Shallow Draught Marina’s Expansion Comes Just in Time for Barbados’s Yachting Comeback
A freshly expanded Shallow Draught Marina gave Barbados its biggest international yachting welcome in years — hosting the GLY World Odyssey 2025 fleet, then Barbados Sailing Week weeks later, as new slips, retail, and dockside services come online.
Just in time! The newly expanded Shallow Draught Marina, located in Bridgetown, welcomed 17 yachts at the end of December, participating in the Grand Large Yachting (GLY) World Odyssey 2025. The GLY is the second edition of a prestigious three-year round-the-world sailing rally, organized by the French group Grand Large Yachting. The event is designed for owners of its specialized bluewater brands, including Allures Yachting, Garcia Yachts, Outremer, Gunboat, and RM Yachts.
Barbados Port Inc. (BPI), with support from Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc., worked with GLY event organizers over several months to facilitate the call, which included 65 passengers and crew. The welcome party for the GLY marked the return of international cruising activity to Barbados. Less than a month later, the marina hosted several international entrants for Barbados Sailing Week 2026.
The Shallow Draught Marina redevelopment, executed by BPI, doubled the number of slips and overall berthing capacity. Enhancements include new retail space, upgraded restroom facilities, storage and commercial areas for marine users, and an upgraded market for the sale of fresh fish. The project also incorporated a wave-attenuation system to protect vessels during swell conditions. Additional facilities, including a fuel dock, convenience store, restaurant, and coffee shop, are scheduled to become operational later in 2026.
The timing lines up with a broader pattern across the Eastern Caribbean, where marinas are racing to add slips and services as transatlantic rally traffic keeps growing — from the ARC’s fleets landing in St. Lucia and Grenada to Tortola’s Nanny Cay, which recently broke ground on its own expansion to handle larger multihulls. For Barbados, historically more of a landfall than a lingering stop for bluewater fleets, hosting a GLY reception and Sailing Week back to back in the same season signals a push to be counted alongside those established rally destinations rather than passed by en route to them.
“This event signals that we have the infrastructure and services available for international yachting visitors,” said BPI Chief Executive Officer David Jean-Marie.
barbadosport.com
Carol Bareuther has written for ALL AT SEA since 2004.
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