Report on price increases: Will sailing soon be too expensive? Part 1: Moorings
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Mooring prices are exploding in some places. As already reported in YACHT 01/2022, the contracts of permanent berth holders at the Hohe Düne marina in Warnemünde were initially terminated in the autumn. The reason for this was a change of operator; the new landlord is Yachthafenresidenz Hohe Düne GmbH. And in future, it will charge around 20 per cent more for the seasonal berth. A berth for a 36-foot yacht will now cost 2,832 euros in 2022 instead of the previous 2,352 euros - almost 500 euros more.
"This is the first price increase in five years," explains the port's old and new Managing Director Silke Glomm. She points to a "high general price increase" as well as the rise in the minimum wage, which of course "pushes all wages up further". This has nothing to do with the new operator of the marina, which also owns a luxury hotel - the change has "organisational reasons".
However, the berth holders do not feel that they have been given a voice in this price round, on the contrary. All they received was a dry letter with not a word of explanation. Moving to another harbour is not an option: as a result of the enormous increase in demand, berths are in short supply almost everywhere on the German Baltic coast. As a result, most of those affected have to accept the price increase.
Berth holders at the Ancora Marina in Neustadt had a similar experience. Shortly before Christmas, the management informed them, partly via the website, that the previous electricity supplier had announced that it would cease supplying the marina from 1 January 2022. "This news is due to extremely rising procurement costs," it says.
He continues: "The bitter consequence for us as a marina and marina operation is a cost increase of almost 300 per cent on the previous electricity costs from 1 January 2022. We therefore have no choice but to raise the prices for summer berths in 2022 by a total of 8.8 per cent in the short term."
Here, too, the offered deadline extension for a berth cancellation until 15 January will be of little help; where else to put the boat?
Especially as owners elsewhere are experiencing or at risk of experiencing a similar situation. "We also have to increase prices for some of our ports, by eight to twelve per cent, but only in Schleswig-Holstein," says Hans Jaich. He is Managing Director of the marina chain "Im Jaich", which operates seven harbours on the Baltic Sea alone, from Flensburg to Rügen. There was already an adjustment in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania last year. "But I have to say that we haven't had an increase for several years," says Jaich. This is now necessary in order to maintain the maintenance status of the facilities and, last but not least, to be able to pay the staff appropriately. In addition, other costs for port operators have also risen sharply. Jaich: "In some ports, the rent for the water area has been increased by up to 25 per cent."
Elsewhere, there are no increases - yet. At the port of Kiel-Schilksee, for example, only day berths for guests and pitches on land will be around five per cent more expensive in 2022; permanent berth holders will pay the same as before. However, Managing Director Philipp Mühlenhardt says: "We cannot rule out the possibility that a further price adjustment will be necessary." Harbour operators on the fjord are also struggling with the rising costs of energy and repairs, as well as the additional work caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The same applies to Marina Boltenhagen. Prices there will remain stable in 2022 - although they had already risen by six per cent last year. The Baltic Bay Marina in Laboe is also exercising restraint: no price increase for long-term guests in 2022. As in Kiel, only day guests will be asked to pay more.
Have prices also been increased in your marina? Please send us the facts by e-mail to mail@yacht.de
