Gunwharf Quays Marina is situated on the south coast of England, on the eastern side of The Solent, at the centre of Portsmouth's historic naval dockyards. It is a contemporary marina offering immediate access to the city.

Located within The Solent and the protected natural harbour, the marina provides good shelter. However, it can be affected by wash from the busy waterway and swell caused by prevailing westerlies. Safe access is available both day and night, at all tides, and in reasonably good conditions.

Keyfacts for Gunwharf Quays Marina

Position and approaches

Haven position

50° 47.662' N, 001° 6.522' W

This is the southern end of the outer breakwater, adjacent to the entrance, that exhibits a light 2F.G (vert) at night.

What is the initial fix?

This is the commencement of the Portsmouth Small Boat Channel. It runs for just under ¾ of a mile between the outer 4 Bar Buoy, QR, and Ballast Pile, Fl.R.2.5s, and is approximately 50 metres wide throughout its length.

What are the key points of the approach?

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What's the story here?

Portsmouth is the second largest city in Hampshire. When its suburbs and Southsea are included, it covers the entire area known as Portsea Island, making it the only island city in the United Kingdom. The city is renowned as one of the world's major naval bases, with its dockyard located on a large stretch of the east side of the harbour. Formerly a naval yard, Gunwharf Quays Marina is situated in the heart of Portsmouth's Historic Naval Dockyards, now an exclusive shopping area beneath the city’s landmark Spinnaker Tower.




Gunwharf Quays Marina is a spacious marina with ample manoeuvring room that essentially serves as the city's berthing hub. It can accommodate power and sail craft up to 79 metres in length with a maximum depth of 5.5 metres. The marina primarily hosts large-scale sailing events, but it also has several general visitor berths available.





Booking in advance is vital with Gunwharf Quays Marina, not solely for ensuring availability. Portsmouth Harbour's entry and exit are only allowed via the Small Boat Channel along the western side of the fairway. Vessels must remain within the channel for its entire length, exiting only above the Port Ballast Beacon opposite the marina. It is then necessary to obtain permission from the King’s Harbour Master to cross the fairway by contacting [VHF] Ch. 11 for access to Gunwharf Quays Marina on the east side. The King's Harbour Master expects marina berths to be confirmed and will likely refuse permission to cross without this confirmation.




Daily Visitor Berthing [2025] (leaving by 12noon) :

• • 8.0m – 12.0m: £4.45 per metre


• • 12.1m – 15.0m: £4.60 per metre


• • 15.1m – 22.5m: £4.70 per metre


• • 22.6m – 29.9m: £6.15


• • 30.0m +: £9.25

Short Stay Berthing (Up to 4 hours):

• • Up to 12.0m: £1.80 per metre


• • 12.1m – 15.0m: £1.90 per metre


• • 15.1m – 22.5m: £1.95 per metre


• • 22.6m – 29.9m: £2.00


• • 30.0m +: £2.25

Visitor berths must be vacated by noon on the day of departure. Please note a minimum length charge of 8m applies. Multi-hulls may be charged the normal tariff plus 50%.





Contact Gunwharf Quays Marina at least 24 hours in advance on Ch. 80 [Gunwharf Quays Marina], +44 (0)2392 836732, +44 (0)7500 969540. WhatsApp is available on this number. You can also reach them via email gwqmarina@mitie.com or through their web form at the bottom of their homepage. The marina’s opening hours are from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm. However, it is always worth trying on VHF 80 for short-notice requirements.

How to get in?

Coastal guidance, tidal guides, waypoints, and pilotage are available in Navigating Portsmouth Harbour . The Eastern Approaches to the Solent covers southern approaches, while inshore east/west approach guidance can be found in Southampton Water to Chichester Harbour .




On the opposite eastern side of the entrance are the Cambers, a tidal basin accessed just north of Round Tower. It features a 45-metre-wide entrance and offers berths for small ferries and fishing vessels. The Gunwharf Quays Marina will be visible throughout the Small Boat Channel, located beneath the city's landmark Spinnaker Tower.




In all cases, the Ballast Beacon should be kept to port; north-bound vessels leaving it to the west, and south-bound vessels leaving it to the east. The main fairway may only be crossed when north of the Ballast Beacon after gaining permission from the King's Harbour Master, +44 (0)23 9272 3124, [VHF] Ch. 11 [Portsmouth VTS]. The main navigation fairway should then be crossed at right angles, steering directly for the marina when it is safe to do so.




The marina opens to the south adjacent to the southern end of the outer breakwater, which exhibits a light 2F.G (vert) at night, and a signboard on the wall close south. Check all round for car ferry movements in or out of the Town Quay or Cambers before making a final approach.




The entrance to the ferry dock, located just over 100 metres south of the marina's entrance, experiences frequent car ferry movements that manoeuvre in the approaches to the marina.




Berth as directed by the marina office.

Why visit here?

Portsmouth was first recorded as Portesmuthan in the late 9th Century. This name is a combination of the Latin word portus, meaning 'harbour', and mutha, meaning 'mouth': essentially 'mouth of the harbour called 'Port',' which aptly describes its location. Portsea Island, the island that the city mostly dominates today, derives its name from 'the island by the port', since in old English, an '-ea' or '-ey' ending, especially when preceded by a possessive's, typically signifies an 'island'.




The city's name and history can be traced back to the Roman period, when the harbour was simply known as Portus. In the late third Century, the Romans constructed Portus Adurni, a fort, at nearby Portchester on the north shore of the harbour that dominated the area. The site of Portsmouth city was not mentioned in the Domesday Survey of 1086, as no town had yet been established there, but the location was recognised as a convenient landing-place.




It is believed that the seed for the city was first sown in 1180 when a wealthy merchant named Jean De Gisors was seeking a secure anchorage for his fleet of merchant ships and a base from which to trade. The Camber, situated in the southwest corner of the island, provided him with a perfectly sheltered location and an ideal point from which to trade.




Protected by the Isle of Wight and a narrow, easily defended harbour entrance, the strategic location was soon recognised by King Richard I. He had already established several new towns in France, and when departing from the small trading base for France, he granted it a borough charter in 1194. In October 1200, King John repeated the grants, and in 1256, Henry III issued a grant for a Gild Merchant in the borough. By the following Century, commercial interests had grown, and its exports included wool, corn, grain, and livestock. By the thirteenth Century, wine from Bayonne and Bordeaux, along with wax and iron from France, were among the chief imports, while large quantities of wheat were exported to France and Spain.




During the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the town served as a meeting point for various expeditions to Normandy, Gascony, and Poitou. It was also a significant target for attacks from France, especially during the 1337–1453 Hundred Years' War, when Britain and France fought for control of the French throne. A precursor to this was in 1336 when a French fleet attacked the English Channel, ransacked the Isle of Wight, and threatened the town. Edward III ordered all maritime towns to build ships and muster troops to gather at Portsmouth and stay ready. Two years later, a French fleet raided Portsmouth, destroying much of the town, with only the stone church and hospital surviving. In 1377, the French landed in Portsmouth again, plundering and burning the town, but the inhabitants fought back and repelled them. This forced the French to retreat and instead raid towns in the West Country.



Recognising the town's growing importance, Henry V built Portsmouth's first permanent fortifications. Shipbuilding had begun in King Alfred's time, but the first recorded warship was the Sweepstake, built here in 1497, in what some believe to be the UK's first dry dock. Henry VII purchased 8 acres of land to create the world's first dry dock in 1495. Although the exact location of the dock is uncertain, it is generally thought to have been about 50 feet astern of where HMS Victory now rests in No. 2 Dry Dock. In 1509, its most famous ship, the Mary Rose, believed to have been named after his sister Mary Tudor, was constructed here. Along with her sister-ship, the Sovereign, also built here, they remained for many years the most powerful vessels in the Navy, and possibly in the world.




The dockyard grew increasingly crucial to both Henry VII and Henry VIII as they sought to build a more powerful navy. They aimed for a permanent fleet of royal ships, which would require ongoing repairs and dockyard facilities, making Portsmouth and its dockyard essential. While previous monarchs had navies, they sold ships during peacetime. Now, a much larger number of permanent ships was required. This was particularly important because England's population was much smaller than that of the major continental powers, and this situation continued through to Elizabeth I and the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588.




Portsmouth's fortifications were further reinforced during the ongoing reign of the Tudor monarchs. Cromwell added 2 acres in 1658, and Charles II expanded it by 8 acres in 1663 and a further 10 acres in 1667. The Navy grew substantially during the global conflict with France that began in 1690 and concluded with the Napoleonic Wars, a period when naval warfare under sail reached its peak. Central to this effort was the naval dockyard, which had become Britain's primary naval base. By the end of the 18th century, it had expanded to 90 acres, and by 1865, it had tripled in size to 293 acres. The city's population grew rapidly alongside this expansion. Between 1801 and 1901, it increased to 100,000, and Portsmouth expanded across Portsea Island. This confidence was reflected in the construction of the Town Hall in 1890, which was later renamed Portsmouth Guildhall in 1926 after Portsmouth achieved city status.




At the latter half of the 19th Century, the Royal Navy's reliance on Portsmouth led to it becoming the most fortified city in the world. In response to the 1848 declaration of the Second Republic in France, when Louis Napoleon became its first president as Napoleon III, four sea forts were constructed in the eastern approaches to The Solent to defend Portsmouth dockyard. By the turn of the 20th Century, the British Empire was at the height of its power, covering a quarter of Earth's total land area and 458 million people. Portsmouth was then regarded as "the world's greatest naval port" and was said to be the largest industrial installation in the world. When HMS Dreadnought was built here in the early 20th Century, it marked the advent of the "modern" battleship, revolutionising naval warfare.




By this time, Portsmouth Dockyard directly employed 8,000 men, and those not employed by the Navy or the Dockyard were in supporting service industries such as supplying food and drink. This number more than doubled to 23,000 during the First World War, when around 1200 ships were refitted in the dockyard, making it one of the most strategic ports in the empire at the time.




Portsmouth was ineffectively bombed by a Zeppelin airship during the First World War, but the city, especially the port, was devastated by the Luftwaffe during the Second World War. Between July 1940 and May 1944, the city was hit by 67 air raids, destroying 6625 houses and severely damaging 6549 of them. The raids caused 930 deaths and injured nearly 3,000 people, many of them in the dockyard and military installations. On the night of the heaviest raid, on 10 January 1941, the Luftwaffe dropped 140 tonnes of high explosive bombs, killing 171 and leaving 3,000 homeless.




The bombing did not halt the war effort, and Portsmouth Harbour remained a crucial military embarkation point for the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944. Southwick House, located just to the north of the city, served as the headquarters of the Supreme Allied Commander, US General Dwight D. Eisenhower.




Extensive areas of the town were redeveloped in the second half of the 20th Century, mainly due to widespread bomb damage. Most of the redevelopment focused on housing. During this period, the city's over-reliance on the Navy caused serious issues in the local economy. With the decline of the British Empire, shipbuilding jobs decreased from 46% of the workforce in 1951 to 14% in 1966, significantly reducing the workforce in the dockyard. In the early 1980s, it was decided that Portsmouth dockyard would close. However, Portsmouth City Council secured a concession, and instead of closure, the dockyard was downgraded to a naval base.




Modern-day Portsmouth now occupies most of Portsea Island. It has absorbed many former separate settlements like Kingston and Fratton, leaving a mostly undeveloped strip along the island's eastern edge. It remains the only UK city on an island to this day, surrounded by water on all sides.




Located beneath the iconic Spinnaker Tower, Gunwharf Quays Marina offers immediate access to this unique and historic city. Gunwharf Quays takes its name from its late 17th-century Royal Navy Ordnance Yard. Gun refers to the naval cannons, ammunition, and other armaments that were stored and maintained at the site and 'wharf', the pier where ships could load and unload cargo. It was a crucial depot where sailing ships would offload their heavy guns for repair and refitting before entering a dry dock. Leaving the guns on board would have put too much strain on the ship's wooden structure once it was out of the water. Conversely, ships preparing for war or long voyages would come here to be supplied with their full complement of weaponry. It was later developed into the Royal Navy shore establishment HMS Vernon in 1923, which served as the Navy's torpedo and mine warfare school.




The naval base closed in the 1990s, and the site was redeveloped in 2001 into the retail and leisure destination it is today. The finishing touch was the construction of the 168m (552 feet) tall Spinnaker Tower in 2003, and the name "Gunwharf Quays" was retained to honour its rich maritime history. Lovers of shopping, dining, and relaxing need not venture further than Gunwharf Quays waterside centre. It hosts more than 90 designer stores that offer discount prices on many brands, some of which are leading sailing lines.




Today, many of the city's former defences now serve as museums or venues for events. However, nothing displays the town's 800 years of naval history more than Portsmouth's Historic Dockyard, just a short stroll from the marina.




It is home to Horatio Nelson's flagship, HMS Victory, the world's oldest naval vessel still in service, preserved for the nation since 1922 in a permanent dry dock within the yard. In 1971, the remains of Henry VIII's flagship, the Mary Rose, were rediscovered on the seabed. She was raised and placed into a specially constructed structure in the dockyard in 1982. Britain's first iron-hulled warship, HMS Warrior, was restored and transferred to Portsmouth in June 1987. HMS M.33 is not only the last surviving British veteran of the bloody Dardanelles Campaign of 1915-1916 but also of the Russian Civil War that followed. The ship is one of just three British warships from World War I still in existence. The historic dockyard also houses the National Museum of the Royal Navy.




With its rich history and well-preserved, world-class warships, Gunwharf Quays, also reachable by a ferry ride from the Gosport berths at the opposite side of the harbour, is an absolute must-visit for any mariner worth his salt. The historic dockyard rightly stands as one of the city's most popular tourist attractions and is a must-see for all sailors. If this does not quench one's thirst for naval history, there is plenty more to explore with a short ferry ride across the harbour to Gosport, as mentioned in the Gosport Marina entry.

What facilities are available?

All pontoon berths provide electricity and fresh water, free and unlimited Wi-Fi, a first-class ablutions block, and complimentary laundry services. The marina primarily functions as a berthing facility only, with no onshore support services for yachts.

Gunwharf is situated next to the Hard Interchange, Portsmouth's transport hub, which includes Portsmouth Harbour Railway Station, coach, bus, and ferry terminals, as well as two South West Trains routes with direct services to London Waterloo via Guildford and Basingstoke. There is also a South West Trains stopping service to Southampton Central, offering connections to CrossCountry services to Birmingham and Manchester, and a Great Western Railway service to Cardiff Central via Southampton, Salisbury, Bath, and Bristol. Southern also operate services to Brighton, Gatwick Airport, Croydon, and London Victoria. Portsmouth boasts a wide range of competing local and provincial bus services.

The port is the second-busiest ferry port in the UK after Dover, handling approximately three million passengers annually. Portsmouth Harbour has passenger and motorbike ferry links to Gosport and the Isle of Wight from the Portsmouth International Port. A car ferry service to the Isle of Wight operated by Wightlink is nearby. Britain's longest-established commercial hovercraft service, started in the 1960s, continues to run (for foot passengers) from near Clarence Pier to Ryde, Isle of Wight, operated by Hovertravel. Portsmouth Continental Ferry Port has routes to Caen, Cherbourg-Octeville, St. Malo, and Le Havre in France, as well as Santander and Bilbao in Spain, and also operates services to the Channel Islands.

The nearest airport is Southampton Airport, located in the Borough of Eastleigh, approximately 20–30 minutes away by motorway, with an indirect South West Trains rail connection requiring a change at Southampton Central or Eastleigh. Heathrow and Gatwick are both around 60–90 minutes away by motorway. Gatwick is directly connected by Southern services to London Victoria, while Heathrow is accessible via coach to Woking, which lies on both rail lines to London Waterloo, or by Tube to either Victoria or Waterloo. Heathrow is also directly connected to Portsmouth by National Express coaches.

Any security concerns?

The marina has a secure access control system and is monitored by 24-hour CCTV.

With thanks to:

Michael Harpur S/Y Whistler.