What is a travel lift and what capacity do I need?

A travel lift is a mobile hoist that straddles a dock, lowers slings under a hull and lifts the boat out of the water so it can be moved to a hardstand. It is the piece of equipment that decides whether a marina can service your boat at all.

Three numbers matter, and tonnage is only the first.

Capacity in tonnes must exceed your boat's actual loaded displacement, not the brochure dry weight. Fuel, water, ground tackle and gear add up.

Maximum beam between the lift's uprights often binds before tonnage does, and this is the usual reason catamarans get turned away. Some yards run dedicated wide or hydraulic sealift machines for multihulls.

Approach depth and draft. The lift bay has a controlling depth, and a deep-keeled yacht may only be liftable at high tide. Yards with a keel pit can then work on the hull at ground level.

Australian yards range widely. Among the marinas we have verified, capacities run from a 9-tonne lift suited to small powerboats up to 300-tonne machines handling superyachts, with 27, 45 and 50-tonne lifts common at full-service marinas.

Ring the yard with your displacement, beam and draft before you book. All three, not just the weight.