Dover Marina
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Dover Marina, operating within the Port of Dover, is one of TransEurope Marinas’ busiest destinations. A mere 20nm from France and just over 50nm from Nieuwpoort, Belgium, Dover Marina attracts hundreds of TransEurope visitors each year.
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The marina is just about to complete a long period of extensive construction and improvements, amplifying the berthing offer and incorporating some impressive sustainability initiatives.
TransEurope Marinas members are fortunate to be able to share insights from various ownership and management dynamics. These include municipal marinas, having close relationships with local authorities and civic communities; privately-owned individual and often family-run marinas with a defined destination identity; national marina groups, with centralised procurement services, specialised skills, and a collective vision, and finally marinas that are located within commercial port authority waters and operate within their oversight.
Dover Marina belongs to the latter category and benefits from the port’s impressive environmental strategy that features extensive surveying activities within surrounding waters, conserving a range of habitats, whilst identifying local fauna and algal species. Water quality is monitored regularly in the port and marina, and this service extends to the local beach during bathing season as a voluntary courtesy to swimmers and water-sports enthusiasts.
The port has reduced its carbon footprint by over 96% since 2007 through a series of actions, one of which hopes to culminate in the creation of a green corridor between Dover and Calais. The aim is to become carbon net zero by 2030, after attending to related Scope 3 emissions. The port and marina send zero waste to landfill (aside from International Catering Waste) and all energy supplies are either generated onsite or provided by certified renewable sources.
The marina boatyard machinery is operated by using HVO (hydrotreated vegetable oil) which is also provided by a certified supplier. The yard also runs a closed-circuit washdown system, which filters and reuses water, and prevents biosecurity risks by reducing the chance of invasive species entering the water. In the marina, circular practices involved ensuring that old pontoons, removed during works, were reclaimed by smaller companies in the region.
For Chris Windsor, a long-standing member of TransEurope Marinas, reaching completion of the reconstruction process has been very satisfying, being sensitive to the needs of local and international boaters who rely on Dover as a strategic base. The new facilities extend the berthing offer to nearly 400 berths and include a new fuel dock and attractive hospitality services in the adjacent square.
We are really looking forward to an exciting season ahead for 2024, which will be the first time that our full set of modern and sustainable facilities will be available.
With world class amenities spanning across our newly re-developed sites of the Outer Marina and Wellington Dock, and with a superb location and new leisure opportunities surrounding the Marina Curve, Clocktower Square and wider Western Docks, I’m sure our berth holders will create memories to last a lifetime at Dover Marina this year and in the future.
Dover Marina held the top national management certification of 5 Gold Anchors for an entire decade and comprises one of TransEurope’s most inspirational members. We wish Chris and the team a successful season ahead and look forward to further developments!
For more information on Dover Marina, visit their website.
