Alghero - Accommodation
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We are currently in Alghero. Free Town Quay “transito” berths are on Banchina Dogana and the Banchina Sanità, the latter is more private with less passing traffic. It’s in the South East Corner, adjacent to the old town. On Dogana you can go either side of the tourist boats, just give the Coastguard/rescue boat a wide berth. Like Chris Meloni says if you don’t use the lines, water, the electricity of the marina concession it is free (marina staff come and check). Tie up alongside, not med mooring. Go to the Coast Guard on the main road opposite Platja de Mer to ask permission and get your “costituto” if you need one. Coast Guard office on Town Quay is only for rescue operations.
The RIBs that greet you at the harbour entrance are touted for the marinas and will tell you Town Quay is full or costs 70 Euros. Keep going and look for your self. You will no doubt meet Christophe, self-appointed guardian of the “free parking” area. He spends his days at the marina, loves to help yachts access the free area and to talk to Anglophones, particularly Aussies. The water in the marina is pretty foul smelling, and there is a big pile of rotting Posidonia on the beach right now – eeewww. Suggest you keep a bucket of fresh water on hand to flush toilet rather than drawing in the water from the harbour.
CARLO MARIA PIERPAOLI:
Questo danno che sta facendo alla società Base Nautica Usai lo pagherà.
This damage he is doing to the company Base Nautica Usai will pay him.
You are not normal!
Base Nautica Usai, Fertilia
We had our boat in winter storage at the Base Nautica Usai for three years (winter 2015 – 2017).
The Base is managed by Cesare and his daughter Carla, with the help of Pietro, a very hard working employee.
This location has several desirable features: it has an airport nearby (Alghero – Fertilia) and there are very nice sailing spots nearby.
Other online reviews mention that there is no security and somebody reported to have had an outboard motor stolen. It is true that there is no security at the Base, but in three years we did not have anything missing from our boat.
For repairs and mechanical services, there is no “in-house” expertise at the Base so one has to find an external contractor.
We found an excellent mechanic, who was originally recommended by Carla Usai. Unfortunately, this mechanic fell out of favour with the owner, Mr Cesare Usai, and was forbidden from accessing the premises when the work on our boat was still unfinished. A colleague of him took over, but it was a stressful situation.
The single main issue for which we can not recommend Base Usai is the owner himself: Mr Usai is short-tempered and unpredictable.
Until this summer he treated our family in a friendly manner and our boat did not suffer damage while in his boatyard, however, this summer (2018), on the day he was scheduled to launch our boat, Mr Usai abruptly decided that the price contractually agreed upon was too low. He presented an additional invoice listing completely bogus charges for 1,750 euros. I was shocked by this behaviour and I asked both him and his daughter Carla to honor their contract. Although Carla appeared embarrassed by the situation she did nothing to solve it. Since I refused to pay these fraudulent charges, I was left for an entire day waiting with the boat out the water. Mr Usai knew that we were on a tight schedule and that we had to leave European waters promptly to satisfy Customs regulations. Mr Usai made clear to my wife that he would not launch the boat until this ransom was paid. He started also making comments about him not feeling well and needing time off, putting additional pressure on her until she was so frightened to be forced to spend several days in that situation that she paid.
I filed a report with the Italian authority denouncing Mr Usai’s extortion and I disputed the charges, but, even if we recover the money, this episode left us sad and frustrated.
Therefore, until Mr Usai retires from the operation of this business, please keep in mind that any contract signed with him or his daughter is not really bonding for him and that he could keep your boat captive until you pay additional money. Unfortunately, the police can not do much to ensure prompt resolution of this situation because a legal procedure needs to be initiated and a judge has to come to the conclusion that the charges are fraudulent and this process may take months.
Advice to all ships… when you want to save money, and you don’t need facilities because you are self-powered, like solar panels, wind generator and watermaker, then the town quay is your best choice. The correct mooring is alongside, in order to not use the laid line (i.e. without using the facilities), then you can stay free of charge. If you need water, there is a water-tap down at the base of the tower on the left side of the harbour. It’s preferred to come here towards the end of September because it’s full of ships during the summer time.
USAI, Fertilia – Please be warned! The prices of Base Nautica Usai are very flexible and interesting – if asked they will say yes to most proposals from your side. I was offered Euro 2’000 for 10 months for an Amel Super Maramu (16m x 4.6m) – July all the way through to April next year, including all taxes, water as well as electricity. The harbour looks very safe if you look at the plan and photos. However there the interesting part ends!
– The mooring lines are not to be trusted, old and derelict.
– Electricity popped the fuse when my battery charger started to work (and only the battery charger) I found another outlet (there are 2 or three in the whole area which takes bigger loads) and plugged in there with written information to the lady of the company – Dottoressa Usai, to never ever unplug this line. It was unplugged two days after I left and never reconnected …
– Nobody has any idea about ships – I asked for several quotations to do things on my ship – never got a quote or a reply
– When asking for a sailmaker, they sent me an upholstery man
– If you stay on the ship it might be okay, however, the mosquitos will kill you as soon as the sun starts to go down!
– They insist that the whole area is protected – however, all doors are always open – and if they should close it does not help as there is no barrier from the public beach to the pontoons. There are always outsiders on the quai for fishing, kids for playing etc.
– They talk about video surveillance – there are some cameras installed but either not working or not attached – their webcam has not been working for years.
– Except the Dottoressa and her father nobody seems to be working there – certainly no skilled personnel. Even on a day during the week, you can find everything (including the office) deserted.
So again – please be warned of this seemingly attractive place to stay and NEVER ever trust the promises of them – each and every fact they promised me proved to be wrong!!
Posted on behalf of Phil Gordon, SY Deliverance:
Do not be put off by the ferocious anchoring restrictions mentioned in the pilot.
Our landfall was Porto Conte (just west of Alghero).
The indication here is that one must use an AMP buoy or use an anchor made of local stone. There were no buoys and yachts were anchoring anywhere in this wonderfully sheltered bay. In Alghero itself, there is a Public Wall where one can stay free of charge for up to 5 days in the heart of this beautiful town.
In the north, there were AMP buoys, but never enough, so yachts simply anchored. No one we spoke to had been charged for an AMP mooring.