Leaving a bad review of a marina

[Jklotz]

I've had a couple of bad experiences with marinas. One wasn't deep enough and left us sitting in the mud at low tide. The one I'm at today is right off the channel, not in a no wake zone. We are constantly getting waked, several times a minute, by boats up on a plane, sometimes as close as 15 to 20 feet away! My dock lines and my patience are getting a real workout today! In both cases, the facilities and the staff were nice, dockhands helpful and generally didn't have any other gripes. I feel like, if I leave an honest review, it would definitely cost the marina some business. OTOH, I feel like other boaters should know what they are in for if they book there.

I don't like the idea of trashing another persons business. What do you think the right thing to do is in a case like those mentioned above?

 

[mvweebles]

Where do you plan to review? Marine sites such as Active Captain or NoForeignLand (don't know if waterway guide allows reviews)? Or general sites such as Google?

If Google and the marina is even remotely attached to land based business (restaurant for example), I'd be very specific the review is for the marina. I'd probably give each a 3-star (out of 5) and make it clear the facilities and staff are great (if they were), but the wake traffic is constant and can be extreme (or, for the first one, some slips are super shallow and caused your A/C to gum-up). Might mention the holiday weekend so maybe it's worse than normal but very difficult to accept.

I don't view it as trashing someone's business but rather helping the next guest make an informed decision. The marina chose their location and constraints. Nothing wrong with pointing it out.

Peter

 

[3rdOrderEffect]

An honest review isn’t necessarily a bad review. Post your review with the good and bad as you’ve outlined here and apply the star rating accordingly. The next guy who isn’t in the mud or waked all day and night thanks you.

 

[O C Diver]

While I don't generally review marinas or anchorages, I would tell you to be honest. It's easy to give a positive review of the marina (their attributes), while commenting negatively on other boaters waking you at the marina. Essentially, the things they control versus those they can't.

Regarding sitting in the mud, be positive about the marina's better aspects but point out your draft and indicate vessels with your draft may not be happy.

Basically, be fair. You may find the walk to the bathhouse to be excessive, but that's not a reason to give them one out of five stars.

Ted

 

[Jklotz]

Where do you plan to review? Marine sites such as Active Captain or NoForeignLand (don't know if waterway guide allows reviews)? Or general sites such as Google?

If Google and the marina is even remotely attached to land based business (restaurant for example), I'd be very specific the review is for the marina. I'd probably give each a 3-star (out of 5) and make it clear the facilities and staff are great (if they were), but the wake traffic is constant and can be extreme (or, for the first one, some slips are super shallow and caused your A/C to gum-up). Might mention the holiday weekend so maybe it's worse than normal but very difficult to accept.

I don't view it as trashing someone's business but rather helping the next guest make an informed decision. The marina chose their location and constraints. Nothing wrong with pointing it out.

Peter

Waterway guide is usually where I look at marina reviews. Dockwa has them as well.

 

[rgano]

In my view, your audience is the boating public at large. Wouldn't you have rather had the information you now have BEFORE committing to these places?

 

[Frosty]

I don't see honestly reviewing a business as trashing it. Just include the (mostly) good with the bad, as you did in your post. You're relating your experience and I don't see anything wrong with that. It's helpful to other boaters and (if they care), can be helpful to the business so they know where to improve.

 

[Adopo]

Are you still at Palmetto Bay? I have a 70 ft slip in Harbor Town, I think a 61 Outer Reef is in it now but will be leaving soon. I've been by there in the Scout as we have a friend with a home in the locked community of Wexford, and noticed the large passenger boat and others making larger wakes.

I hate irresponsible stupid boaters who make wakes. On a smaller level I got in a shouting match with a local yokel who waked our personal covered floating docks at our lake home yesterday. This can be damaging and very irritating. Nothing like watching aluminum, wood, and cedar shake twist and groan due to a stupid boater. For you and everyone with a big boat, even worse when it's a muti hundred thousand dollar boat you love beating on a dock due to stupid and/or inconsiderate people. And you wonder in no wake zones, when people go the slower optimum speed to make the biggest wake, if they are stupid or just inconsiderate. It is the minority who actually go slow enough to minimize their wakes. Here's a small example the shouting match one was severe. So I would leave the reviews on the sites that matter to boaters, this type of information is helpful.

 

[Don L]

I wish more people would write real reviews (on everything). It gets old finding that places that are average (meaning they meet expectations) have 5 stars where they are really just 3 stars.

 

[Adopo]

I wish more people would write real reviews (on everything). It gets old finding that places that are average (meaning they meet expectations) have 5 stars where they are really just 3 stars.

It's actually entertaining and helpful to read the lower reviews and I particularly like to read the one star reviews. People get creative in writing about their experiences when they are disappointed. And it's really interesting when the finest hotels for instance get one star reviews. I remember the hotel in Milan last September that had a moldy shower and dirty carpet, but the F1 race where Ferrari won at Monza took care of that displeasure.

 

[Shrew]

Review the marina in Active Captain. If there is a lot of wake traffic, I would bet it's mentioned in reviews there.

 

[FWT]

Personally I think reviews are most valuable when the ones posted are old. Update the impressions.

I was in a once-good marina in NC this summer with no current reviews. It never really bounced back after a hurricane some years back. It wasn't a question of remaining damage, though there was some of that at the end of one dock, but a general lack of maintenance and poor management from the Dockmaster who was a nice guy but not up to the job. I chose it on location and might have stayed anyway for that reason, but would have arrived with less expectations.

 

[Frosty]

One more thought: I wouldn't think of it as a "bad review." It's a review. A review ...... reviews the experience. Good and bad, with details.

So your question in a way is "should I leave a review" and to that I say, I think reviews are a good thing -- especially if they are honest and contain detail -- so yes, please do.

 

[lowtidebites]

One more thought: I wouldn't think of it as a "bad review." It's a review. A review ...... reviews the experience. Good and bad, with details.

So your question in a way is "should I leave a review" and to that I say, I think reviews are a good thing -- especially if they are honest and contain detail -- so yes, please do.

Totally agree. Seems these days everyone is trying to avoid hurting one's feelings.

 

[Jklotz]

Are you still at Palmetto Bay?

Yes, I'm at Palmetto Bay, but, to be clear, they have been good. That is not the marina I was referring to. That marina is in Charleston.

 

[Jklotz]

Totally agree. Seems these days everyone is trying to avoid hurting one's feelings.

Yea, but I've been a small business owner for many years. Saying something that will effect other people's businesses negatively is not something I do regularly and without some thought.

 

[Delta Riverat]

Yeah, you're a good guy!

I'm kinda the same way, not a small business guy but I leave good reviews for places I like. The places I don't like get no more visits.

I like reading bad reviews for places I love, I always wonder "what was he thinking or expecting"?

 

[slowgoesit]

Praise the outstanding, and call out the substandard. But for darned sure that your comments are objective, and NOT Subjective.
I tend to ask myself what I would have liked to have known about a marina, restaurant, hotel, etc before I made my decision to patronize their establishment or not.
Try and differentiate between things they have no control over, or are rare occurrences, and things that the DO have control over. ie;

• "The noise from the lumberyard next door was very loud and disruptive from early in the AM to late into the PM every night." or:
• "The smoke from the wildfires made out stay there less than enjoyable."

Obviously the first one, even though they have no control over it, would make me think twice about staying there. The second one was totally out of their hands, and a event that would not make me not book there.

Examples of things the marina might have control over could include:

• Fuel dock was not open during published business hours, and the office staff were very difficult to get ahold of either by phone, radio, or in person, as one person was running the office, monitoring and cleaning the bathrooms, as well as on call to direct and assist boats unfamiliar with the marina with finding their slips, and tying up.
• Docks were not in good repair, numerous power pedestals were in poor state of repair, with rusted, with signs of arcing and overheated plug-ins missing fastening screws and cover plates. The first pedestal they directed us to use didn't work, and when we found one that did work, the voltage was low (102 volts) during periods of peak usage.

Both of the above are items that I would really like to know before we decided to stay at that marina. Both of those items paint a picture of poor maintenance, potential life safety issues, easily provable, and objective.

As a side note, if you are going to leave an honest review like the last one, I would be inclined to take a few photographs that support my review just in case. In today's litigiousness society, it pays to protect yourself.

 

[Jklotz]

As a side note, if you are going to leave an honest review like the last one, I would be inclined to take a few photographs that support my review just in case. In today's litigiousness society, it pays to protect yourself.

I don't know man, I want to do what I can to help my fellow boaters (the struggle is real folks), but I'd, personally, have to draw the line at anything I thought could end up in a lawsuit.

As a side note, the marina in question seems to do a lot of business with the boat club/dolphin tour crowd. In speaking with one of the captains who took out tour groups, he told me his deal was a hefty price for the slip plus half his take. This was on his boat, which he maintains btw. I told him that sounded like a terrible deal, he told me he was happy as a clam. Other marinas in the area charged even more!

 

[DavidU]

I do think an honest objective opinion is valuable to all. Having done small business for 40+ years, I also think the honest opinion may serve the neighbors who live by word of mouth and don’t choose to play “the game”. It’s always good for the customer to choose based on the truth. Hopefully the folks evaluating are level headed, and if they aren’t, it’s transparent to others. Give me the reality

 

[Rigamarole]

I'm half way through an annual contract at a marina. We needed some work done and hired their mechanic's to do it - 3 seperate jobs, with one of the jobs being to fix two generators. The generators still have the original problem with them after two attempts and about $4500 in charges. The other repair I could have done myself in 5 hours - period - move a bilge pump, float switch, and high water alarm 8' in the same bilge area - just to a lower spot. Two 1.5" holes would need to be drilled and sealed. I was billed for 12 hours AND 6 hour of helper labor. I mean, what would a helper do? Nothing. The final one I won't detail but after two months of delays I told them we would get it repaired in another way. Anyway, all this has added up to a BOATT unit and I'm pretty pissed off.

Issue is I can't really make a stink without risking being kicked out. The problem is with the service department, the rest of the staff, the marina in general, and the facilities are at least an 8 or 9. So I also don't know what to do. Wait 6 months I guess.

 

[O C Diver]

I'm half way through an annual contract at a marina. We needed some work done and hired their mechanic's to do it - 3 seperate jobs, with one of the jobs being to fix two generators. The generators still have the original problem with them after two attempts and about $4500 in charges. The other repair I could have done myself in 5 hours - period - move a bilge pump, float switch, and high water alarm 8' in the same bilge area - just to a lower spot. Two 1.5" holes would need to be drilled and sealed. I was billed for 12 hours AND 6 hour of helper labor. I mean, what would a helper do? Nothing. The final one I won't detail but after two months of delays I told them we would get it repaired in another way. Anyway, all this has added up to a BOATT unit and I'm pretty pissed off.

Issue is I can't really make a stink without risking being kicked out. The problem is with the service department, the rest of the staff, the marina in general, and the facilities are at least an 8 or 9. So I also don't know what to do. Wait 6 months I guess.

It's tough to know what marinas with mechanics do repairs well. Usually the marina is the main focus of the front office.

In the future, start with one job and be there when the mechanic is working. After the job is done and paid for, decide whether you were satisfied with the work, you had a good interaction with the mechanic, he didn't mess up your boat, and was the cost comparable to the estimate or atleast tolerable. If not, find someone else.

In the boatyard I used for 30 years, I knew what they were good at, and when to bring in outside help. I had a good relationship with everyone, and was known to tip well. As a result when I explained how I wanted something done, people would listen. When you tell someone how much you appreciate their work because it was done well, and hand them some cash, it makes a difference. They will remember you; want your future business and do it well; so they receive praise and financial appreciation.

Ted

 

[Ilovethec's]

Did you give the marina a chance to take care of your concerns? We are in the hospitality business and regularly make suggestions or fixes that make folks happy. ex: They may have had a deeper slip if you asked or offered a more protected area of the marina. Just a suggestion from someone that has lots of happy customers.

 

[ancora]

I'm confused (as usual), have never been in a marina here in California where they work on boats. We have DIY, mobile mechanics or boat yards to fix boats.

 

[rslifkin]

I'm confused (as usual), have never been in a marina here in California where they work on boats. We have DIY, mobile mechanics or boat yards to fix boats.

At least on the East Coast and in the Great Lakes there are plenty of marinas that are also a boatyard. Particularly in areas where most boats are stored on land for winter. And even for marinas that aren't yards, some have a service department that will do at least some basic work on boats in the water or coordinate outside contractors to come in and do things they can't do in house.

 

[Frosty]

At least on the East Coast and in the Great Lakes there are plenty of marinas that are also a boatyard. Particularly in areas where most boats are stored on land for winter.

Yup. In fact I'd say there are fewer yards that are NOT marinas in the Great Lakes. East coast, as you say, plenty that are both too.

 

[Jklotz]

Did you give the marina a chance to take care of your concerns? We are in the hospitality business and regularly make suggestions or fixes that make folks happy. ex: They may have had a deeper slip if you asked or offered a more protected area of the marina. Just a suggestion from someone that has lots of happy customers.

They did move us inside the T-head, which was better, but not much. Our boat is a bit too big to get much further into the marina than we were. Beyond that, there wasn't much else they could do.