The Jersey City – New York City area is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, with people coming from all over to see the statue of liberty and experience the city that never sleeps. A form of tourist that is often overlooked however, are those that arrive in the area via private recreational watercraft, looking to experience the region from a different angle. These visitors are often referred to as transient boaters.
Many of the different shaped and sized transient vessels that come to the area, with plans of staying for various periods of time, must ultimately find somewhere to dock. Depending on the size of the watercraft, and the duration of the intend stay, this can be a stressful process. A number of skippers consequently choose Jersey City transient dockage, instead of docking in the direct vicinity of New York City for a number of different reasons.
JERSEY CITY TRANSIENT DOCKAGE UTILIZATION
One of the obvious advantages of docking a little further from New York City is the slight decrease in slip price at marinas. The average per foot slip rental price for transient boaters in the Jersey City area is $3.38 in season (May 15th to October 31st) or $ 2.63 out of season (November 1st to May 14th). Marinas in the New York region in comparison can charge up to $6.00 per foot, which would mean spending approximately $6000 a month for a 35 foot watercraft instead of $3600.
Certain marinas in the Jersey City area are also specially geared toward transient boaters, offering superior shelter from the turbulent waters of the Hudson River, which is important for smaller vessels. Some marinas have even gone so far as to install wave actuators, as a means of securing more transient business.
This is also often combined with benefits such as dry storage for vessels and a comprehensive parts and services department. These advantages make such marinas extremely popular with long distance travelers such as ‘loopers’ undertaking the well known 5000 – 7500 mile ‘Great Loop’, which circumnavigates the American east coast, ending in New Jersey, as they can have any damage to their boat repaired whilst they are in the area.
Marinas especially organized for transient boaters also offer many other conveniences in order to remain competitive, these services in some cases include: close public transport options, such as ferries which go directly to New York City; the presence of fuel directly on the docks or on floating barges for efficient, easy refueling of vessels; as well as restaurants, pools and other sought after extravagances.
It can therefore be seen that Jersey City transient dockage is very popular with transient boaters for numerous different reasons. It can only be assumed that as the number of visitors to the Jersey City – New York area increases, so will the demand for transient dockage. It can only be hoped that the existing marinas, coupled with current marina development projects can handle the demand from not only transient travelers, but also from recreational and commercial vessels permanently located in the region.