2017 January February Marina World

MARINA FOCUS
to be successful – particularly those
in Italy – they must collaborate. He
believes Italian marinas can gain more
visibility and increase in value if they
merge services. In his words: “Ports
in the future must have quality – and
they must be part of a network.” The
relationship between the authorities
and marinas is also important;
Marina Cala de’ Medici takes pride
in opening dialogue between ports
and government on legislative and
fundamental aspects affecting port
management.
Award-winning facilities
The marina’s extensive services and
facilities have been recognised by the
MaRINA Excellence classification from
Registro Italiano Navale, receiving five
‘wheels’ – equivalent to five stars for
hotels. It shares this certificate with just
one other marina in Italy, Porto Lotti in
La Spezia (see Marina World Nov/Dec
2016). It has also been awarded the ’24
Plus’ classification from MaRINA for the
services it provides to superyachts and
megayachts.
Facilities include a 3,000m²
(32,292ft²) shopping village inside
the port, containing a large variety of
shops, restaurants, bars, a gym and
newly-opened spa, a yacht club and a
shipyard. Marina staff take protection
and security seriously: an internal
elbow-shaped seawall protects the port,
staff help visitors moor promptly around
the clock, while security guards man
the port area on a 24-hour basis and
32 latest-generation security cameras
monitor the entrances, steps and jetties.
At the entrance to the port, on the
lee breakwater, there is a fuel station
providing unleaded petrol and diesel
every day. Dockside pedestals provide
two-phase and three-phase electricity
along with drinking and non-potable
water.
For sports fans, the marina will soon
open an area dedicated to sports,
offering lessons and practice in sailing,
diving, windsurfing and kitesurfing.
Additional services provided include
a laundry, internal and external
boat cleaning, checking of tops and
fenders, mooring, staircase cleaning,
underwater works, storage and porter
services, maintenance box building,
electrical and mechanical assistance,
routine maintenance, lift service, sale of
outboard motors, insurance, ship’s logs,
on-board sail service and more.
The marina continually strives to
improve the service it offers. Work has
recently begun on a new area, which
will provide a laundry space and a
comfortable waiting room, with hot
beverage and snack vending machines.
It has also started revamping its
existing lodging
facilities, with
plans for
seven more.
These modern,
well-equipped
lodges will
welcome guests
arriving on foot,
not just those
who moor up at
the marina. The
lodges currently
in place
include a loft
with five beds
and two small
two-bedroom
apartments.
These can be rented on a short or
long-term basis and include the use of
most marina services. A shuttle service
between the airport and marina is
available on request.
Modern mooring
The marina has recently launched a
new Internet portal and associated app
designed to speed up service for both
visitors and permanent residents. The
portal is divided into the sections of
the port – shopping village, yacht club
and shipyard – allowing news to be
communicated quickly. It allows visitors
to book mooring, on-board services,
electric cars and tables at participating
restaurants from the comfort of their
computers. It also provides updates on
weather conditions in real-time, utilising
images transmitted by a webcam,
with sea and wind forecasts provided
by the Lamma Service. Users are not
restricted to the computer; a dedicated
Marina Cala de’ Medici app, offering
the same service as the portal, is
available on the Google Play and Apple
app stores. Users of the app can even
request the services of mechanics or
cleaners from the marina’s port service.
One section of the portal is reserved
specifically for members. It can
be accessed via a members-only
restricted area and allows users to
view information about their accounts
and report any problems related to
their berths. Through this, each job
performed by employees of the marina
can be monitored or assessed by its
members.
The app is currently only in the Italian
language, but a spokesperson said an
English version would soon be rolled
out.
Clean, modern facilities enhance comfort
for berth holders and crew members.
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