Explore: Saldanha Bay
General Info
This is a busy commercial harbour about 60NM north of Cape Town and a major port for exporting iron. It is adjacent to the West Coast National Park. The breakwater and hills here have created a very sheltered harbour in the NW of the port for fishing boats and yachts.
Position 33°04’52″S,17°55’18″E (bay entrance).
Clearance
As there is no Immigration office here, clearance for yachts cannot be completed here. Although Customs has the authority to deal with cruise ships, the immigration procedures for yachts have to be done in Cape Town.
See South Africa Formalities for full details on clearing into and out of South Africa.
The port captain should be contacted on VHF Channel 16 for permission to enter and leave the harbor, as well as when crossing the shipping channel between Saldanha and Langebaan.
The port captain should also be notified if clearance is required on arrival. He will advise on the procedures but it is likely that Customs officers will meet the yacht at the yacht club, which is located to the north-west of the bay, north of President Jetty. The Customs office is just inside the gate on the Iron Ore Dock.
Latest update: January 2010
Docking
The Saldanha harbour lies on the northern side of this large, deep bay.
The Club Mykonos Marina is on the western shore of the bay, directly opposite the entrance.
The Saldanha Bay Yacht Club is situated on the Northern side of the President Jetty at the north-western end of Saldanha Bay. It offers some moorings to international visitors and there is also an anchorage here. There is a fee for use of the club facilities which includes a dinghy dock.
The Langebaan Yacht Club is in the tucked into sheltered waters of the inlet in the SW corner of the bay, at Langebaan, opposite the Potsberg Flower Reserve.
Note that the only free anchorages are outside the National Park boundaries. Inside the park, charges average $15 a night.
Latest update: June 2012
