Benfleet Yacht Club

Benfleet Yacht Club Open to new members

Founded in 1922, Benfleet Yacht Club is a large and friendly members-run club located alongside Benfleet Creek, on the northern shore of Canvey Island in Essex.

The club offers great opportunities for all craft – dinghy sailing and coastal rowing mainly take place in the sheltered waters of Benfleet Creek, while for cruising yachts, the Rivers Medway and Swale are just a few hours away, and slightly further afield are the superb cruising grounds of the East Coast rivers. For a great summer cruise, Benfleet is within striking distance of the northern coast of France and Belgium and the vast inland waterways of Holland.

Complementing the club’s busy sailing Benfleet Yacht Club offers a large number of tidal moorings for yachts, along with second-to-none on-shore storage for both yachts and dinghies. A range of membership options and a one-off club joining fee are applicable, but the club is keen to be affordable for all: it’s possible to keep a 29ft yacht here for less than £600 a year – and that includes haul out, winter lay-up and relaunch! programme and popular Cadet Sail Training Week, a superb clubhouse includes a bar that’s open lunchtime and evenings seven days a week, and there’s an active social and entertainments programme all year round. Low Cost Moorings and Winter Lay-Up available

Benfleet Yacht Club is well known for organising The Nore Race, a combined open cruiser and dinghy race that covers a 20-mile circuit of the Thames Estuary, starting and finishing at Southend Pier. Since 2010 Benfleet Yacht Club’s Coastal Rowers have also organised the Round Canvey Race, an annual open event in which rowing, paddling and sailing vessels complete a 14.5 mile circuit of Canvey Island. An eclectic mix of craft have competed to date, with boats from as far as Whitby travelling to take part. Details of both events can be found on the club website – please check in case of changes due to Coronavirus.