Largs Yacht Haven and Fairlie Quay Marina
Ayrshire’s Boating Hubs
David Milloy
Ayrshire is something of a haven for boaters, with commercial and recreational boats being berthed at a number of locations along its coastline. Indeed, no-one who lives near the Ayrshire coast is ever more than a short journey away from a marina, harbour, or slipway.
The county’s biggest hubs for boaters are situated about a mile apart along the A78: Largs Yacht Haven and Fairlie Quay Marina. Between the two of them, they offer an extensive range of facilities to boaters, people interested in buying a boat, and those interested in learning how to drive a powerboat, sail a dinghy or yacht, or become a diver.
Both are well-established sites. Largs Yacht Haven opened in 1984, and Fairlie Quay was previously a NATO Boom Defence facility before being decommissioned, sold into private ownership and redeveloped into a boat storage facility in the 1990s.
Largs Yacht Haven has berthing for 770 boats, ranging from runabouts and day boats to ocean-going yachts, with another 100 or so boats being accommodated onshore. It is the only marina in Ayrshire to offer dry berthing, whereby boats of up to 8 metres long are stored on their trailers and launched and recovered on demand by marina staff.
Since the late 1990s, Largs Yacht Haven has been home to Largs Sailing Club, which was founded in 1936. It has its own clubhouse, dinghy storage and slipways. The sheltered waters off Largs are ideal for racing events, and Largs Sailing Club holds a number of these throughout the year, with the centrepiece being the annual Largs Regatta, which is hosted in partnership with Fairlie Yacht Club and Largs Yacht Haven.
Fairlie Quay Marina is primarily a boat storage facility. To this end, its shed boasts 5,500 square metres of storage space and can accommodate up to 80 boats. In addition, there’s outdoor storage for a further 120 boats. Its boat lift can handle boats of up to 30 metres in length and 80 tonnes in weight, and its deep water quay can accommodate boats of up to 160 metres in length. It’s not unusual to find some very interesting boats moored at Fairlie Quay Marina, ranging from foreign warships to superyachts.
The two sites are also home to a variety of marine-based businesses, which between them provide everything from boating, sailing, and diving courses to boat sales and expert engineering, rigging, woodworking, electrical, electronic, sail repair and manufacture, fibreglass repair and renovation, and boat cover and upholstery services. Each site also has its own chandlery, and hot and cold food and drink are available from two restaurants at Largs Yacht Haven.
Between them, Largs Yacht Haven, Fairlie Quay Marina and the businesses based at their respective locations employ over 100 people, in addition to helping to support jobs in both Largs and Fairlie, with berth holders and visitors alike making use of local retail and entertainment facilities.
www.yachthavens.com/largs-yacht-haven
www.fairliequay.co.uk
