Cowes Harbour is situated off the south coast of England, at the heart of The Solent and the tip of the Isle of Wight. It is the largest town on the island and its main port. Hosting the UK's premier Cowes Week and the Round the Island Race, the harbour boasts ample berthing facilities for a large number of visiting vessels. The town offers moorings, walk-ashore pontoons, mid-river pontoon berths, and full-service marina berths. The marinas are individually detailed; here, we explore the additional berthing options provided by the Cowes Harbour Commissioners as well as the story of Cowes.

Cowes Harbour berths offer a wide range of protection. All the moorings outside are exposed to the north. Berths facing the inner fairway are subject to the wash from the busy harbour fairway. The inner marina berths and river pontoon berths, however, provide complete protection should it be required. Safe access may be had in all reasonable conditions, day or night and at all tide stages.

Keyfacts for Cowes Harbour Commissioners

Position and approaches

Haven position

50° 45.991' N, 001° 17.959' W

This is the northwest end of the Trinity Pontoon

What are the key points of the approach?

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What's the story here?

Cowes is the Isle of Wight's principal port and largest town. The town stands on both sides of the entrance to the River Medina and Cowes, which is located on the west bank, facing the much smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The Port Authority is the non-profit organisation of the Cowes Harbour Commissioners. It controls the area bounded to the north by lines joining Egypt Point to Prince Consort Light-buoy and a position about 400 metres north by northeast of Old Castle Point. The southern limit is at Folly Point, beyond which the Medina Borough Council's Marine Authority controls all river berths.




Cowes Harbour and the River Medina are home to four marinas: Cowes Harbour Shepards Marina , Cowes Yacht Haven , East Cowes Marina and Island Harbour marina. All the marinas are covered separately and individually. Cowes Harbour Commissioners run Shepards Marina.




Town Quay (maximum 9 metres LOA) and Trinity Landing Short-Stay Rate is £1.68 per metre, and the overnight rate is £3.10 per metre of yacht per day [2025], but visitors should anticipate that prices will rise during events. However, there are less expensive alternatives if you wish to stay outside a marina. Between Shepards Wharf Marina and Cowes Harbour Moorings, Cowes Harbour Commissioners can accommodate vessels of up to 30 metres LOA carrying drafts of up to 4.5 metres. They also own and license the majority of moorings on the River Medina up to the Folly Inn. This includes 4,300m of pontoons, 276 swinging moorings and 40 pile moorings that can accommodate vessels with a draught up to and including 4.5 metres Annual Moorings Location Chartlet .




Vessels wishing to berth at any of the Cowes Harbour Commissioners' berths should contact the duty Berthing Master on Ch. 69 [Cowes Harbour Radio]. It is advisable to contact the harbour office in advance and make arrangements regarding an intended stay. The Cowes Harbour Moorings team, operating from Cowes Harbour Shepards Marina, allocate permanent moorings for the Cowes Harbour Commissioners. They may also be contacted as follows: Moorings +44 1983 293952, Ch. 80 call sign [Shepards Wharf], shepards.chc@cowes.co.uk.




During large-scale sailing events like Cowes Week, Round the Island Race and other regattas, visitors should expect tariffs to increase as resources overrun demand. It is essential to book well in advance to secure a berth during these times.

Anchoring is, however, prohibited in the area controlled by the Cowes Harbour Commissioners but permitted in the fairway to the south of the Folly Inn moorings. This area dries out and is only suitable for a vessel approaching it on the rise and taking to the hard. Osborne Bay , situated 2 miles to the East of the entrance to Cowes, provides well-sheltered anchorage from southeast round to west but is somewhat tide-ridden and exposed to wash from large ships.

How to get in?

The guide for Cowes and the River Medina offers a tide timer and sailing directions for the approach and journey up the river to Newtown.

Those approaching Cowes and the River Medina from the west will find that the guide Western Approaches to The Solent and the run-up to Southampton details the methods for entry via The Needles, the Western Solent, including its eastern shorelines to the north and south, and onward to connect with this guide from the west.

Similarly, Eastern Approaches to The Solent and the run-up to Southampton Water describes approaches to the Eastern Solent, the eastern side of the Isle of Wight, and the northeastern coastline, covering the east Solent waters and their shorelines to the north and south, and onward to connect with this guide from the east.




Berth as allocated by the harbourmaster from his launch or as directed by VHF. Mooring options available from Cowes Harbour Commissioners are as follows:

• (i) 'M row' is a line of 10 swinging moorings laid outside and to the west of the Outer Fairway and north of the Grantham Rocks.


• (ii) 'J row', a further line of 10 leisure moorings laid east of the Outer Fairway about a quarter a ¼ mile northeast of the breakwater to cater for special events, such as June's Round the Island Race and August's Cowes Week.


• (iii) Trinity Landing, located just inside the entrance to Cowes Harbour, where for pickup/landing on the outer side or a short stay on the inner side.


• (iv) Town Quay


• (v) The separately covered Cowes Harbour Shepards Marina .


• (vi) Whitegates River Pontoons are located on the eastern side of the fairway, immediately south of the Chain Ferry.

Available from May to October, the 'M row' of swing moorings is marked at the western end by the significant yellow Kingston Marine Services special mark. 'J row' is available from June to September and is marked at the eastern end by the Royal Corinthian race mark. The moorings are focused on larger cruising and racing yachts of between 10 and 25 metres LOA.




Separate from these, Cowes Harbour Commission also lays up to eight rows of day-class event swinging moorings for vessels up to 8 metres in length. These are laid prior to Cowes Classics Week and left in place until the end of August. All the outer moorings require settled conditions to be comfortable and, in all events, will be tide-rode. Moorings can be freely picked up upon arrival, provided Cowes Berthing Master, Ch. 69 call sign [Cowes Harbour Radio], has been notified and authorisation has been granted.




Two hundred metres within the No. 1 and No. 2 buoys, Trinity Landing, focuses on interesting visitors, such as tall ships. It also provides a passenger landing point for visiting cruise ships that anchor in Cowes Roads. A section of Trinity Landing is also reserved for the private use of the Royal London Yacht Club members. When available and at the berthing master's discretion, the fairway side of the pontoon can be used for set-downs / pick-ups, but a vessel should never be left unattended here. The inside northwestern side of Trinity Landing supports drafts of 2.0 metres and may be used for an overnight stay. It has metered electricity and water. Trinity Landing provides walk-ashore access to The Parade in the heart of Cowes. The disadvantage of the Trinity pontoon is that it is exposed to the wash from passing traffic and ferries from the busy fairway. Nor is it protected by the adjacent breakwater from a northerly swell that could make it uncomfortable.




Town Quay lies adjacent to the Red Jet Jubilee Quay terminal in front of the Cowes Harbour Office. The Town Quay pontoons are restricted to, and only suitable for, vessels of up to 7 metres LOA. It is very popular with RIBs and can become extremely busy during the season, with vessels typically required to berth in rafts. A tide gauge is located at Town Quay, and the minimum depth of water alongside the pontoons is the tide gauge height + 0.6 metres. Vessels should keep the 'taxi berth' free as this is reserved and in constant use. Town Quay provides easy, walk-ashore access directly to Cowes High Street.




The Whitegates River Pontoons are situated on the east side of the river above the chain ferry, about a mile from the No. 1 and 2 buoys and deeper in the river. They provide the most comfortable berths.




The 'E' pontoons have between 1.5 and 3.0 metres of water below the chart datum, and vessels should expect to raft up during very busy periods. The pontoons do not have water, electricity, or shore access but are half the price of a marina berth. Land by tender at Town Quay or take a water taxi ashore. Cowes Harbour Taxi Ch. 77 [Cowes Harbour Taxi], +44 7855 767918 during the season or Sally Water Taxi Ch 06 [Sally Water Taxis], +44 7831 331717 all year round.

Why visit here?

Cowes name is believed to have been derived from a sandbank called Westcowe that once existed on the side of the Medina estuary. First noted in 1413, the sandbank was one of two banks that were named after cows because of their humped and rounded shapes. The town of Cowes alternated between being called 'Cowes' and 'West Cowes' until 1895, when it was officially registered as Cowes. Yet the Admiralty continued to use the name 'West Cowes' on its charts until 2015 when it was finally corrected.




But this area was not always called Cowes, and it was first recorded in 1303 as East and West Shamblord. Shamblord in old English means 'ledge or sloping shore', and the name described the landing places on each side of the mouth of the Medina. These landing places would have had small overlooking settlements. These were located on higher grounds further inland and would have amounted to no more than a handful of cottages. It was recorded that a timber defensive structure was constructed on at least one side of the river around this time. This was most likely at East Cowes, or East Shamblord, which at the time had a more significant settlement than Western Shamblord. Today, the two towns lying on opposite sides of the river mouth owe their name and origin to a pair of castles Henry VIII chose to build there.




East Cowes and West Cowes castles were built on either side of the river's entrance points between 1539 and 1540. Once established, the castles were called the 'Cowforts' or 'Cowes' after the sandbank they overlooked. The 'Port Book of Southampton' recorded the 'Cowe' in 1469, and in 1512, the naval fleet victualled at the 'Cowe', indicating that the name was well in use in maritime circles before the construction of the castles. The castles formed part of a chain of castles, including those at Yarmouth, Hurst, Calshot and Southsea, which were built to protect the Solent and the approaches to Southampton and Portsmouth from a series of French incursions, if not outright invasion.




French raids had been occurring for a century and were taking an enormous toll on the islanders. The issue was so significant that the king had to take extraordinary measures to avoid wholesale island depopulation. The protection afforded by these two new strongpoints on the mouth of the River Medina led to the development of small settlements, and the waterfronts and towns began to develop in their shadow. Over time, these new towns took their names from their signature castles of 'West Cowes' and 'East Cowes', and the name Shamblord began to decline and was eventually lost.




Cowes began life in the early 17th century as a fishing village with related boat-building industries. East Cowes was the more important of the two settlements at this time. In 1627, Sir John Oglander noted that he could remember when there were only three or four houses at Cowes. He commented on the potential benefits to the Island of having a new market centre so as not to use Newport's market. Merchant vessels of the time came to find an ideal haven in the harbour to await orders. The harbour was well sheltered, afforded a good anchorage and was more conveniently addressed than the deeper inlets of Southampton or Portsmouth. These ships would ride off Cowes for several weeks in times of war or whilst waiting for favourable winds, and it is believed that West Cowes benefited most from their presence.




Supporting boat-building industries and the town's quays, houses, and alleyways began to extend shoreward to engage the needs of the fleets of merchant vessels. By the end of the 17th century, Cowes had developed extensive watering and re-victualling facilities. The town started to build significant trading links with the American colonies through servicing the merchant shipping. Nevertheless, although rapidly developing at the end of the 17th century, Cowes remained a village centred on a High Street. Its roads on one side, such as Market Hill and Sun Hill, lead off to the farmland surrounding it and on the other side to the quays.




By the beginning of the 18th century, the town was starting to take off. A brisk trade with the American colonies for items such as Virginian tobacco, Carolinian rice and Jamaica ginger began to grow, and a customs office was established. Alongside this merchant activity, the town's shipbuilding industry went from strength to strength, first at East Cowes and then crossing to Cowes. By the middle of the 18th century, the harbour began to specialise in shipbuilding, and quays, houses, and alleyways were starting to develop along the riverfront. By the end of the 18th century, The American War of Independence had broken its colonial trading links. Still, by then, Cowes had transformed itself into a major centre for shipbuilding and could be fully described as an industrial town. Terraces of red and yellow brick houses were built to house the shipyard workers. One of which, JS White's opened in Cowes' Thetis Yard in 1815, gave employment to 5,000 people. Cowes would enter the nineteenth century as the Island's trial town.




By then, the trend for sea bathing in warmer climes had long since taken root in the wealthier sector of society. There were bathhouses in the town, and by 1771, there were two bathhouses, one near the castle and the second in Egypt. The baths were a major attraction that led to Cowes becoming a fashionable watering place. Large mansions were built near the shore as second homes or primary residences of aristocrats, royalty and wealthy industrialists. The combination of its benign climate and the improving comfort of its towns transformed the Isle of Wight into a tourist destination throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.




This was significantly bolstered by the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars that prevented the wealthy from conducting their 'Grand Tour' to the Continent. When, in 1845, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert purchased Osborne House, situated on the opposite side of the River Medina, as their own holiday home, the town became a very fashionable place to live, stay and be seen. The Island's population further increased with the construction of railway lines, which, in the 1860s, made it accessible to many more visitors. By the end of the 19th century, Cowes had shown signs of becoming an entire Georgian seaside resort. Alongside this wealthy sector came the growth of yachting as a leisure pursuit.




The 'Royal Yacht Squadron', originally 'The Yacht Club', was founded in London in 1815 by 42 gentlemen interested in sailing. They intended to have a biannual meeting, one in London and one in Cowes, to discuss the sport of sailing over dinner. Two years later, the keen sailor Prince Regent became a member. In 1820, he was crowned King George IV, and the stage was set for the heyday of Cowes as 'The Yachting Capital of the World.' In 1826, the 'Royal Yacht Squadron', who had assumed the 'Royal' title, organised the first three-day regatta in Cowes. The king signified his approval of the event the following year by presenting a cup to mark the occasion. Bolstered by royal patronage, the event grew into a four-day event known as 'Cowes Regatta', ending with a fireworks display. Early in the 19th century, 'Cowes Regatta' became 'Cowes Week', 'establishing itself as the key event in the sailing social calendar. The Clubs and the Regatta further fed into Cowes' Georgian wealthy sector. Many members of the squadron and retired naval officers built elegant houses to the north of the town that had fine views across the mouth of the Medina and the Solent.




In 1858, the Royal Yacht Squadron moved its premises to the aforementioned West Cowes castle, which Henry VIII built as a fort in 1539. The castle had been decommissioned three years earlier. When the club took over it, they demolished most of the original fort and had the remains substantially remodelled to be 'replete with every comfort and luxury'. Further changes took place in the 1920s and in 1964 when the western range was adapted to accommodate the ladies who were initially only permitted to use the Squadron lawn. The building remains the club's home to this day.




Although there are few remains of the original West Cowes Castle, East Cowes Castle fared less well. It appears to have been built on the Shrape Mud and had to be abandoned shortly after its construction in 1546 when it became derelict. Even though the site had been lost, it is believed to have been on Castle Street.




Lending its name to the world's oldest and largest regular sailing regatta, which occurs annually in the first week of August, Cowes is now considered by all to be the headquarters for sailing in the UK. Steeped in sailing tradition, Cowes is home to many prominent Yacht Clubs. It is, of course, still home to the Royal Yacht Squadron, which remains one of the most prestigious yacht clubs in the world. Their member yachts are permitted to fly the White Ensign of the Royal Navy rather than the typical merchant Red Ensign.




Cowes is also home to the Royal London Yacht Club, which dates back to 1836 and established its base in the centre of Cowes in 1882. The Royal Ocean Racing Club, also called RORC, was established in 1925 and has incorporated Cowes. The Royal Corinthian dates back to 1872 and has one of its two branches at Cowes. Island Sailing Club was founded in 1889 to focus on the racing of smaller boats. It is now the Island's laIsland'sub. East Cowes Sailing Club, founded in 1912 and Cowes Corinthian Yacht Club, established in 1952, are two of Cowes' newer clubs. Gurnard Sailing Club, established in 1931, is located in Gurnard Bay, a mile to the west of the town. The town's clubs and events make it a social hive of sailing activity with many support services. It is truly a town with sailing and performance yacht building and maintenance at its heart.




Today, Cowes is the Island's most significant population area. It remains a busy port and a terminus for the car ferry and fast catamaran service from Southampton. Its pedestrianised High Street offers a vibrant area for shopping. Many independent retailers will be here, offering boutique stores mixed in with nautical stores, quirky gift shops and cafes.




For those who want to explore the town's past, there are local museums where it is possible to examine Cowes and the Isle of Wight. Cowes marine parade makes for a wonderful stroll and can be followed westward, with views over the Solent and the neighbouring village of Gurnard. Cowes and East Cowes seafronts provide excellent vantage points from which to observe many regular sailing events immediately offshore. During these times, thousands of keen sailors, socialites and spectators flock to the town to watch the events and party through the night.




From a sailing perspective, Cowes is a must-visit location. It is geographically at the centre of the Solent and seen as the UK's 'Mecca' of sailing. It receives 30,000 leisure sailors each year, and its ample berths and excellent transport connections make it an ideal gateway to the Island as an island. Catering for every conceivable marine leisure service provides a very convenient 'drop-in' location should a problem emerge on a vessel that needs to be quickly attended to.

What facilities are available?

Trinity Landing and Shepards Wharf Marina pontoons are fully serviced with water and power, and the marina provides its visitors with showers, toilets, and free wireless broadband internet access. Whitegates River Pontoons do not offer any services or walkability ashore. Petrol and diesel are available from Lallow's Boatyard, between Cowes Yacht Haven and Shepards Wharf, or more conveniently at Cowes Harbour Fuels, +44 1983 200716, south of the chain ferry.

The Town Quay has scrubbing berths next to the Harbour Office, and there is a slipway between Thetis Wharf and Shepards Wharf Marina. Cowes offers almost any conceivable marine services or facility a vessel could require. Nearly anything in the marine world can be repaired or rebuilt from the first principles in Cowes. With a population of over 10,000, it is also an excellent location for provisioning.

In transport terms, Cowes is a gateway town for the Isle of Wight, providing berths to two ferry services. Southern Vectis Route 1 is the leading bus service in Cowes. Single-decker buses branded Red 1 serve the Red Jet terminal, whilst route one double-decker serve the M&S Foodhall at Carvel Lane, where the old Cowes railway station was situated. Both run to Newport to take travellers on to other island destinations. The Cowes Chain Ferry, locally known as the Floating Bridge, connects the two towns of Cowes and East Cowes throughout the day. The old and discontinued rail link to and from the island's capital of Newport is now maintained as a cycle path.

With thanks to:

Phil Glover and Matty Jones Folly Berthing Master.