Saint Helier Harbour consists of a port which is used for
mercantile purposes and a number of marinas. Also included are a museum and a life boat station
which function round the year.
A marina is a sheltered harbour where ships and boats dock.
There are currently three marinas in Saint Helier Harbour: the all-tide Collete Basin, the St. Helier Marina and
the Elizabeth Marina.
Out of the three marinas, the St. Helier, is the only Marina
in the St. Helier Harbour that is open to visitors.
The Elizabeth Marina and the all tide Marinas are open for
the yachts’ which belong to the town residents only, though the All-tide marina used to be open to
visitors before.
The St. Helier Marina is the closest to the town centre. Visitors can get
supplies from the town when they dock. It has about 320 berths and moorings.
The Elizabeth
Marina is the latest Marina to be constructed. It was opened in 1998 by Prince Andrew. The amenities available
on the marina are contemporary including water and electricity. Surveillance is carried out through CCTV for safety
purposes.
All in all, the St. Helier Harbour is close to Saint Helier town. This means
that visitors can get provisions and other services such as banking, internet, shops, health centres and others a
mere walking distance from the harbour.
The gateway to all of these three marinas on the St. Helier Harbour is
usually strewn with rocks. To help visitors navigate through the rough waters, the right paths have been marked
out. Since there are areas where a number of paths meet, it is important that one is careful to follow the right
markings in order not to get lost.
When one wants to gain entrance into main St Helier Harbour, there are
traffic lights which control the flow of traffic. In addition to this, the St
Helier Harbour is also renowned for its big tidal waves, which make navigating the waters quite a
challenge.
There are other smaller terminals in Saint Helier Harbour. These terminals
are mainly used by Ferry operators who transport people and vehicles through various Islands.
Other Marinas in Jersey
There are a number of other harbours in Jersey Island. These include
Gorey Harbour, St. Aubin’s harbour and St. Catherine harbour. These other harbours have
marinas which offer a number of facilities such as boat yards, banks, restaurants, moorings and berths. Most of
these marinas are characterized by strong winds and high tides.
St. Aubin is the oldest and main port of the Island. It is also a drying
Island, which means that visiting yacht’s need to be able to take the ground when the water levels go down. Gorey
harbour usually caters for visiting yatchs, though in times past it used to host fishing fleets. It offers many
restaurants and pubs where visitors can relax and get duty free fuel. St.Catherines is full of moorings; therefore,
it is important to carefully consider an area to anchor.