Reviews: Oriental Marina & Inn

Reviewed by: Ray Sirois , Shellerina, on Apr 27, 2024
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 39'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Great spot. Great Dock hands. Piggly Wiggly's Grocery store has a Shuttle service for provisions?
Refreshing pool. Laundry, showers with shampoo, soup and towels. Across the street ICE CREAM and coffee shop?

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Reviewed by: Janet Gannon on Jul 6, 2023
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 37'
Draft: 5.5'

Rating: 5

What a great stop! You're right in the heart of the village, steps from bars, coffee, and Inland Provisions. The marina is well-protected but any south wind will be felt even here. Short fixed docks with pilings for both stern lines if bow-in. The pool is terrific. Showers were fantastic with the marina providing towels, soap, shampoo, and a hairdryer. We borrowed bikes from Inland Provisions and visited Seacoast Marine Electronics, who helped us with an electronics issue (highly recommend!). We also biked to Piggly Wiggly although they have a shuttle. Lunch at Rick's BBQ included $1 beers (you read that right, $1).

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Reviewed by: ARAS GRINIUS on Jun 24, 2023
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 40'
Draft: 6.5'

Rating: 5

Great people, super friendly and helpful. Truly a slice of heaven.

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Reviewed by: David Mann , Now or Never, on Jun 15, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 44'
Draft: 4.7'

Rating: 4

Was first placed on the outside of the face wall as that was all that they had available. It was exposed to the winds and thus the boat bobbed up and down for the night however the docks are built well and there was no fear of breaking loose. The second night a spot was available inside the harbor and was more comfortable. Very nice area and exceptionally well maintained area with grills, tables, and a nice area to exercise your pet. Poo bags even available should you have forgotten yours. Lots of things to do in town including a nice non big box marine store, post office, eating and shopping establishments. An outdoor bar accompanies a nice grill on the premises. Old school feeling will bring you back again.

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Reviewed by: Asea Renning on May 16, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 36'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Great marina for an overnight stay. Fixed docs with little tide. We ended up at a short finger which for our boat gets getting off the boat very hard. There is a bar/restaurant on premises (good margaritas and dinner). There's a pool which we didn't use (previous comments all positive). The marina is well protected.

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Reviewed by: Alison Morrow on Apr 28, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 39'
Draft: 14.0'

Rating: 5

Great place! Lots of help docking and friendly staff. Laundry room but there is a charge to use. Free towels, soap and shampoo in showers with private doors. Outdoor bar and great seating outside the dock. Restaurant on premises but we went to M&M for soft shell crab!

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Reviewed by: Daniel Warthan on Apr 24, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

Great help with tie up, friendly people and were helpful and knowledgable about the area. Bathroom facilities good with amenities including towels. Able to walk the town; Piggly Wiggly is 12 blocks away- if you spend $65 they will get you and bring you back if someone is available- call first to make sure. Great brewery with music on the weekend and other shopping available. The seafood market across the street from Provisions had excellent seafood only open Thurs-Sat. which is right next to the marina. Across the street is The Bean for your breakfast needs.

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Reviewed by: Captain Gene on Apr 8, 2023
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 39'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

04/07/2023 Nice town to visit. Storms predicted for three days so happy to be sheltered here. Good help with docking. Short fingers on fixed piers. WIFI had decent speed for downloading chart updates on my I pad. If you use the showers they provide soap, shampoo & towels. Some shops and restaurants to visit and enjoy. Good general store a 1000 feet away with some groceries and lots of boating supplies. They even sell inflatables if you need one. Piggy Wiggly grocery store a long walk.

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Reviewed by: Lance Courtright , Sanctuary, on Apr 3, 2023
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 35'
Draft: 5.0'

Rating: 4

Same good comments as others. I want to add that their Wi-Fi has been upgraded and now is excellent. Big improvement from what they had.

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Reviewed by: Anthony L & Pozun on Dec 4, 2022
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 40'
Draft: 6.0'

Rating: 5

great marina in town great staff services stayed 10 trips

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Reviewed by: Xiaolun Sun , Anodyne , on Nov 6, 2022
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 32'
Draft: 4.5'

Rating: 4

We were hoping to get the free town dock, but you have to arrive in the morning to get those. So we pulled in Oriental Marina. The docks were in good shape. The ground was pretty. The people were friendly. The bathrooms were clean with plenty of clean towels and toiletries. Oriental was a pretty town with tidy streets.

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Reviewed by: Brent Massey , True Story, on Oct 31, 2022
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 40'
Draft: 5.0'

Rating: 5

Great stop. There is almost no tide here, so the fixed docks were no problem. My only complaint is that we pulled bow in, and had to spend a few minutes lassoing the pilings to get a proper stern line attached.

Showers and heads were clean and stocked with towels and soaps. We didn't do any laundry while we were here.

The best part of this marina is the location. Restaurants, a coffee shop and the best small chandlery (Island Provisions) are a very short walk away. Will come back!

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Reviewed by: Kirk Conners , Fancy Nancy, on Aug 18, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 42'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Nice Marina. Well protected harbor makes for easy docking, and dock hand helped with advice and hands on tying lines.
Restrooms are clean, if not spacious, but functional and working is always a good thing. Only caveat here is they had 2 showers and 1 toilet. Priority should be the other way around????
Pool was nice. A little cloudy, but the staff looked like they were working on it.
Wifi was not good. You could connect, but internet was not working a lot, and it was slow when it was. Only real downside here.
Town is just a few buildings around the marinas it seems. Mostly residential in nature, with a lot of houses from early 1900's. Easy town to walk, and a Piggly Wiggly that will deliver (we found out after we rode our bikes) about a mile or so away.
M & M down past the Provision store was good eating, and the coffee store across the street from the marina had very good ice cream.
No doubt I would stop again, but size if the town would make it a stopover, not a visit.

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Reviewed by: Bill Kight , Cookie, on Jun 30, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 27'
Draft: 2.2'

Rating: 4

A well-managed marina that answers the phone and VHF radio. Their radio work is excellent and they gave very clear directions to my slip. The dock fingers were very short. Dockhands were competent. All utilities- power and water- functioned normally. The Wi-Fi was about worthless. Showers and bathrooms were one for each gender and in fair condition.

Oriental is a very walkable town, although I used my bike. There is a great hardware store a 15 minute walk away.

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Reviewed by: Gena Olson on Jun 8, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 50'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 5

Easy docking, friendly and helpful staff. Store called Provision one block away, with all kinds of marine items, even a consignment section. M and M restaurant had good food. Tiki bar by pool had good drinks. Didn't use restrooms/showers so have no comment. Would stay there again.

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Reviewed by: Gena Olson on Jun 8, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 50'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 5

Easy docking, friendly and helpful staff. Store called Provision one block away, with all kinds of marine items, even a consignment section. M and M restaurant had good food. Tiki bar by pool had good drinks. Didn't use restrooms/showers so have no comment. Would stay there again.

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Reviewed by: Bill Mcmahon on May 8, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 5

Fixed dock with 35' finger piers. Not fancy, but very nice. Helpful friendly staff Everything you need, good restaurant on side, a Tiki Bar and a pool. Nice showers, towels and soap provided. A few blocks from Inland Waterway Provision Company, food and other things with a very good selection of marine supplies.

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Reviewed by: Sharon Oliver , Grand Plan, on May 1, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 36'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

Spent one night at Oriental Marina and Inn, Oriental NC. Eleven slips at the marina with power, water and wifi. Nightly rate for our 36' trawler was $77 including power. There is a free dock located right across the channel that has room for two boats - one on either side. There is no power at the ?free dock. The inn has 25 1, 2 and 3 bedroom suites. Nice friendly staff at the marina/inn. They even delivered ice to our boat for me. Clean bathroom/shower rooms complete with shampoo, conditioner, soap and towels!! Just like at a hotel! Tiki bar and restaurant on site. There is a kind of general store called Provision a block from the marina. We purchased two Skipper Bob books, Marinas Along the ICW covers Florida to the Hudson River including the St Johns River for $15 and Anchorages Along the ICW for $17. They have marina supplies including surplus items. The M& M Cafe is just around the corner. Ham and cheese quiche was excellent. The Bean is a coffee shop directly across the street serving coffee, muffins, ice cream and milkshakes. People were lined up awaiting their 8:00 opening this morning. Lemon cranberry muffin was delicious! I would definitely recommend this stop.

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Reviewed by: Jeanne N , Telesto, on Feb 19, 2022
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 38'
Draft: 5.5'

Rating: 5

Great little inn that features about 9 slips, pool, and restaurant. Showers are clean and guests can enjoy their fresh towels. The slips are well protected and our 5'5" draft was no problem. Such a quaint town with friendly residents. Staff at the inn were great.

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Reviewed by: Karen Ratte on Jan 11, 2022
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 49'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 5

Excellent service. Well sheltered, nice facilities. Enjoyed walking around town, though there is not really a downtown per se, but some nice shops scattered through a pretty residential area. Keep an eye out for the 'dragon nests.' Nice little coffee shop right by the marina where the locals hang out in the morning. Good fuel price. Limited docking for wider beam boats (we are 18') so be sure to call in advance.

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Reviewed by: Douglas Ellison , Vayu, on Oct 21, 2021
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 42'
Draft: 5.5'

Rating: 4

A good marina - quirky and quaint with helpful staff. Depth at dock read anything between 3.8ft to 8.5ft. The manager said it was silt…..
On the waterfront of the town which is unusual and an experience.
Docks are a bit painful - pilings with a half runway pontoon. The absence of current and wind makes this less an issue. Attracts a good clientele.

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Reviewed by: Anthony Black on Oct 4, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 48'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 5

Couldn't be more friendly and helpful. No tide or current. Great restaurant and provision store within 1/4 mile.

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Reviewed by: John Tysseland on Sep 29, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 45'
Draft: 5.0'

Rating: 5

Electric is additional to the price per foot charged.

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Reviewed by: Mo Mo on Aug 10, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 52'
Draft: 5.0'

Rating: 5

Lovely for one night stop over. Staff friendly and helpful. Nice pool and tiki bar. Didn't use restaurant. Nice town to ride around on bike.

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Reviewed by: David Merchberger , Slo Pace, on Jul 15, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 3.8'

Rating: 5

Stayed just one night in mid April 2021, would have stayed longer if we didn't need to keep moving north. Staff is great, facilities are good. No problem backing in with our draft.

Large grassy area under trees behind slips and near tikibar to hang out. Everyone very 'chill' and friendly.

Restaurant on-site is pet friendly, has great food and drinks. Hamburgers are awesome, highly recommended if you're in the mood.

Coffee house and ice cream across the street, West Marine and hardware stores about a mile walk or bike. Limited sidewalks, but road is very lightly traveled.

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Reviewed by: Jacqueline Meyer on Jul 5, 2021
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 36'
Draft: 5.5'

Rating: 1

Gave our draft at actually 6" deeper than it is, yet they gave us a slip that we had to struggle for 30 minutes to unground ourselves getting out of! This could have caused damage to our boat! Dock hand helped us on arrival, but on departure, during normal business hours, he was nowhere to be found!

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Reviewed by: Nj Ken on Jul 5, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 50'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

We arrived late afternoon and Bob was happy to help us fuel. Super friendly, super helpful. The marina was full but they bent over backeards to get us a spot with power. It was the 4th of July with a big party going on and there was a little wait to get dinner in the restaurant. We went to a table at the bar for a cocktail and the service was fantastic. When we got to our table to eat the food was great, (I had the scallops and shimp combo), and the service was terrific. Next morning Tom was super helpful. He's a problem solver with a great attitude. Thanks Tom! If you're going by Oriental, stop in for a while, you'll be glad you did.

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Reviewed by: Bruce Stewart , Escape, on Apr 28, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 42'
Draft: 3.0'

Rating: 4

Slips can get really shallow at the breakwater wall, facilities were nice.

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Reviewed by: Heading South on Mar 20, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 40'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

We stayed here for some 5 days as the Nuese River can be a challenge with big winds. All facilities are really close. Bathroom and grounds were well maintained. Provisions within walking distance and staff really great and personable.

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Reviewed by: Andreas , AKKA, on Nov 16, 2020
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 42'
Draft: 6.2'

Rating: 4

Nice little marina, very well protected right in the active fishing harbor next to the Inns Garden Restaurant and Tiki Bar. The friendly staff helped with docking and got the long diesel hose right to the slip. Clean bathrooms and good laundry machines. - For supplies ask for the Piggly Wiggly shuttle.
We enjoyed 3 days and recommend the stop.

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Reviewed by: Jeremy Hatch on Sep 20, 2020
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 49'
Draft: 5.0'

Rating: 4

Unlike the previous review, we loved it here. Attentive and communicative staff to help us dock, a very friendly town of 800 people. Most things available but limited selection. Strong winds with N or NE components flood the lower town routinely but you will have lots of depth. From the SW, the dock depths can get skinny. Marina is very protected, but you will be steps from the Toucan restaurant, the Tiki bar and live outdoor entertainment on many weekends and holidays. Lots of regulars hang out here once the Tiki bar opens at 1600. Everyone is chill & friendly-kids, dogs, cats, golf carts-all good fun but don’t plan on an early night if a band is scheduled, just join in or watch firm your cockpit.
The Bean (coffee shop /ice cream) and Provisions (organic Foods/marine supplies /consignment/ free bicycles) are

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Reviewed by: Jean Carbonneau on Jul 30, 2020
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 34'
Draft: 3.0'

Rating: 1

Terrible service! Even if you call the marina ahead of time on VHF, you are unlikely to get help docking to buy diesel. We filled our tanks there a few days ago and when we complained about the lack of help for docking, we were told “we are not a resort!”. Avoid Oriental marina, not worth it!

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Reviewed by: Rob Irvine on Nov 15, 2019
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 35'
Draft: 5.0'

Rating: 3

Nice location. Friendly and knowledgeable staff. All slips are transient. Restrooms clean but men's room has 1 shower and 1 toilet. We were expecting a little more from the Town. A mile walk to the Piggly Wiggly. Wifi could have been better. Overall not bad.

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Reviewed by: Wes Newman on Mar 1, 2019
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 27'
Draft: 3.5'

Rating: 4

Just about the best location in charming Oriental, right in the middle of town within feet of restaurants, coffee bar and provisions. Staff is friendly; VHF instructions and docking assistance were excellent. Depth varies considerably and unpredictably with wind tides on the Neuse River; my slip neighbor's Pacific Seacraft 37 with just under 5' draft was rubbing on the bottom. Usually this clears up when the wind shifts. There is a motel, restaurant and tiki bar on the marina property. It got a little loud with a live band on Halloween night but that's not the norm. Oriental is a friendly, laid back community that loves sailors and this marina is right in the heart of things.

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