Top 10 Marinas in Georgia
Few sailors think of Georgia when planning a Black Sea circuit, but Batumi Yacht Club has transformed into the eastern terminus of a remarkable offshore loop that touches Turkey, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, and back. The Caucasus Mountains rise behind the palm-lined promenade of Batumi to over 3,000 m, providing some of the most dramatic coastal scenery anywhere in Europe or Asia Minor. Georgia's Black Sea shoreline runs roughly 310 km, concentrated mostly in the Adjara and Samegrelo regions, and the country has invested significantly in marina infrastructure over the past decade. Here is where sailors are finding facilities, fuel, and community along this underestimated coast.
Batumi Yacht Club — The Eastern Terminus
Batumi Yacht Club sits in the southern part of Batumi's large commercial bay, separated from the ferry and container terminals by a small headland. The club's pontoon berths accommodate vessels up to 20 m LOA, with depth running to 4 m alongside. Facilities include shore power at 220 V, a fuel dock, fresh water, and a clubhouse with showers and a bar serving Georgian wine and the country's distinctive craft beers. The harbour staff speak reasonable English, a rarity this far east, and the club maintains an active racing schedule from April to October. The anchorage in the outer bay is exposed to northerlies but viable in southerly or calm conditions. Batumi itself rewards exploration: the botanical garden climbs 100 m above sea level with subtropical plantings, and the old town's Art Nouveau facades are within walking distance.
Poti Sea Port — Utility Harbour
Poti, 100 km north of Batumi, is primarily a commercial port — Georgia's largest by cargo tonnage — but a corner of the inner basin accommodates visiting yachts alongside the fishing vessel quay. Water depth is 3–5 m and holding in the outer anchorage is secure mud. The surrounding lowland terrain, formed by the Rioni River delta, is flat and prone to haze, making Poti conspicuous by its absence of landmarks; GPS waypoints are essential. The advantage is provisioning: Poti has large wholesale markets supplying the region. Customs and immigration officers are stationed at Poti for formal entry into Georgian waters if arriving from Turkey or elsewhere.
Anaklia Marina (Development Zone)
Anaklia, situated between Poti and Zugdidi near the Abkhazian border, is the site of an ambitious deep-water port project that has been under development for several years. A small-boat basin opened as part of phase one, with basic alongside berths for yachts up to 15 m. The project's ultimate scale — with planned handling of millions of containers — means the leisure-craft section may evolve considerably as construction proceeds. For now the marina offers a quiet overnight stop, remarkable birdwatching in the adjacent wetlands of the Colchic lowlands, and a frontier atmosphere that few cruising grounds can match.
Kobuleti Anchorage — Beach Town Overnight
Kobuleti, about 20 km north of Batumi along the Adjara coast, has a small fishing pier that doubles as a berth for visiting yachts. The sandy bottom gives adequate holding in 4–6 m, but the anchorage is exposed to westerly swell and should only be used in settled conditions. The town is a popular Georgian summer resort with sandy beaches, pine forests behind the shore, and abundant guesthouses offering local cooking. Kobuleti is a day sail from Batumi and makes an easy first overnight if departing northward on the Black Sea circuit.
Chakvi Offshore Anchorage
Between Batumi and Kobuleti lies the small settlement of Chakvi, where a rocky headland provides limited but useful shelter from the north. Anchor in 5–8 m of sand and weed in the lee of the point. Ashore the town is famed for Georgia's tea-growing industry: the subtropical humidity of the Adjara coast produces tea at latitudes that surprise most visitors. The tea research station at Chakvi dates to 1895, making it one of the oldest in the world outside Asia. For sailors the anchorage offers a quiet overnight with a shore excursion to a working plantation.
Ureki Anchorage — Magnetic Beach
Ureki's beach is famous throughout the Caucasus for its black magnetic sand, claimed by locals to have therapeutic properties for cardiac and neurological conditions. The offshore anchorage in 4–6 m of this dark sand is free and easily accessible from the north. Holding is good once the anchor digs through the top layer. The beach resort has restaurants, kiosks, and a seafront promenade busy with Georgian tourists in July and August — a colourful stop that is entirely off the conventional cruising circuit.
Supsa River Mouth — River Delta Overnight
The Supsa River flows into the Black Sea south of Poti and creates a small but navigable inlet at its mouth during the summer low-water period. Depths of 1.5–2.5 m allow shoal-draft vessels to find shelter behind the river delta's sand spits. The landscape is low-lying wetland backed by hills, and tern colonies nest on the sand spits during summer. The oil terminal some distance away operates the BTC pipeline outflow, so sailors should give its offshore installation adequate clearance and check NAVTEX for exclusion zones before approaching.
Ochamchire — Former Military Port
Ochamchire lies just inside Abkhazia's de facto border, which technically remains Georgian sovereign territory under most international-law interpretations but is controlled by Abkhazian authorities. The port was a Soviet naval base with facilities now largely disused. Visiting this area requires very careful research into current border regulations, and few Western European insurance policies cover the waters around Abkhazia. However for adventurous sailors who have done the legal groundwork, the harbour's remnant infrastructure — stone quays, large basin — offers shelter for vessels that cannot continue north to Russia.
Kvariati Bay — Private Jetty Access
South of Batumi and only 3 km from the Turkish border, Kvariati Bay has a small concrete jetty used by local fishing boats where a handful of yacht berths are available on arrangement with the local fishermen's cooperative. The setting is charming: wooded hills behind a narrow pebble beach with a view across the border toward Sarpi on the Turkish side. Depth at the jetty is 2 m at low water, making it suitable for shoal-draft boats only. It provides a useful waypoint for crews intending to cross into Turkish waters the following morning.
Makhinjauri Small-Boat Harbour
Between Batumi and Kvariati, Makhinjauri has a small breakwater-protected basin developed for fishing and small leisure craft. Depth is 2–3 m and the pontoons are somewhat worn but functional. The locality is a quiet residential neighbourhood of greater Batumi with good road transport into the city. For crews who want to be within reach of Batumi's supplies and services without paying marina rates, Makhinjauri can serve as a more economical base. It is also a favourite winter layup location for locally-owned sailing yachts.
Completing the Black Sea Circuit
A full Black Sea circuit typically covers around 2,000 nautical miles, departing the Bosphorus northward, crossing to Odesa or Constanta, traversing the Bulgarian and Turkish coasts, and returning to Istanbul. Adding Georgia to this loop requires a northbound passage along the Turkish Black Sea coast — some 600 nm from the Bosphorus to Batumi — and then a return passage. Georgia processes yacht arrivals efficiently at Batumi, with customs and coast-guard clearance typically completed in a few hours. The country has signed bilateral maritime agreements with most Black Sea states, simplifying procedures. Cruising fuel is available at Batumi Yacht Club and Poti, and LPG cylinder exchange is possible at hardware stores in both cities.
Explore on the map
Plan your Georgian Black Sea passage with all the anchorages, marinas, and waypoints visible on the interactive map. Zoom into Georgia on the map for detailed coastal profiles, approach notes, and distances from the Turkish and Ukrainian borders. Every harbour icon links to current port information — click before you sail.