Puerto Chiapas - General Info
Description:
This port is a known hurricane hole. Puerto Chiapas is the southernmost port in Mexico and 22.5 kms (14 miles) north of the Mexico-Guatemala border on the Pacific coast. Cruisers recommend this as a good place to haul out and do bottom work on your boat, and even store it during the rainy season. Prices are reported to be very reasonable.
Logistically, it is the ideal place for northbound yachts to clear into Mexico and wait for a safe crossing of the notoriously windy 480 kms (260 mile) wide Gulf of Tehuantepec. For southbound boats, it is a convenient stopover for refuelling, reprovisioning and for handling Zarpe paperwork before departing Mexico into Central American cruising waters.
Formally known as Puerto Madero, the name was changed a few years ago after the cruise ship terminal was built. Cruisers report that a great deal of work is on-going to improve the port and make it welcoming to visiting yachtsmen. Marina Chiapas opened in 2011.
Entrance Notes and Cautions:
If you email your arrival ETA to the marina in advance, a 24 hr watch will be kept for you. Access to the port from sea is easy between breakwaters and the channel to the marina from the port is buoyed.
Call the port captain on VHF Channel 16 when you are near the sea buoy to ask permission to enter the port and give notice of where you intend to moor. All of the port officials speak English and all formalities can be carried out at the marina.
If you call the marina when you are a couple of miles out, they will come out to greet you and guide you in. Note that when the marina office is shut, the dock staff only operate on handheld VHF radios, and therefore they won’t hear you until you are well within the harbour. Dock staff work 24 hours.
At times dredging takes place here which can obstruct the entrance channel as you come into the marina. It is very well lit at night.
Position:
14° 41.641’N, 92°25.16’W (Harbor entrance)
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Related to following destinations: Mexico, Puerto Chiapas, West Coast (Mexico)
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Note that the marina is staffed 24/7/365, but outside office hours (and sometimes during office hours, if the staff have stepped out) the yard staff only have a handheld VHF radio. They will not hear a hail from a boat until it is well within the harbour.
Marina and travel lift are all fully functional. All tsunami effects repaired save a few non-functioning lights.
Reported by Brock & Jamie:
Marina Chiapas is operational after the earthquake and damage from the surge which followed. The travel lift will be back in service in the next week or so. Docks are still being repaired but most are functional. Electrical & water service is fine (water is portable and not bad tasting). Marina staff took us through the process of checking in, giving us a ride to Immigration, Aduana, and the Port Captain’ office. This was after the Navy and the narcotics dog inspected the boat at the marina. Very easy process. Tapachula (with Wal-Mart, Home Depot, etc) is only a 25 peso collectivo ride away and makes provisioning straightforward.
I made a mistake with our TIP. We were travelling from the south (Panama, Costa Rica) and I attempted to complete the TIP online. What happens is that the TIP is then sent to your US address. When we went to the Guatemalan border, they were unable to help us and insisted that we acquire that original. So we had DHL ship it down from Washington state. The better option would have been to not do anything in advance and just apply for it once you arrive in Mexico. It’s a 1000 peso ride to CD Hidalgo where the Banjercito office is. I suspect the process would have been easy, had I not tried to get ahead of things. Looking forward to exploring nearby Puerto Madero and Playa Linda.
Update from Rob Murray – 11 September, 2017
Update on marina Chiapas Mexico, damaged by tsunami from the 8.1 magnitude earthquake on September 7, 2017. Docks were lifted clear of piling system and damaged. Repairs underway, and functioning on a best efforts basis now. No boats were damaged by the tsunami or earthquake, either in the water or on the hard.
The most powerful earthquake to hit Mexico in 100 years struck off the nation’s Pacific Coast on 7 September 2017, killing at least 32 people and levelling some areas in the southern part of the country, closer to the quake’s epicentre. Reports from cruisers in Chiapas Marina are that the docks have been badly damaged and the travelift had water to above the engine. Repairs will likely take months.
Marina Chiapas is indeed a lovely marina. I?t is a new facility that is being lovingly taken care of by knowledgeable people. It has hot water showers (solar) with fully functioning nozzles. Excellent laundry service is available by contacting Ronnie. His wife does a great job at a reasonable cost, with next day service. Shopping at Walmart and Chedreau in Tapachula is easy to get to for about $20 pesos per person in a collective. Returning with heavy loads might be better accomplished in a regular taxi for about $150 pesos. Some collectivos have storage space behind the last seat, so this might work well also. Catch the collective van with the dolphin on the side. This is the one that passes by the marina.
Diesel mechanics and electricians are available. Check with Memo or Enrique. They will hook you up with a good one. Marine parts and supplies are virtually nonexistent however If you need something shipped in, talk with Memo. He has a downtown address you can ship to. Fed Ex seems especially slow. DHL might be better.
The marina has a large dry storage capacity, not all stalls have power. The workmanship of the yard guys seems to be very good, and they can handle any ongoing chores that need to be taken care of while the boat is in storage. Storage in the water is also available. The marina fees are very good, especially through the summer months.
Chiapas is a good place to land travel from many great places close.
We think this may be the best marina on the west coast of Mexico with the best marina rates and very friendly and efficient staff.
Marina Chiapas gets a lot of rain but seems to be in a sweet spot because we have never had lightning close to the marina.
Marina Chiapas is a lovely marina, however, they do not have a laundry room, though service is available. They also don’t offer a shuttle into Tapachula. You may easily get a “collectivo” for 16 pesos by walking to the road at the entrance. When returning from Tapachula, if you stand on the main road & flag an orange taxi (servicing Puerto Madero) you can usually get a return ride for 50 pesos. The white taxies will cost you 20 bucks. The marina staff is extremely friendly & helpful. S/V Moondance