor who settled in Brunswick and ran a lumber exporting business. His son, Fernando Joseph Torras, became an engineer, served as city manager and built the F.J. Torras Causeway in 1924.
The next generation of Torras purchased an old manufacturing plant with deteriorating boats and sunken barges along downtown Brunswick’s waterfront and eventually bought 101 acres of the surrounding land from the local railroad company. The family built what began as a small marina with just five slips to what is now Brunswick Landing Marina’s thriving 387-slip destination.
“My grandfather grew up fishing and so did my dad and I, and when my grandfather said he wanted to put a marina there one day everyone told him he was crazy, because at the time, people kept their boats on St. Simons, Jekyll or Sea Island, and there wasn’t a need for big docks in downtown Brunswick,” says Michael Torras, “But he said he was going to do it anyway.”
After spending nearly a decade acquiring permits, Brunswick Landing Marina originally offered free dockage to fill up the first slips and then kept expanding every few years as customers grew. They constructed a yacht club facility onsite in 2010 with lounge areas, TVs and a fully stocked bar to continue the generous freebie tradition, transitioning from free dockage to free drinks. It began with complimentary beer on football Sundays, then free wine on “Wine Wednesdays,” and now the beloved present-day free happy hours hosted three times per week.
The marina completed the most recent dock expansion in 2021. “It is remarkable when you look at what’s been accomplished over that 30 years and you look at the fact that it started out as one dock and now it’s a massive area,” says President Daren Pietsch.
“My grandfather and dad built it up and Daren and I got to polish it up,” adds Torras. “We’re now working on the uplands.”
.webp)
The property continues to grow and accommodate boaters with a major waterfront renovation project in the works. They recently remodeled the marina office and opened a dedicated mail room for boaters. They also plan to add more docks and dry storage, open a new on-site restaurant, and work with the city to build a public boardwalk with retail, restaurants, and mixed-use space for offices and condos.
“We live in this coastal area, and there’s hardly any access to the waterfront and about only two restaurants where you can see the water,” says Torras. “So, we really wanted to open up the enjoyment of our area’s natural beauty.”
The facility also offers boat repair, concierge services and amenities such as a fitness center, bathhouses, laundry, lounges and propane grills on every dock. Conveniently located just 400 feet from the heart of downtown Brunswick, marina guests enjoy historic sightseeing and attractions including the Victorian-era Old Town Historic District.
Brunswick Landing Marina is a partner of the annual PorchFest, a free neighborhood music festival where front porches across Brunswick transform into small stages for a day of live performances and local vendors. Don’t miss this year’s festival on November 10, as well as the marina’s oyster festivals held in October, November and January.
Stay up to date with the latest articles, news and all things boating with a FREE subscription to Marinalife Magazine!
