Dartmouth

The harbour sits in a steep-sided reach of the River Dart, with Dartmouth’s embankments and old streets on the west bank and Kingswear — steam railway, pubs and the sunny side — on the east. It is a working leisure harbour: ferries cross the channel, Britannia Royal Naval College sits above the town, and in summer the pontoons fill with visiting yachts. Upriver the Dart runs for miles through wooded bends toward Dittisham, Greenway and Totnes — a different, quieter cruise once you leave the harbour proper.

From seaward the entrance is not obvious until you are closer in. The stone Daymark tower on the hill east of the entrance is the usual landmark. Approaches from east and west carry coastal rocks and ledges (including the Mewstone and Homestone areas) — leave the relevant cardinal and lateral marks to the correct hand and keep a good offing until you have identified Castle Ledge.

Dart Harbour sailing directions and the current Admiralty Chart 2253 are the references to use. In outline: leave Castle Ledge buoy (starboard-hand, Fl G 5s) to starboard — it marks the harbour limit and the start of the 6-knot limit — then shape up the entrance leaving Checkstone (port-hand) to port, with Dartmouth Castle to the west and Kingswear Castle to the east. Sectored lights (including Kingswear) assist at night; stay in the published white sectors.

Streams in the entrance seldom exceed about 2 knots either way, except after heavy rainfall or strong northerlies when the ebb can reach about 3.5 knots (DHNA sailing directions). Give way to the lower car ferries (tug-and-float, restricted in ability to manoeuvre) and the chain Higher Ferry; submerged wires exist in the Higher Ferry’s vicinity. Ferries can be hard to spot when berthed high on their slips at high water.

Call Dartnav on VHF Ch 11 for berthing instructions before you commit to a pontoon or buoy. If you are aiming for a private marina, call them on Ch 80 as well once Dartnav has cleared your intentions.

New for 2026, DHNA lets visitors pre-book a limited number of berths up to two weeks ahead. The 2026 visitors page is the authority for that pre-book. Booked or not, the harbour states it still has space when the online slots show full, and that they never turn anyone away. Exact location is confirmed on the day; smaller boats booked on DA may be assigned to the Yacht Club or Double Steps pontoons. Arrive after 19:00 only if you have told the office — otherwise the berth may not be held. Rafting is likely when busy.

Mooring fees are per metre per night, and harbour dues are extra. Confirm the current schedule rather than an old figure. Commercial, sail-training, multihull, large and deep-draught vessels should not book online — call the harbour office on 01803 832337. Vessels needing advice above the online length or draught windows should also call. The harbour lists Town Jetty office capacity up to 60 m LOA / 5 m draft, and Mainstream buoys up to 200 m; confirm both with the office.

Inside Town Jetty is Dartmouth town centre, walk-ashore, with water and electricity included. Online booking is typically 8–18 m, and the max draught for online booking is 1.8 m. An accessible berth with hoist and ramp is available. Larger vessels call the office.

DA Pontoon is on the North Embankment, just south of the Higher Ferry, and is walk-ashore. Water and electricity are not included on the DA line. Online booking is typically 5–14 m, and the max draught for online booking is 2 m.

Deep Water island pontoons are on the Kingswear side, just south of the Higher Ferry. They are not walk-ashore; use the yacht taxi or a tender. Mainstream buoys are fore-and-aft buoys off Dartmouth, also not walk-ashore. The online booking window is listed for larger LOA (14–24 m); call the office for bigger craft.

Visitor pontoons and dinghy landings are marked with blue flags and visitors’ signage. Most harbour mooring buoys are blue; visitors’ swinging buoys are white with a black V. There are no formal visitors’ landing points south of the Lower Ferry (DHNA).

Darthaven Marina is the private marina on the eastern (Kingswear) bank. Darthaven publishes about 270 fully serviced pontoon berths on four sheltered pontoons, with visitor berthing on the main marina or a dedicated visitor pontoon, water and electricity, showers, laundry, Wi-Fi, pump-out, recycling and an on-site chandlery. The marina states access with no tidal restrictions, at all states of tide — confirm approach and berth depths with them before arrival. Telephone 01803 752242, VHF Ch 80. Harbour dues are not included in marina berthing rates. Summer visitor demand is high; call ahead and check the current visitor tariffs on the Darthaven rates page.

Dart Marina, Premier’s Dartmouth Marina, is on the Dartmouth (west) bank above the Higher Ferry area. It offers deep-water serviced pontoons, washrooms, laundry, Wi-Fi and 24/7 secure access beside the Dart Marina Hotel. Visitor space is typically when resident berths are free — Premier asks you to call on arrival or at short notice rather than expecting advance summer reservations. Telephone 01803 837161, VHF Ch 80, [email protected], Sandquay Road, Dartmouth, TQ6 9PH. Reception hours are published as 08:00–17:00 — confirm on the day.

White visitor buoys at Dittisham (18 buoys, marked with max LOA), plus limited buoys at Galmpton, Stoke Gabriel and Bow Creek, are bookable for 2026 via the same visitors page. They are peaceful overnight stops, and a run up toward Greenway or Totnes wants a rising tide. Treat drying reaches and Totnes quays as tide-critical and confirm with Dartnav. This guide stays on Dartmouth and Kingswear harbour berthing.

Water is on the DHNA waste and water pontoon mid-river and on the Town Jetty (bring your own hose), with taps on the embankments by the Yacht Club pontoon and the Dartmouth Grid. Marina berths have water on the pontoon at Darthaven and Dart Marina.

Electricity is included for Town Jetty visitors (inside; the outer edge on summer nights is 17:00–08:45). It is not included on DA, Deep Water or Mainstream in the 2026 booking table. The marinas have shore power on the berths.

Showers, toilets, laundry and Wi-Fi are the full shoreside set at Darthaven and Dart Marina. Town Jetty is the harbour’s premium walk-ashore option, with power and water included.

Waste and pump-out: the mid-river waste pontoon is DHNA’s, and Darthaven lists a blackwater pump-out station.

The yacht taxi is a year-round ship-to-shore service between Noss and One Gun Point. It cannot pick up or drop at Premier Noss on Dart. Harbour-guide material lists it on VHF Ch 69, call sign Yacht Taxi — confirm the channel and the hours with DHNA before relying on it. Operating hours vary by season; see the Dart Harbour yacht taxi page.

Dinghy landing is at Double Steps, Mayor’s Avenue and the Yacht Club pontoons on the Dartmouth side, and at the Kingswear dinghy rack and Darthaven.

Fuel is the MV Dart Crusader fuel barge on the Kingswear side of the main channel — diesel and unleaded. VHF Ch 6, call sign Fuel Barge, telephone 07801 798861. Summer (Easter–30 September) the published hours are daily 08:30–18:00. Winter (1 October–Easter) they are Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 11:00–16:00, closed Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Confirm the current hours.

Darthaven publishes a travel hoist — marina materials cite a 40-tonne hoist available at all states of the tide — plus engineering and chandlery. Confirm capacity and booking with the marina.

Chandlery, engineers, riggers and sailmakers are around the river. Dart Marina notes a full range of professional yacht services close at hand. Always confirm insurance and harbour requirements with DHNA before arrival.

Dartmouth has shops, boutiques, pubs and restaurants along the embankments and up into town, Tourist Information on Mayor’s Avenue, Dartmouth Castle (English Heritage) by walk or ferry, Britannia Royal Naval College tours, the museum and the Newcomen engine. Ferries link to Kingswear, the Castle, Noss, Dittisham, Greenway and Totnes in season.

Kingswear has the passenger and car ferries to Dartmouth, the Dartmouth Steam Railway to Paignton, pubs and cafés on the village side, and Darthaven and Noss for chandlery and berthing.

The Higher Ferry (chain) and the Lower Ferry (tug-and-float) are part of the harbour scenery. Give them room and expect them when you are shaping up the channel.

Dartmouth suits a first West Country night, a town berth, or a tide-planned run upriver.

It is a busy summer harbour, and the drying river above it is a separate plan.

Dartmouth grew as a protected deep-water port behind its castles, later as a Royal Naval training town (Britannia Royal Naval College) and a favourite of visiting yachts. Kingswear’s steam railway and the twin-castle entrance still set the scene. Upriver, Greenway carries the Agatha Christie association; the river’s villages — Dittisham especially — are as much part of the Dart’s character as the town quay.

Start Bay and the coast toward Salcombe lie to the west; Torbay and Brixham to the east-northeast. Portland Bill and Weymouth & Portland sit up-Channel for the passage east. Within the river: Dittisham visitor buoys, Greenway, and a tide-aware trip toward Totnes. Future Old Sea Dogs West Country harbour pages will cover Salcombe, Plymouth, Fowey and Falmouth.

Do not copy tide heights into this guide. Use the official tables, and remember the Dart Harbour forecast graph is in GMT. The conditions panel on the live page is the same wind panel as the other guides; the tide half is these links, as on the Channel Islands harbour pages.

The practical information in this Guide was checked against the source records below on 26 October 2026. Operational details can change — confirm with the harbour office or marina before arrival. Admiralty Chart 2253 is the chart DHNA’s sailing directions refer skippers to.