We are currently staying in the new marina at Santa Cruz La Palma. The marina is amazingly enough nearly empty. We cannot find a reason or it must be the unfavorable reports in some pilots and this website.

Although undoubtedly true at the time of writing, the surge people complained about is hardly existent. We arrived from the much-praised Quinta do Lorde where a heavy surge made us leave the boat during the day and kept us awake most of the nights. When we left Madeira the sea was slight to moderate at the most. On arrival at La Palma, the swell from the northeast was much worse. Having read the mentioned reports we expected the worst, but once inside the harbor we found a very mellow surge, not nearly heavy enough to make our lines groan. Our French neighbors who stayed here already for over a week told us this was the worst surge they had experienced so far.

The sanitary is more than excellent, spacey showers without those mean taps you have to keep pushing for water. Everything new and clean, as is the whole harbor. Fuel is available from a pontoon inside the harbor. Diesel costs euro 0,74 a liter, compared to euro 1,17 on mainland Spain at the time of writing.

Overlooking the harbor is a nearly completed complex with several shops, two restaurant/bars and an, about to open, SPAR express supermarket. In the same complex is a small but well-stocked chandlery. The pontoons have no access gates but the whole marina complex, including the shops and restaurants, is going to be locked by an immense steel gate at night (being painted at the moment of writing).

Directly outside the harbor terrain is the center of Santa Cruz. A very pleasant well-preserved town, not spoiled by any form of mass tourism. We have yet to discover the Isla Bonita itself, which is said to be unspoiled and beautiful.

Prices are very reasonable. We pay just less than 32 euro including taxes for our 14,5 meters, not yet calculating the 10% discount for noonsite readers. For stays of over a month, a discount of 30% is given.

If we have to mention a negative point it would be the noise of freighters and ferries in the adjacent commercial harbor. But then this is shared with many harbors in the Canaries and elsewhere. For us it’s the first harbor we visited was we might consider leaving the boat for a prolonged period of time.

Gerard Wielenga

SY Gisborg

22/09/2010