Marina/Anchorage: Ipswich Beacon Marina

Date(s) of visit: 05/10/2023 – 14/04/2024 (winter mooring + 2 weeks)
Boat length: 28ft
Boat type: Sailing yacht
Boat name: Sudana
Crew: Two persons and one cat

Ipswich Beacon Marina (previously Ipswich Haven) is a liveaboard-friendly marina just a stone’s throw away from the town centre. Image credit: Instagram @pscopywriting

Price

We stayed in Ipswich over winter, enjoying the benefits of affordable winter rates on a 90-day stay. For our vessel, it cost £250 for 90 days. In April, we moved onto standard visitor rates, which are charged at £3.44 per metre per night (including electric), £17.98 per metre per week, or £58.68 per metre per month for 2024.

You can also benefit from a short-stay for just £10. This covers you for up to 4 hours, plenty of time to refuel, reprovision, and stretch your legs.

You can find a full list of Ipswich Beacon Marina prices on the website or contact the marina directly by telephone – 01473 236644 or email – ipswichbeacon@abports.co.uk.

The price list for Ipswich Beacon Marina can be found on their website or by contacting the marina office. Image credit: https://www.beaconmarinas.co.uk/media/z3se1ltu/abp-ipswich-price-lists.pdf

Access

Ipswich Marina is located up the Orwell River and is secured behind a lock. The lock operates 24/7, 365 days a year, and there is usually at least one lock in/out every hour. If you miss your opportunity to enter the lock, there is a waiting pontoon nearby. However, be aware that a large shipping vessel often uses this, so you may wish to contact the lock keeper and/or marina if you intend to wait there.

Because the marina is located up the river, the passage into Ipswich is relatively straightforward. Normal sailing rules apply: stick to the starboard and be aware of other water users. There are several mooring fields as you make your way up, which offer a welcome break for sailors coming in after a long passage. However, they’re not particularly sheltered, and large vessels travel up the Orwell regularly, so you might be in for a bumpy night.

One thing to note when visiting Ipswich by boat is that, even during free-flow, vessels must radio “Ipswich Lock” on VHF channel 68 15 minutes before or when passing under the Orwell Bridge. Ipswich Marina can then be called on channel 80 to arrange a birth.

The lockkeepers are very helpful and will guide you the rest of the way up the river. It will always be a starboard-to mooring when coming into Ipswich (unless it’s incredibly busy), as there’s only one pontoon, and the other side is a wall. When we arrived, they had the gates open and ready for us, but a traffic light system must be observed when entering the lock.