Where to Sail
Where to Sail from Hamble Point Marina
Directly south of the Hamble lies the Isle of Wight and Cowes. Around the island’s coastline you can also explore Yarmouth, Newtown Creek and Bembridge.
To the east of Hamble Point lie Portsmouth with its historic naval heritage, and Chichester Harbour. To the west you will discover the quiet waters of Beaulieu River, Lymington and Poole Harbour and further on, spectacular sailing in the West Country.
A little further afield, the Channel Islands, Cherbourg and the Brittany coastline can also easily be explored.
Cowes
Easily reached on a Friday evening from Hamble Point Marina, Cowes is a renowned sailing Mecca. The world’s oldest regular regatta, Cowes Week, occurs there annually in the first week of August. Among the restaurants to be highly recommended are the Red Duster and Murrays Seafoods on the High Street and Tonino’s on Shooters Hill. Also worth visiting are the Maritime Museum and the Sir Max Aitken Museum. Sir Max contributed enormously to ocean yacht racing and the museum is dedicated to his collection of nautical instruments, painting and maritime artefacts
Cowes Yacht Haven
A unique event based marina with berthing for up to 260 boats offering all the facilities expected of a full service marina, situated on the northern shore of the Isle of Wight at the mouth of the River Medina.
Shepards Wharf
Upstream of Cowes Yacht Haven, on the starboard side, is Shepards Wharf, just minutes’ walk from the bustling centre of Cowes, with capacity for up to 100 visitors.
East Cowes Marina
East Cowes Marina is situated in a sheltered location on the Medina River, just upstream of Cowes town centre, with 140 visitor berths. There are supermarkets, a post office, a restaurant and café/takeaway outlets nearby in East Cowes town centre. West Cowes is also easily accessible by chain ferry or water taxi.
Yarmouth
Yarmouth is a picturesque fishing, ferry and yachting port at the Western end of the Isle of Wight with an old world aura. The quaint town is adjacent to the harbour and has a number of restaurants and pubs as well as a Yacht Club and a variety of small shops. The picturesque countryside of the West Wight is very close and is ideal for cycling and walking.
Yarmouth Harbour
Conveniently situated at the Western end of the Solent, access is available at all states of the tide. The Harbour is dredged to 2 metres below chart datum. Discounts for midweek overnight stays continue to be offered, £8 discount per night for vessels over 9 metres and £4 discount for vessels up to and including 9 metres.
The harbour has been developed and the layout and navigation lights have changed. There are now more walk ashore pontoons with power and water.
Bembridge
Bembridge is located on the east side of the Isle of Wight.
Bembridge Harbour
A large natural, sheltered picturesque harbour whose entrance is restricted by the tides. The Harbour is adjacent to two attractive villages with good restaurants and spectacular walks.
Lymington
Situated on the southern edge of the New Forest between Southampton and Bournemouth and at the western end of the Solent, Lymington is a beautiful Georgian town surrounded by an area of outstanding natural beauty with the ancient woodlands and heathlands of the New Forest to the north.
Lymington Harbour Town Quay
Very convenient for the town and its numerous restaurants, bars and shopping facilities, the 120 visitor moorings at Town Quay are available on a first come first served basis.
Lymington Yacht Haven
Lymington Yacht Haven is the first marina that comes into sight as you make your way up the Lymington River, and has a number of visitor berths
Beaulieu
In the Solent, almost opposite Cowes, the Beaulieu River and the 18th century shipbuilding village of Buckler’s Hard occupy a superb location surrounded by oak woodland within the Beaulieu Estate. Buckler’s Hard has been in the private ownership of the Montagu family since it was founded in 1724. It was here that wooden ships for the English Fleet were built and the village today retains much of the atmosphere of its shipbuilding origins.
Buckler’s Hard Marina
One of the most picturesque marinas on the south coast of England.
Poole
Poole Harbour is one of the world’s largest natural harbours and the mudflats and salt marshes are of great ecological value for feeding and roosting birds. Poole is a large coastal town and seaport with award-winning beaches.
Poole Quay Boat Haven
A modern purpose-built haven within Poole Harbour, situated to the eastern end of Poole Town Quay with 125 serviced visitor pontoon berths. The Haven has easy access to many restaurants, cafes and bars in the town of Poole, with public transport just a short distance away.
Weymouth
Weymouth Harbour is situated to the North East of Portland in the sheltered waters of Weymouth Bay, with golden sands, Georgian esplanade and a picturesque old harbour. Prevailing winds are South Westerly and the port can be entered at any state of the tide.
Weymouth Marina
A modern purpose-built marina providing over 280 permanent and visiting berths, situated in the inner harbour beyond the town’s historic lifting bridge. There are no tidal access restrictions.
Portsmouth & Gosport
Commonly nicknamed Pompey, A significant naval port for centuries, Portsmouth is home to many famous ships, including Nelson’s flagship HMS Victory, and HMS Warrior and the Mary Rose. The Spinnaker Tower is a recent addition to the city’s skyline.
Gosport Marina
Ideally situated as a base to explore the many places of interest in the area, with the historic dockyards just ten minutes away using the Gosport ferry.
Port Solent Marina
A unique atmosphere with a vibrant backdrop of Boardwalk restaurants, bars and shops, with top-class facilities. On-site six-screen Odeon cinema.
Chichester
Chichester has a number of places of interest, the most notable being the cathedral.
Chichester Marina
Nestling in an enormous natural harbour, Chichester Marina has more than 1,000 berths, making it one of the largest marinas in the UK.
WHAT CLIENTS SAY
August 2019. We had an excellent sailing trip around the Solent, staying at a different mooring each day, sometimes in marinas, sometimes on mooring buoys. Hamble Point Yacht Charters was a perfect choice for us. Their location at the mouth of the Hamble river is absolutely ideal, giving immediate access to the central part of the Solent. The company is super efficient and very friendly, and they provided an outstanding service. The boat was in good condition, clean and eveything working. We have chartered with them a couple of times now and we will be back!
Just returned from a 1 week bareboat charter of Aeolus. The service through researching the options in October, where I popped in whilst in the area to view available boats, through the booking process and the charter itself was great. This particular boat may not be the newest on the water but is maintained to a high standard and allowed us a wonderful week crossing the channel to Fecamp and Honfleur before returning for a couple of days in the Solent. Nothing was too much trouble for HPYC and as a regular charterer around the UK and Europe the efficiency and quality of service delivered is appreciated, especially confirmation of the return of the security deposit emailed to me before I got home.
We sailed overnight to Alderney onboard Abraxas, which is a First 40.7. Initially in strong winds we made excellent progress and for the last couple of hours motored in no wind. This boat is good for passage making if you have an experienced crew happy to handle the large main sail.
Friendly welcome. All staff helpful. Relaxed atmosphere. Instructors gave clear explanations of safety equipment and how to perform tasks expected of crew. Very tolerant of mistakes made. Encouraged us to be more independent as the week went by to help build our confidence. Berthed in a number of different marinas each presenting different issues to consider when berthing. The whole experience was most enjoyable and I feel able to crew for other skippers. Excellent value.
The boat and equipment was in good order. We learnt a huge amount in a friendly and fun environment. I wouldn't hesitate to use HPYC for training or charters in the future.
We had a great charter of the yacht Appaloosa from HPYC. The boat was very clean when we boarded her, and was ready for us to board at the agreed time. The staff were very helpful and helped us straight away with any queries.....and my security deposit return was confirmed very quickly. I will definitely consider chartering from HPYC again!
When asked what they thought of HPYC and the day we provided for them: "Excellent"! Everything, as always, was excellent!
5 day solent area charter. HPYC were welcoming, professional, flexible and cheerful. We feel you may book here with confidence then relax and trust that all will be as you would wish.
Nice boat in fantastic condition even if it was quite old (2003). We enjoyed sailing in the Solent and the tips issued by Hamble Point Yacht Charters. We will come back.
I chartered a 32 ft with Hamble Point Yacht Charters for a weekend with a friend. the boat was good and Hamble point location is great to get out in the Solent quickly and and for a beer in Hamble at night. Staff at Hamble point Charter was very pro and friendly
The team had a great time on the boat. The staff were fantastic and very welcoming throughout the day. The mid-afternoon stop was also a welcome & pleasant surprise. The jet skis were fantastic, the food & drink were great too. We will most likely be coming again soon.
The yacht was in perfect condition. Josh made a great ship handover. Unfortunately, the modern yachts are no longer designed to be seaworthy. The self-tacking jib cannot be trimmed properly. But otherwise we had a great week. My crew was eager to learn and could take home many valuable experiences. I love the Solent and I'll definitely be back.
I was a bit apprehensive about doing my competent crew course .... I’m normally a feet firmly on dry land kinda girl but my trip thoroughly exceeded expectations! I went alone on an all women crew & quickly realised you are never alone on a boat.... we bonded very quickly over a refreshment the first night! I was kitted out with wellies & waterproof clothing & beds on board were chosen... surprisingly comfortable. I was amazed at the quality of food we ate ... proper full English breakfast to set us up the first morning .... which was a blessing in the wet & wind! Alex, our yatchmaster put us all at ease talking us through the course. I hadn’t realised we would moor beside such good showers every night altho I admit I didn’t shower every day ! 🤣 I learnt so much on the course, weather, wind, knots, helming, tacking, mooring! We dealt with fog, anchor chains, going up the mast (not normal!), man overboard (not literally!) & all the time Alex was very clear, professional & super friendly always encouraging us along the way. I can’t recommend Hamble point sailing enough, and a trip to the Isle of Wight.... I hadn’t realised how beautiful it was!
Thank you all for the well prepared Aeolus. Hope to charter her again next Spring and probably this autumn.
