Reviews: Palm Cove Marina

Reviewed by: Richard Vaughn , Ocean Lady, on Nov 18, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 50'
Draft: 4.6'

Rating: 3

Great staff but the general manager (not Richard the manager) and I disagreed on who was responsible for some damage to my boat. After spending over $6000 there he wouldn't even offer to split a $300 repair.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Stephanie Malady on Nov 12, 2024
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 35'
Draft: 5.0'

Rating: 4

Be advised that dockage is $2.50/ft and has been since the spring.
Facilities in good working order.
Staff professional and courteous.
No longer providing a grill.
Shallow slips. We've sat on the bottom in low tides.
No grill

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Vaughn Dobalian on Sep 21, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 50'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 2

Marina used to have competitive diesel fuel prices but ever since covid they have never come back down like they used to, same with gasoline. We and many other stopped buying because of this, please go back to a smaller profit on the fuel to encourage more sales!

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Tim Vandersall , Wilma May, on Jun 7, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 3

Kinda pricey but docks are nice, staff is OK, and $10 off of Marker 32 Restaurant (which also is pricey) was nice. The Pool in the 97 degree heat was awesome. Showers and RR's decent, as well as lounge and laundry. Publix not far away but too hot to walk today.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: John Newman on May 16, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 50'
Draft: 4.5'

Rating: 4

$2.50/foot plus $20 for electric (not pleased about that)

We have a 50 foot trawler. This is a nice quiet place. Mark 32 next door is a great restaurant. Can walk to Publix and some restaurants. They have a swimming pool and nice bathroom/shower rooms. However, it is a long walk from C dock.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Keith Palmer , Odysea II, on Nov 10, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 31'
Draft: 3.0'

Rating: 5

Very friendly and helpful staff.
As mentioned on earlier post they charged us for a 40 slip even though we are only 31 feet. The positive was a much long finger pier that made docking easy. Also to offset the slightly higher cost for the slip they gave a $10 coupon for the Marker 32 restaurant, which was actually better than we thought both the food and the service.
We also walked to Publix which was easy as there is a sidewalk.
The shower facility was good. Individual, lockable rooms which is always nice.
The Marina is busy with forklifts and dry storage boats but this really didn't affect our stay.
Also the channel in to the marina is shallow at low tide but there was a dredge operation ongoing so it should get better.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Graeme Walker , Confirmed Aquaholic, on Apr 19, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 54'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Very friendly and courteous staff. Publix across very busy highway. We had a very tricky docking as the only slip available was on the inner fuel dock. This necessitated getting into the small basin and doing a 360, 54' LOA in what feels like a 70' basin, managed to bang our swim platform on the docks and pull out on e of the smallish cleats. Great fine dining at 'Marker 32'.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Leo Reise , Moon Dragon, on Apr 18, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 38'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 1

Tried to make a reservation today and was asked the year of our boat. We have a 1989 Island Gypsy 32, recently survey and insured.
Rely - "I am sorry sir but we do not accept boats over 30 years old!"
They got one star because the person was polite, and suggested the marina across the ICW from.them.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Capt Maria Langer , Do It Now, on Mar 4, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 32'
Draft: 2.5'

Rating: 4

I wound up staying here two nights because of a sick dog. There are two vets within walking distance. There's also a Publix supermarket, a Walgreens, a Starbucks, and a handful of fast food style restaurants. There's a fine-dining restaurant right next door.

You must follow the narrow channel closely when coming in at low tide. It's well marked.

The marina and its facilities were fine. The staff was friendly and helpful. There was some confusion with billing for my second night. Although I was charged $2/ft plus tax for my 32 ft LOA boat when I paid at the fuel dock for the first night, I was charged for 40 feet in the office the next day. They told me they had a 30 foot minimum but since they only had 40 foot docks, they needed to charge me for 40 feet. This still makes no sense to me. I balked. They adjusted the rate to what I'd paid the previous night but did not admit that the 40 foot charge was wrong. They charge $10/night extra for shore power, which seems pretty common around here; I opted to skip it. My advice is to make sure you know what they're going to charge you before you come, especially if your boat is less than 40 feet LOA.

The marina is a working boat yard with a huge storage building filled mostly with small fishing boats. All day long, a pair of forklifts move boats between the water and racks alongside the sea wall and shelves in the building. To make matters worse, there was also a dredging operation nearby that was extremely loud. So the place was noisy during daylight hours the whole time I was there. It's the noise that'll keep me away from future stays.

The place is dog friendly, with a patch of grass between the marina and the restaurant for dogs to relieve themselves.

No-see-ums are a definite problem early in the morning and after sunset.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Mark Kitchens on Oct 20, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 43'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 5

My home marina, floating docks. Low tide entry / exit can be an issue. Great staff and facility. Publix is almost across the street. Reasonable rates.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Bret Butler , Lucy 2, on Apr 23, 2022
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 43'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Great dock hands and staff. Clean facilities and showers. Relatively close to restaurants and groceries. Nice floating docks and relatively well protected. Only concern is our draft is 3'-6" and we were sitting on the mud when at the slip at low tide. Had to time arrival and departure for mid to high tide.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Roger S. on Mar 22, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 42'
Draft: 3.6'

Rating: 5

We came on a mid-falling tide with a southwest wind which made getting into our slip pretty tricky. Our advice is to arrive at or near slack. We left shortly after a -0.31 foot low tide and saw no less than 5.2 feet of water, that just north of red 12. It's a good location with Publix, Walgreens and several restaurants within walking distance. The facilities were clean, laundry $1 per load, the staff was helpful. They have gas and diesel at a mid-range price but we didn't need any. At trawler speed it's only an hour north to the St. Johns River so easy to time the tidal current there.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Patricia And Steven Stanley , Calypso, on Mar 19, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 39'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

The Palm Cove Marina is nice and the friendly staff helped us with lines upon arrival. There are restrooms, showers, laundry, fuel and a restaurant on site. Unfortunately, only 1 of the 3 women's rooms was operational. There are also stores, including a Publix and a West Marine within walking distance.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Michelle Dixon , Sunset , on Jun 2, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 45'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

Great stop along the ICW. We came in with strong ne wind and the docking was not easy for us. Thank you for the great dockhands. Saw nothing lower than 8ft in the channel, fuel dock is easy to get to, West Marine and grocery within a mile. We definitely would be stopping again.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Jim Zeigler on May 3, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 4.5'

Rating: 5

Good stop along the waterway. The channel has been dredged and we showed more that 7 feet at low tide in the middle of the channel. The dock staff are excellent but can be very busy on the weekend with smaller boats housed in the dry storage facility. Respect that they can be very busy. The river outside the channel is wide if you need to wait for them to free up or if another boat is ahead of you. The area opposite the fuel dock is tight, so keep track of other large boat traffic entering or exiting the marina. On the other hand, you may have a rude experience when you call to make reservations, but she does not represent the attitude of the rest of the staff. Very good restaurant adjacent and you are within walking distance of groceries.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Pearl on Mar 26, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 48'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 2

Fuel price is only reason for a 2. Hailed them from the channel all the way in on both 16 and 69 on both of our two installed 25W VHF radios. No answer after 5 hails. Finally had to call on phone to a rude woman who told me my radio was bad and we should check it out. (We've been living on the boat three months, there's nothing wrong with our radios) Said she'd have someone right out, never did. After circling and circling because they have only 1 diesel that is a slow flow pump, the dock hand didn't want to take my line with a cross wind against us "you're too far away" huh?!? That's why I want to throw you a line to hold us at the dock in this swift current and cross wind. Luckily, a customer standing by took our stern line and pulled us in via the cleat. Never again.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: James Morgan , Taurus, on Jul 9, 2020
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 31'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

Excellent marina with first class service and amenities. The staff was great to work with and willing to do anything to help. The floating docks were excellent and well protected. Highly recommend.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Warren Hayes on Nov 19, 2019
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 47'
Draft: 5.0'

Rating: 5

A working marina with a very large storage building. Dock crew had other responsibilities but everyone took the time to help us. Close to grocery shopping and West Marine. Showers well maintained and recently renovated. Channel with about 7 feet around slack tide. Fuel dock easy access. Recommended.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: LinconM on Oct 12, 2019
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 32'
Draft: 6.0'

Rating: 1

Worst customer service! Waited at least 25-30 minutes for someone to come out for fuel. Called and they said they'd be right down but ended up waiting quite some time and then when someone finally came he was extremely rude! Any question asked was like i was asking for a million dollars. And this is not the first time I've encountered extremely rude employers there. Will never be going back. Will be going to Beach Marine across the channel from now on! Much better service there!

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: FloridaVic on May 26, 2019
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Great marina. Very friendly, helpful staff. Clean, well managed. Convenient to grocery & restaurants. However, was told dredged to 6’ at MLW. Departing face dock hit bottom, saw 4’. I draw 3’8”. Just need to plan tides. (At exit goes from 6’ to 20’ instantly).

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: Tim Peeler , LOTUS, on Aug 1, 2018
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 44'
Draft: 4.3'

Rating: 5

Everyone is friendly and helpful. Docks are good, fuel is priced well and the mechanical shop next door (Isle of Palms) is very good and pretty quick. Publix, Walgreens and anything else is within walking distance and a 5-star restaurant next door (Marker 32). These are awesome people and a great facility.

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer

Reviewed by: JP , Northern Pearl , on Mar 17, 2017
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 46'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

Great people to deal with, very clean, quiet. Be careful of your depth, it gets a little low in low tide. i have a 3.5 ft depth and have not had any problems

View location on the Waterway Guide Explorer