Ocean Reef Marina

About the marina

Ocean Reef Marina is the largest marina development Western Australia has seen in a generation, rising on the site of the old Ocean Reef Boat Harbour about 26 kilometres north of the Perth CBD in the City of Joondalup. The project, led by DevelopmentWA, replaces a modest ramp-and-groyne harbour that served northern-suburbs boaties for decades with a full waterfront precinct: up to 550 boat pens, including pens engineered for superyachts, a 200-boat stacker facility, around 12,000 square metres of retail and commercial floor space, and eventually more than 1,000 dwellings. Construction began with marine works in 2020, and the two rubble breakwaters that define the new harbour, a southern arm of about 1.2 kilometres and a northern arm of 670 metres reaching up to eight metres above sea level, were completed in early 2024. Stage 1 landside and civil works followed from March 2024 under contractor Georgiou, and the precinct has been opening in pieces: eight new boat ramps in July 2025, and purpose-built facilities for Marine Rescue Whitfords and the Ocean Reef Sea Sports Club and RSL in late 2025. First-stage boat pens are scheduled for construction from 2026, with civil construction expected to run to about 2030 and full build-out beyond 2036. The project carries a sustainability emphasis unusual for an Australian marina; it is the first in the country to achieve full six-leaf EnviroDevelopment certification, and an underground renewable-energy microgrid is being installed to power the precinct. For Perth boaters the significance is simple: the northern corridor from Hillarys to Two Rocks has chronically short pen supply, and Ocean Reef will add the biggest block of new berths the metropolitan coast has seen, wrapped in a public waterfront with a protected family beach and Perth's first coastal pool.

Berthing & shoreside services

Facilities at Ocean Reef Marina are arriving in stages, so what is operating today differs sharply from the finished design. The flagship working asset is the eight-lane boat ramp complex opened in late July 2025. The ramps were built beyond Australian Standard depth requirements, with the ramp toe sitting 1.46 metres below the lowest astronomical tide against a 1.2-metre standard for deep-draft vessels, allowing launching and retrieval across the full tide cycle. The new finger jetties are 65 metres long, at least 24 metres longer than those they replaced, and a 108-metre temporary mooring jetty along the southern breakwater handles short stays by small craft, including a dedicated kayak launch and retrieval landing. Sealed car and trailer parking has been rebuilt and extended, and underground power, sewer, stormwater and communications services are being installed precinct-wide, fed by a solar-backed smart microgrid. Two new buildings opened in late 2025: a combined Marine Rescue Whitfords and marina manager facility, and a new home for the Ocean Reef Sea Sports Club and RSL, both overlooking the future beach and coastal pool. On the berthing side, construction of the first stage of boat pens is programmed for 2026, leading toward an eventual capacity of up to 550 pens with superyacht-capable berths among them, plus a 200-vessel boat stacker for dry storage. At completion the marina will offer the usual full-service complement of power, water and fuel infrastructure across its pontoons, though fuel and pump-out arrangements for the operating interim period should be confirmed with the marina manager, whose office sits in the new southern precinct building. Public open space under construction includes a protected family beach, a 50-metre coastal pool billed as Perth's first, a lobster-themed playground and a bike pump track, all forecast to open from 2026.

Local context in YouSail

This is directory context, not navigation advice. Check current charts, notices and official boating resources before passage.

Ocean Reef sits on a shallow, reef-strewn stretch of the Perth coast where limestone ledges run parallel to shore, and the old harbour existed precisely because natural shelter here is scarce. The new breakwaters have changed that equation, but skippers approaching from sea should still treat the outer reef lines with respect, particularly in a winter westerly when swell refracts around the structure; the entrance is designed into the lee of the southern arm. Once inside, the basin is deep and sheltered. The cruising options are the standard northern-corridor ones: Marmion Marine Park's inshore reefs and clear diving water lie immediately offshore, Hillarys Boat Harbour with its fuel, lift-out and Sorrento Quay restaurants is roughly six kilometres south, and Rottnest Island is a longer but routine run west. Trailer boaters will find the new ramp complex among the best in the metropolitan area, though summer weekends already draw queues and the car parks are being expanded in stages. Ashore the precinct is still a construction site in places, so expect changing traffic arrangements off Ocean Reef Road and Boat Harbour Quays while road and roundabout works continue. Provisioning is a short drive: the Beaumaris and Ocean Reef shopping centres cover basics, and Joondalup's full retail centre is ten minutes inland. The sea sports club has long been the social anchor for local divers, anglers and paddlers, and its new building, paired with Marine Rescue Whitfords next door, means radio coverage, training and emergency response are embedded in the precinct from day one. For visiting boats the honest summary is: ramps, rescue and club facilities now; pens, fuel berths and the waterfront dining strip from 2026 onward.