Princess Y8083'8"
View Specs & ReviewThirteen vacancies above 51 feet, harbour-wide
Yachting in Marina del Rey
A Minted Location · Marina del Rey, California
In Marina del Rey the boat is the easy part. The berth is the whole problem.
You cannot anchor here. The County states it in two flat sentences: "Anchoring is not permitted." and "Mooring buoys are not available." Federal regulation designates a special anchorage in the main channel and hands local control to the County, which has used it to close the option. Outside the jetties, 33 CFR 162.200 adds that "vessels shall not anchor within the area at any time without permission except in an emergency."
So every overnight stay in Marina del Rey is a slip or the County's guest dock. There is no third option.
And the slips are scarce in exactly the size a buyer wants. The County's own Slip Vacancy Report bands vacancies as 17–25, 26–35, 36–50 and 51-plus feet — with a grand total of 79 / 117 / 100 / 13 across 22 reporting parcels.
Thirteen vacancies harbour-wide in the entire 51-foot-and-up band, against 296 below it.
Set the honest ceiling at 86 feet for homeporting and 200 for visiting. The County-operated anchorage publishes "253 single berth slips, and 11 end-ties, in sizes 45.5′ to 86′" — 264 berths in the 45.5-to-86-foot band, the deepest bench of big-boat berthing in the harbour. Above that, one operator on the main channel takes superyachts, with power configurable to 480 volt three-phase at 200 amp and, decisively, "No Harbor Pilot is required."
LA County calls this "North America's largest human-made small craft harbor"; NOAA describes it as "a large manmade small-craft harbor." Either way, it is a harbour of roughly 4,600 slips where the berth is the thing you plan around.
Where to keep a yacht in Marina del Rey
The harbour is a County master leasehold — 804 acres, 403 of them water, across eight basins A to H, with two miles of main channel a thousand feet wide, three miles of side basins six hundred feet wide, and 2,340 feet of offshore breakwater. It was dedicated on 10 April 1965.
Published capacity runs in a band rather than to a single number. LA County's harbours department gives "over 4,600 boat slips in 23 marinas"; the County's history page gives "from 4,500 to 4,800"; NOAA gives "capacity for over 6,000 pleasure craft." Plan on roughly 4,600 berths across 23 marinas.
Anchorage 47 is the County's own, and it is the big-boat inventory. "253 single berth slips, and 11 end-ties, in sizes 45.5′ to 86′" — permit berths only, with a free 24-hour pump-out. Two hundred and sixty-four berths in the 45.5-to-86-foot band, and it is the only anchorage the department manages itself.
Above 86 feet, one operator on the main channel carries the market. It offers long-term berths at 55, 60 and 70 feet plus short-term "mega yacht slips", with power configurable across 125, 208, 240 and 480 volts, three-phase, at 100 and 200 amp, 1 Gbps hardwired internet — and the line that matters most to a visiting captain: "No Harbor Pilot is required." Its size is published two ways: the County lists "slips for boats up to 200 feet", the operator "up to 100-meters and 15-foot draft", roughly 328 feet. Plan against 200 feet and confirm anything larger with the dockmaster before you sail. The same facility is the harbour's fuel dock, with red dye diesel, high octane and regular, up to 60 gallons a minute across eight hose locations, and mega-yacht bunkering.
The County's only public transient dockage is at Burton Chace Park, on the main channel with 110V, water, restrooms, showers, Wi-Fi and a dog run. $1.25 per foot per night with an 8-foot minimum, check-in and out at noon and $10 an hour late, plus a free four-hour zone. "NO RESERVATIONS ARE TAKEN" — it is first come, first served, with a maximum of seven days in any 30-day period. The only length guidance is "vessels over 50 feet must contact the park staff before mooring", so call the park before you plan around it.
The private leasehold operators settle their terms on the telephone. One publishes "slips range from 21-60 feet in addition to a limited number of end ties" on all-new concrete docks. Another lists dinghy docks and transient slips, charges the greater of slip or vessel length with a four-foot maximum overhang, and dry-stacks boats to 28 feet. For the rest, rates, lengths and availability come from the marina office rather than a web page — call the ones in the basin you want.
Service tops out at 100 tons, and two sources agree. One yard publishes "three advanced travel lifts—35 ton, 75 ton, and the specialized 100 ton lift", operating since 1969. A second full repair yard has slips and new concrete docks with 30 and 50 amp. NOAA puts the ceiling the same way: "There are two boatyards in the harbor… The largest lift can handle vessels to 100 tons." One hundred tons is roughly an 80-to-85-foot planing motoryacht — which lines up neatly with the 86-foot homeporting ceiling, so berthing and service here match.
The three yacht clubs take visiting yachts by arrangement rather than by published terms — slip availability, maximum length and reciprocal courtesies are all settled on a call.
County dry storage is capped at 40 feet for a powerboat and 31 feet mast-up for a sailboat.
The scarcity that proves the market
The County's own Slip Vacancy Report bands vacancies at 17–25, 26–35, 36–50 and 51-plus feet, with a grand total of 79 / 117 / 100 / 13 across 22 reporting parcels.
Thirteen vacancies harbour-wide above 51 feet, against 296 below it. Big slips here are the scarce commodity — and in a harbour where anchoring is prohibited outright, a slip is not a convenience, it is the entire proposition.
Marinas
| Name | Where | Max yacht | Slips | Fuel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage 47 (County-operated)"253 single berth slips, and 11 end-ties, in sizes 45.5′ to 86′" — 264 berths in the 45.5-to-86-foot band, and the deepest bench of big-boat berthing in the harbour. It is also the only anchorage the County's harbours department manages itself. | Marina del Rey | 86 ft | 264 | Free 24-hour pump-out |
| Del Rey Landing · Del Rey FuelSuperyacht transient berthing on the main channel. Long-term berths at 55, 60 and 70 ft plus short-term mega yacht slips, with power configurable across 125, 208, 240 and 480 volts, three-phase, at 100 and 200 amp, 1 Gbps hardwired internet — and decisively, "No Harbor Pilot is required." Size is published two ways: the County lists "slips for boats up to 200 feet", the operator "up to 100-meters and 15-foot draft", roughly 328 ft. Plan against 200 ft and confirm anything larger with the dockmaster. | Main Channel | 200 ft | — | Red dye diesel, high octane and regular; up to 60 gpm across eight hose locations; mega-yacht bunkering |
| Burton Chace Park Guest DocksThe County's only public transient dockage, on the main channel with 110V, water, restrooms, showers, Wi-Fi and a dog run — and a short walk from the restaurant row. The only length guidance published is that "vessels over 50 feet must contact the park staff before mooring", so call the park before you plan around it. | Main Channel | — | — | Pump-out only — free, 24 hours |
| The County master leasehold804 acres — 403 water and 401 land — across eight basins, with two miles of main channel a thousand feet wide, three miles of side basins six hundred feet wide, and 2,340 feet of offshore breakwater. Dedicated 10 April 1965. Published capacity runs in a band: "over 4,600 boat slips in 23 marinas" from the County's harbours department, "from 4,500 to 4,800" from its history page, and "capacity for over 6,000 pleasure craft" from NOAA — plan on roughly 4,600. LA County calls it "North America's largest human-made small craft harbor." | Eight basins, A to H | — | 4,600 | — |
| The Slip Vacancy ReportThe market signal, and it is the County's own document. Vacancies are banded 17–25, 26–35, 36–50 and 51-plus feet, with a grand total of 79 / 117 / 100 / 13 across 22 reporting parcels. Thirteen vacancies harbour-wide above 51 feet, against 296 below it. In a harbour where anchoring is prohibited outright, a big slip is not a convenience — it is the entire proposition. | Harbour-wide | — | — | — |
| The leasehold marinasOne publishes "slips range from 21-60 feet in addition to a limited number of end ties" on all-new concrete docks. Another lists dinghy docks and transient slips, charges the greater of slip or vessel length with a four-foot maximum overhang, and dry-stacks boats up to 28 feet. For the rest, rates, lengths and availability come from the marina office rather than a web page — call the ones in the basin you want. | Basins A to H | 60 ft | — | — |
Yacht clubs
| Name | Where | Max yacht | Slips | Fuel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The yacht clubsThe harbour's three clubs take visiting yachts by arrangement rather than by published terms. Slip availability, maximum length and reciprocal courtesies are all settled on a call, so phone ahead before you plan around a club berth. | Marina del Rey | — | — | — |
Figures are as each facility publishes them on its own site; blank cells mean the facility doesn't state a number. Confirm slip availability and current rates directly — or ask us to make the calls.
Cruising from Marina del Rey
Start with what you cannot do, because it defines the market.
33 CFR 110.111 designates a special anchorage in the main channel, bounded by four coordinates — and carries its own note: "The Marina del Rey Harbor Master, Los Angeles County, prescribes local regulations for mooring and boating activities in this area."
⚠️ Exercising exactly that authority, the County states: "Anchoring is not permitted." And: "Mooring buoys are not available." Outside the jetties, 33 CFR 162.200 covers the water shoreward of the offshore breakwater and the most seaward 1,000 feet of the entrance channel: "Vessels shall not anchor within the area at any time without permission except in an emergency."
There is no usable anchoring in or immediately outside Marina del Rey. Every overnight stay is a slip or the Burton Chace guest dock. That is a genuine market constraint, and it points buyers straight at berth-secured ownership.
The entrance. Coast Pilot: "A detached breakwater parallel to the shore is just to seaward of the jetties protecting the entrance channel." A dredged entrance channel leads northeast about 0.7 mile, then the harbour channel continues north about 0.6. There are two openings between the jetties and the detached breakwater, and the chart is the best guide. A mariner-radio-activated sound signal sits at the north jetty light — key the microphone five times. The channel for it is published two ways: Coast Pilot and the County's web page say 81A; the County's Boater's Guide, revised 2 November 2025, says "clicking a VHF radio on channel 83 five times." Try both on approach.
⚠️ The County's entrance advisory is the practical one: "Shoaling conditions can exist at both north and south jetties. Shoal buoys have been placed… and boats should not pass inside marked buoys." · *"Anchored vessels adjacent to Marina del Rey entrance pose another hazard to navigation in reduced visibility."* · *"During the winter months, you can expect very low tides."*
The County publishes the average harbour depth as "15-21 feet." Tidal datums come from Santa Monica, which Coast Pilot places 3.5 miles northwest: MHHW 5.43 · MHW 4.69 · MSL 2.79 · MLW 0.93 · MLLW 0.00. Great Diurnal Range 5.43 feet, mean range 3.76.
A 5.43-foot range against a 15-to-21-foot average harbour depth is exactly why the County flags very low tides at the jetties in winter.
County rules, verbatim: "Maximum Harbor Speed: 5 nautical miles per hour – NO WAKE ZONE" · "Marina del Rey is a NO DISCHARGE HARBOR!" · "Vessels shall not extend over 4 feet from the vessel's dock slip." · "Only minor emergency repairs and normal wash-downs are allowed on vessels in slips." · "Noise must be kept to a minimum between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m." The Harbor Master is the LA County Sheriff, on VHF-FM 16, 24 hours.
Offshore, the published distances are Coast Pilot's: Catalina lies "18 miles south of Point Fermin" and the San Pedro Channel is "about 17 miles wide", with year-round ferry and helicopter service running to Marina del Rey.
- Anchoring is prohibited — Marina del Rey and its approachesThe defining constraint of this market. Federal regulation designates a special anchorage in the main channel — and the same regulation notes that "the Marina del Rey Harbor Master, Los Angeles County, prescribes local regulations for mooring and boating activities in this area." Exercising exactly that authority, the County states: "Anchoring is not permitted." And: "Mooring buoys are not available." Outside the jetties, 33 CFR 162.200 adds that "vessels shall not anchor within the area at any time without permission except in an emergency." Every overnight stay here is a slip or the guest dock.
- The entrance and its shoal buoys — The entrance channelA detached breakwater lies just seaward of the jetties, with two openings between them; the chart is the best guide. The County's advisory is the operative one: "Shoaling conditions can exist at both north and south jetties. Shoal buoys have been placed… and boats should not pass inside marked buoys", and "anchored vessels adjacent to Marina del Rey entrance pose another hazard to navigation in reduced visibility." The sound signal channel is published two ways — Coast Pilot and the County's web page give 81A, the County's Boater's Guide gives channel 83. Try both.
- Harbour depth and the winter tides — Marina del Rey"The average harbor depth in Marina del Rey is 15-21 feet", published by the County. Tidal datums come from the station 3.5 miles northwest, giving a great diurnal range of 5.43 feet and a mean range of 3.76. A 5.43-foot range against a 15-to-21-foot average depth is exactly why the County warns that "during the winter months, you can expect very low tides."
- County harbour rules — Marina del ReyVerbatim: "Maximum Harbor Speed: 5 nautical miles per hour – NO WAKE ZONE" · "Marina del Rey is a NO DISCHARGE HARBOR!" · "Vessels shall not extend over 4 feet from the vessel's dock slip" · "Only minor emergency repairs and normal wash-downs are allowed on vessels in slips" · "Noise must be kept to a minimum between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m."
Service, refit & supplies
Shipyards & refit
| Name | Where | Max yacht | Dockage |
|---|---|---|---|
| The 100-ton ceilingOne yard publishes "three advanced travel lifts—35 ton, 75 ton, and the specialized 100 ton lift", operating since 1969. A second full repair yard has slips and new concrete docks with 30 and 50 amp. NOAA puts the ceiling the same way: "There are two boatyards in the harbor… The largest lift can handle vessels to 100 tons." One hundred tons is roughly an 80-to-85-foot planing motoryacht — which lines up neatly with the 86-foot homeporting ceiling, so berthing and service here match. | Marina del Rey | — | — |
Chandleries & specialty suppliers
- County dry storage — Marina del ReyCapped as published: 40 feet for a powerboat and 31 feet mast-up for a sailboat. The launch ramp is open 24 hours at a flat $15 per 24 hours.
On the Marina del Rey calendar
Marina del Rey is year-round, and the rate cards prove it rather than assert it. No seasonal rate structure exists anywhere in the harbour. The fuel dock is "Open Every Day. Summer: 7am – 6pm. Winter: 7am – 5pm" — winter is a one-hour change, not a closure. Burton Chace runs one rate, $1.25 per foot per night, with no high or low season and no seasonal minimum, and its office is open 08:00–20:00 daily except holidays. Pump-outs are 24 hours, free, year-round at three locations. The launch ramp is open 24 hours at a flat $15 per 24 hours.
The only seasonal note in County material is navigational: "During the winter months, you can expect very low tides."
Dated events:
- Marina del Rey Holiday Boat Parade — Saturday 12 December 2026. Burton Chace activities 16:00–20:00, lightshow 17:45–18:00, parade 18:00–20:00. The organiser describes it as being in its 63rd year; LA County's listings show the 63rd parade on 13 December 2025, which would make December 2026 the 64th. Confirm the date with the organiser before you plan a passage around it.
- Marina del Rey Summer Concert Series — "now in its 26th year", at Burton Chace Park, and audible and visible from the guest docks, which is a genuinely useful thing to know if you are berthed there.
- WaterBus — the seasonal harbour water taxi, running 19 June to 7 September.
- Chace Park Walking Club — Tuesdays and Thursdays 10:30–11:30, year-round.
Race and regatta dates are set by the organising clubs — confirm them directly with the organiser. The County's hours and the dates above are what actually change a trip.
Yachts we'd shortlist for Marina del Rey
Reviewed the same way as everything on this site — specifications verified against the builder's own numbers.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the largest yacht that can berth in Marina del Rey?
Set the honest ceiling at 86 feet for homeporting and 200 feet for visiting. The County-operated Anchorage 47 publishes 253 single berth slips and 11 end-ties in sizes 45.5 to 86 feet — 264 berths, and the deepest bench of big-boat berthing in the harbour. Above that, one operator on the main channel takes superyachts; the County publishes slips there for boats up to 200 feet, while the operator publishes up to 100 metres, roughly 328 feet. Plan against 200 feet and confirm anything larger with the dockmaster. Service tops out at 100 tons, which NOAA states as well.
Can you get a guest berth in Marina del Rey without a reservation?
You have to, because reservations are not accepted. The Burton Chace Park guest docks are the County's only public transient dockage, first come first served, with the County stating "NO RESERVATIONS ARE TAKEN." The rate is $1.25 per foot per night with an eight-foot minimum, check-in and out at noon and $10 an hour late, plus a free four-hour zone. Maximum stay is seven days in any 30-day period. The only length guidance is that vessels over 50 feet must contact park staff before mooring, so phone ahead.
How hard is it to get a big slip in Marina del Rey?
Very. The County's own Slip Vacancy Report bands vacancies at 17–25, 26–35, 36–50 and 51-plus feet, with a grand total of 79, 117, 100 and 13 across 22 reporting parcels. That is thirteen vacancies harbour-wide in the entire 51-foot-and-up band, against 296 below it. In a harbour where anchoring is prohibited outright and there is exactly one public transient dock, a big slip is not a convenience — it is the whole proposition.
Can you anchor in Marina del Rey?
No. Federal regulation designates a special anchorage in the main channel but expressly hands local control to the Los Angeles County Harbor Master — and the County has used that authority to close the option, stating plainly that anchoring is not permitted and mooring buoys are not available. Outside the jetties, 33 CFR 162.200 adds that vessels shall not anchor within the area at any time without permission except in an emergency. Every overnight stay in Marina del Rey is a slip or the County's Burton Chace Park guest dock.
Is there dock-and-dine in Marina del Rey?
Only for tenders. Every published dock-and-dine dock in the harbour is a tender dock: the largest is 60 feet with a two-hour limit, one seawall dock caps at 12 feet with a four-hour limit, and a third allows two hours with no overnight mooring. One of those docks has its channel face closed to private boats entirely. Practically, a 50-foot boat cannot tie up at a restaurant here. The real answer is the County's Burton Chace Park guest docks — $1.25 per foot per night or free for four hours, a short walk from the restaurant row.