UK's Most Expensive Sailing Club

Originally posted by Contender443 Is HISC the UK's most expensive sailing club to join? Check out http://www.hisc.co.uk/fees.html - can anyone beat this? Is it really worth all that money? What do you think?

Nope its not the most exepensive if you ignore joining fees. For me - individual membership for HISC is £288 + £55 boat parking =  £343

Datchet which I've just renewed on - is £135 + £135 for a crew helm pass to allow me to sail with non members (What!!! - surely they'd want non members to come and sail at their club with a view to becoming members) + £146 boatparking = £416 total.  Oh and despite joining as a 'full member' the secretary told me I need to pay another £80 to be able to windsurf there - to which she got a firm "am I bovvered".  All that to be sail in a concrete jungle thats got about as much atmosphere as the inside of a camels armpit, despite the recent 'upstairs expansion'

They was a slight reason in my madness, it was convenient to keep the boat and the winter warmup was quite good, but over run with cats this year. Main reason was to do some afterwork windsurfing in the summer, but Thames Water has nicked so much water out of the plug hole that theres no point in going as the wind goes round in circles - so its weekend trips to poole or calshot.

Oh and as a qualified racing coach why on earth do they give me the duty each year of "manning the phones" - not really playing to my strengths - I'd much rather run some kids racing sessions for a couple of afternoons.

Rather underwhelmed by DWSC
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There are sneaky ways off Hayling that avoid most of the jams, but of course they all end up on the same last bit to the bridge. 

HISC are only applying the fairly well tested laws of supply and demand - you put your prices up until your membership starts decreasing and that's about right, you might have to tinker with it so you retain your optimum level. Up in the North East (and probably the South West) there isn't the customers so most clubs are cheaper than the South Coast and have capacity to spare. It probably vaguely follows house prices.

The thing about HISC is that because of the location they can't expand any further so the maximum number of members at least is fixed. In theory inland clubs could expand if demand was high.

I've never sailed at Hayling but I've been plenty of times to visit mates who are at opens there and although the sailing is supposed to be great, getting on and off the island is a nightmare in the summer and would put me off. Last time I went it took over an hour to get from the club to the mainland on the way home - I could have got home to Southampton in that time with no cars on the road!

But if they are full and charging those prices they must be something right.

Edited by Matt Jackson

I notice that you don't show any pics of the slipway.
Sailing at Porthpean is quite good though. But there is not a lot there.

HISC is not your normal club, I have found that it has a love or hate relationship with sailors.

Originally posted by Stefan Lloyd Ah yes, Porthpean for example. I grew up within walking distance and I'd like to live there now. Almost nobody I knew at school lives around there now. Why? No decent jobs, that's why.

You can't have it all! We went to Porthpean late May and we had a wonderful time... at least, if we stayed in the clubhouse  People there were wonderful and the scenery was

GREAT!