UK Yacht Charter: Port of the Week – Bembridge Harbour

If you are still out and about on the water and planning on getting another weekend out on a yacht charter in the Solent before Winter comes along then why not take in Bembridge harbour on the East coast of the Isle of Wight on your cruise.

Good for:
The harbour is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and nearby Brading Marshes is an RSPB reserve. It is a beautiful, unspoilt corner of the Isle of Wight and well worth a visit.
The villages of Bembridge and St Helens are easily accessible from the harbour and both offer plenty of shops, restaurants and pubs to enjoy, as well as plenty of freshly caught seafood to purchase.

What to do:

• Enjoy a picturesque walk or nature trail in and around the area.
• Visit the Bembridge Lifeboat where this is an opportunity to view the boat and the first class facilities that the RNLI has built there.
• Take advantage of the beautiful and quiet beaches at this time of year.
• People and boat watching in the busy harbour.
• Discover the rich heritage and history of Bembridge in the Bembridge Heritage Centre.
• Follow the extensive series of footpaths around the Brading Marshes RSPB site and enjoy the wildlife from woodpeckers and buzzards to red squirrels.

Getting there:
Navigating into Bembridge harbour is not difficult, but does require some tidal calculations and close attention to detail to all the buoyage markings.
The Bembridge Harbour website has an excellent guide to follow on the approach into the harbour.

Berthing Options & Facilities:
The harbour offers a range of harbour moorings from walk-ashore pontoons to dry moorings in the harbour itself which are serviced by a water taxi. There is a visitors pontoon at the Duver Marina which most visiting yachts are directed to, and facilities include water, electricity, showers, toilets and laundry facilities.
Anchoring is not allowed anywhere within the harbour.

Image courtesy of “Bembridge point – geograph.org.uk – 691443” by Colin Babb – From geograph.org.uk.