Anchorage Guides

Free anchoring, no permit required

DEKPA transit log required (~€30); anchoring generally free

SSVO 2025: 150m beach exclusion, no tying to trees

Anchoring free in most bays; Posidonia protection zones apply

DONIA app mandatory (Mediterranean); Posidonia fines €150k; 6–10m tidal range (Brittany)

BlueDiscovery app for AMPs; Posidonia fines €500–€3k; Maestrale Force 9; Montecristo 1nm exclusion zone

Free anchoring in most bays; Nortada F5–6 summer afternoons; orca risk west coast Jun–Sep; Arrábida 3-zone park permit

Shore lines mandatory in fjords; depths to 1,308m; Allemannsretten right of access; rifle mandatory in Svalbard

No tides (Baltic); Allemansrätten free anchoring everywhere; 30,000 islands; 5–8mm/year isostatic uplift — use current charts

No free-anchoring right (tolerated 1 night); eelgrass ban DKK 10,000 fine; Limfjord max 2m draught; Wadden Sea UNESCO tidal channels only

Free anchoring (jokaisenoikeus); 50,000 islands; land rises 9mm/year; Saimaa Canal closed

Pentland Firth 16 kt tidal stream; 5m spring tidal range (W Ireland); free anchoring Scotland; T2L docs for EU vessels post-Brexit

€89 cruising permit (1 month); Risan Bay anchoring FORBIDDEN (archaeological); Bora up to 250km/h

EU member; Gregale NE wind near-hurricane in winter; 3,000 sunshine hours/year

EU member (south only); 29 MPAs; direct entry to N Cyprus illegal — heavy penalties

Mandatory clearance agent (~€100); northern coast anchoring forbidden; Bora 70kt; Ksamil free buoys

EU/Schengen; 47km coastline (EU's shortest); 1m+ tidal range (N. Adriatic); Strunjan anchoring restricted

3.5m Atlantic tidal range; Levanter ENE gale 50kt; world's largest fishing fleet; Canary Islands gateway

2.1m tidal range (Gulf of Gabès — unique in central Med); Sirocco desert wind; ghost fishing nets

Contact Israeli Navy at 25nm; mandatory security screening; Gaza exclusion zones; Caesarea Roman harbour

Tideless Baltic vs 3.66m North Sea tidal range; Kiel Canal world's busiest waterway; Jasmund UNESCO chalk cliffs

4m Wadden tidal range; daylight-only navigation; Delta Works; IJsselmeer freshwater inland sea

EU/Schengen; Baltic tideless; Puck Bay <1.5m draught only; Szczecin Lagoon 3.8m avg depth; Jun–Aug season; Słowiński UNESCO sand dunes

EU/Schengen; 1,521 islands; Väinameri 0.5–4m shallow; Naissaar (former mine island); UNESCO Kihnu cultural space; Jun–Aug season

EU/Schengen; Cape Kolka sandbars deadly — stay in buoyed channels; free anchoring; Jun–Aug season; ~500 islands

EU/Schengen; 90km coastline (shortest in EU); Curonian Lagoon avg 3.8m depth; UNESCO Curonian Spit; Kaliningrad border — stay north

EU (non-Schengen, BGN); customs clearance required; Nesebar UNESCO medieval city; Kaliakra 70m cliffs; May–Oct season

EU (non-Schengen, RON); customs at first port; Danube Delta UNESCO Biosphere Reserve; 350 bird species; May–Oct season

5.45m tidal range; Flemish Banks 290+ wrecks; 33nm to Dover; Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp by canal

June–August only; midnight sun; williwaw gusts 60kts; 3–4m tidal range; active volcanic zone

Not EU (Danish autonomous); tidal races 7kt; one full marina (Tórshavn); Múlafossur waterfall into Atlantic

ARC rally finish; 5 Carlisle Bay wrecks; ENE trades 15–25kt; east coast NOT anchorable; Folkestone MPA mooring only

CBP ROAM required on entry; Buck Island NO ANCHORING (federal law); NPS mooring $26/night; 2/3 of St. John is National Park

700+ islands; 0.8m tidal range (2–4kt cuts); Exuma Park mooring only; Pig Beach; shallow banks draft limit 1.8m; Nov–May season

British BOT; USD; Grace Bay world's best beach; Caicos Banks 1–3m shallow; humpback whales Jan–Apr; cruising permit required

French DOM — EU/Euro; Le Marin best Caribbean marina; 20+ Saint-Pierre wrecks; no coral anchoring; Dec–May season

French DOM — EU/Euro; Cousteau Reserve no anchoring (mooring only); Les Saintes 'most beautiful bay'; La Soufrière active volcano

Tobago Cays mooring mandatory (no anchoring); cruising permit required; Admiralty Bay Bequia iconic; partly south of hurricane belt

South of hurricane belt (10°N); Chaguaramas world-class boatyard; Gulf of Paria 0.9–1.5m tidal range; Venezuela 11km — stay in T&T waters

NPS mooring balls $30–55/night; Horseshoe Reef 18nm; no anchoring on coral; Dec–Apr season

Nelson's Dockyard UNESCO; Antigua Sailing Week (April); Barbuda 17-mile pink sand beach; Port Health FIRST on entry

Smallest dual-nation island; 31km² lagoon; duty-free since 1939; Simpson Bay bridge (VHF 12, $10–500)

ARC trans-Atlantic rally finish; Pitons UNESCO 798m; SMMA mooring mandatory EC$54/night; 'Helen of the West Indies'

12°N — south of hurricane belt; year-round sailing; 20% world nutmeg; Kick 'em Jenny volcano 8km north

No permit required; Bora Bora lagoon iconic; Tuamotu pass timing critical; French territory — EU passports only for free entry

Yacht cruising permit required; sevusevu (kava) cultural protocol; cyclone season Nov–Apr; Lau Group requires special permit

Two seasons: Andaman NE monsoon Nov–Apr, Gulf SW monsoon May–Oct; Maya Bay anchoring banned; marine park fees apply

Yacht cruising permit mandatory; anchoring on coral strictly prohibited; dry country (no alcohol outside resorts); designated anchorages only