Le Marin - General Info
Where is Le Marin?
Le Marin lies at the head of a deep bay, Le Cul-de-Sac du Marin, on the southern end of Martinique. It is protected by fringing reefs and is a popular destination in the Southern Caribbean for yachts thanks to its excellent yachting infrastructure, mooring fields and large marina. The town of St Anne is at the bay’s entrance.
Entrance notes or cautions for Le Marin:
The approach into the Cul-de-Sac du Marin lagoon can be tricky to navigate because of the channel skirts reefs and shallow sand bars. Note: Buoyage is IALA-B (red right returning).
Cruiser Highlights for Le Marin:
Large cruising community; yachting infrastructure; chandlery; good provisioning; fuel; water; marinas; access to transportation; restaurants and bars; hiking and tourism activities.
Cruising guides, apps and happy-hour chitchat can all be good sources of information for sailors in the Caribbean. Tune into the Martinique Cruiser Net (in English) at 08:30 on Tuesday and Friday, VHF channel 08.
Positions:
14° 25’38″N, 60° 55’04″W (entrance to the channel)
14° 26’N, 60° 53’W (St Anne anchorage)
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Related to following destinations: Marin, Martinique
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Courtesy Flag Discounts
YachtFlags.com provides high quality courtesy flags that are manufactured in durable Knitted Polyester fabric. Knitted so that the fabric itself does not deteriorate in the constant movement that marine flags are usually exposed to, and polyester so that the flag does not weaken in the strong UV-light usually found in the main sailing areas of the world.
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If you’re looking for someone to repair your fridge we highly recommend Pascal from Nautic Froid. Very professional, knows his stuff! Also reasonably priced. You can contact him on +596 696 22 71 13
There is a computer terminal to chckin at the fuel berth
If you need mechanical/engine help we can really recommend the Swedish guy Igor who lives on his boat Mistral in Marin. We had problems with our engine and Igor helped us to fix the problem. He definitely knew what he was doing and he solved the problem within a few hours. An extra plus for the reasonable cost and his excellent sense of humour. To get in contact with Igor call him on +4672-870 02 29.
We notice a very dangerous wreck which is just below the surface and unmarked in the Le Marin anchorage. It’s in position 14 degrees 28.112 N, 60 degrees 52.460 W.
As reported by CSSN:
DATE: 2018-10-28 23:00
Country Name: Martinique
Location Detail: Le Marin anchorage
EVENT: Theft
HAND: 1
Stolen Items: hard dinghy/ 2.5 HP Suzuki outboard
SECURED: Not Locked
DETAILS: An in-the-water and not locked dinghy/outboard was stolen overnight. MRCC recovered this dinghy from the beach at Club Med, where it was abandoned by persons unknown. It was returned intact to the owner.
Anchorage at St Anne:
Busy anchorage but plenty of space as it’s very big.
Dinghy docks:
The main concrete one is in the town.
There is another floating one in front of the Pirates Bar Restaurant. This restaurant is only open for lunch.
It’s a 5 min walk to the town from this dinghy dock.
Rubbish bins:
There are bins a little to the left and some more to the right of this restaurant.
Rubbish bins also near the main pontoon. No recycling but then further into town there are bottle recycling bins.
We walked from St Anne, along with the trail to the other side of the island (9km). NB, there is no cafe, bar or anywhere to buy drinks when you get there! After another 5k we hitched a ride back to St Anne.
Bus A goes from the main town centre to Le Marin, 2.10 Euro each one way.
Le Marin:
The marina area seems to be the only interesting part of La Marin.
Provisioning can be done at Leader Price by dinghy or there is a small, expensive Carrefour walking distance from the Carenage.
Good chandlers in the marina and in the carnage.
We stayed in the anchorage of Marin for a week in January 2018. It’s a great place to get repairs done. If you have an EU cell phone contract you can call, text and use the internet on European conditions. Since July 2017 that virtually free! We had some stainless work done by Equinox (0696 41 33 33). Fast, cheap and easy communication. Beware when blasting your dinghy through the bay, there are very shallow patches which are hard to spot.
Dear Noonsite Team,
For the statistics:
We have been on anchor from the 22. August to the 23. August in front of the marina Le Marin, Martinique. Our berth was only available on the 23. therefore, we stayed our last night of the sailing season on the anchor.
We saw that most yachts had their dinghy behind in the water. We usually always lifted it with the davit during the whole year, but unfortunately, we felt secure in this spot and left the dinghy in the water.
The next morning we found the line cut and the dinghy was gone. Exceptionally frustrating, given it was our last day of sailing. A discussion with the marina showed there was one other dinghy stolen during the same night.
It seems that this spot, contrary to its appearance is not safe at all for dinghies.
Regards,
Daniel Köppel
S/Y Neorion
Stainless steel and woodwork. Our experience with ALTEC Marine. Franck, the boss, promise and promise, always tells you he will come tomorrow morning. But he never shows up. Eventually, when he has done something of low quality, he sends you a very big bill. If you get tired of waiting for him and leave, then he threatens you with the gendarmerie, customs and immigration in all of the Caribbean. Our advice – stay well clear of him!
Another option for clearing in at Marin is the less crowded anchorage of St Anne. There is a Clearance Computer Terminal located at the “Snack Boubou” next to the church. Just walk off the main dock towards the church, and you will find Boubou on the left. It cost 2 euros for the paper/printing. The owner was very helpful and spoke enough English to help you along. The computer form is in French and English. St Anne itself is a charming little town, and catching a bus into Marin for provisioning is easy enough if desired.
Travis and Joanne
s/v Calico Jack
Ourselves we can recommend RM services Nautiques strongly. Roberto speaks English and kept all his time promises regarding the start of work. Eric is a magician, he repaired our little hull damage very professionally, took pride in his work and did it efficiently.
An update after clearance expects to be boarded and searched. Especially if you fly an American flag. Also if you are not a 220-volt boat there is no provision for electrical hook up. The craftsman seems to be mad that they have to work on your boat or that you would ask for an estimate. Bottom line if you are not a French boat and/or speak French I got the freeing that I was not welcome.
Clearance is now done in the marina office at one of the 4 computers and is relaxed as elsewhere at French islands. Fast and efficient.
January 2014
Great safe anchorage with best victualling in the Caribbean. Just tie up alongside the Leaderprice dock and stock your boat to the gunwales. The Internet can be a problem. A lot of the time the Mango Bay at the marina doesn’t work and when it does it is painfully slow. We found the SucreSale bar right on the beach where the folk boats sail from just past the covered market. The planters punches are to die for and the internet is fast, free and always working. La Belle Elene was there November 2013.