What should I look for when choosing a marina?

Start with the things that are hard to change and expensive to get wrong.

Can you get the boat out of the water? A marina with a travel lift and a working hardstand on site is a different proposition from one that sends you 40 minutes away every time you need antifoul. Ask the lift capacity in tonnes and the maximum beam.

Fuel, and when. A fuel dock that closes at 4pm is not the same as a 24/7 card-operated one when you want to leave on a dawn tide.

Trade depth. How many shipwrights, riggers, engineers and electricians actually work on site or nearby? This is the single biggest practical difference between marinas and it never appears in photographs.

The liveaboard rule, in writing — even if you do not plan to live aboard. It tells you how the marina treats long-stay berth-holders generally.

What the berth includes. Metered or unmetered power, water, pump-out, the fob deposit, whether the rate is on your length or the berth's.

Depth and access at your draft, at low tide. Ask, and ask about the approach channel, not just the berth.

Choose the category relevant to your needs. Repairs, amenities and dining are assessed independently; there is no universal weighting across them.