Mixed use marina developments provide more than just a safe harbour for visiting yachts. They provide a home, a unique and convenient lifestyle, combining waterfront living and yachting with an array of facilities in highly sight-after locations. The New York Times takes a look at the increase in demand for real estate in coastal locations, including Limassol Marina in Cyprus which offers apartments and villas as part of an integrated marina development.

A rise in the number of wealthy buyers wanting to own property in coastal locations, as well as a global increase in the number of boat owners, is prompting international developers to create more waterfront enclaves.

Not only have more people taken up sailing over the past 10 years, but yachts are getting bigger. According to a report on the 2015 market by Boat International, orders for yachts longer than 76 meters, or 250 feet, increased by 25 percent over the previous year, and there was a record number of orders for boats in excess of 100 meters.

“Sailing is becoming more popular, and boat owners need places that offer facilities for maintenance,” said James Price, an agent on the international development team of the London-based property firm Knight Frank. “But they also want somewhere with increased lifestyle experiences, like an accessible location, good infrastructure, residential options and quality on-site leisure services, restaurants and retail.”

Marina resorts also attract large numbers of people who don’t own boats but who want to live in a waterfront location. “There is a shortage of, and high demand for, space in which marina and residential are combined,” said Eamonn Feeney, managing director of MDL Consultancy, a marina planning specialist.

The firm has advised on the development and viability of mixed-use marinas in Europe and China. It has also been involved with the redevelopment of existing marinas into projects that can accommodate superyachts, as is the case with Port Vell in Barcelona, Spain.

As demand has grown, a shortage of suitable marina sites is being reported from the Caribbean to Asia, where the yachting industry has undergone significant growth.

A report published in 2015 by the China Cruise and Yacht Industry Association states that China is expected to have the largest yacht ownership in Asia within five years, outstripping Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. But there are not enough large-berth marinas to accommodate the demand. Hong Kong alone has an estimated 10,000 fewer berths than are needed.

As a result, the number of mixed-use marina projects planned for the Chinese coast has increased significantly in recent years, in particular in the resort areas of Tianjin, Qingdao and Hainan, where prices in 2014 averaged 25,046 renminbi, or about $3,800 at current exchange rates, per square meter, or 10.76 square feet. A plan to build a marina with residential and commercial space on Lamma Island in Hong Kong is also under discussion.

In Malaysia, the 40 billion ringgit, or $9.2 billion, Melaka Gateway development is just one of a number of high-end projects of this nature in Southeast Asia, and the largest so far. The 1,000-berth marina is expected to be completed by 2025 and will include commercial and retail space as well as an 80-story tower with hotel suites and residential units. Prime waterfront villas will offer boat slips on the doorstep.

The Middle East is another growth spot, with the government of Bahrain investing heavily in waterfront development. Residential marina sites include Reef Island, in the capital of Manama, and Durrat Marina, a 600,000-square-meter, $1.3 billion project built on artificial islands.

Plans include 4,000 residences, as well as a 400-berth marina, leisure facilities and a golf course. Properties were released for sale in 2014, with unit prices from 80,400 Bahraini dinars, or about $213,000.

Despite upgrades in recent years, the harbors of the most popular Mediterranean yachting destinations, such as Antibes, France; Portofino, Italy; and Monaco, are saturated with demand and unable to accommodate the growing number of megayachts.

Mr. Feeney said Croatia had untapped potential, though it was not ready to drive large-scale projects. “Croatia is still working its way up but is ripe for marina-led development.” 

In contrast, neighboring Montenegro has actively targeted yacht owners with upmarket marina-based residential sites. Porto Montenegro, which overlooks the Bay of Kotor at Tivat, is a fully developed complex with 227 one- to four-bedroom residences, a 400-berth marina and a range of boutiques and services that include an international school. Most of the resort is sold, but prices for apartments at the marina’s new Regent Pool Club Residences start at 409,000 euros, or about $445,000.

On Cyprus, a €220 million, mixed-use waterfront resort in Paphos was announced in March, and Limassol Marina, a luxury development near the old town in Limassol is nearing completion.

The development offers 236 residences, which are 90 percent sold, and a range of facilities including a spa, boutiques, restaurants and boat yard. Some of the villas have been built on an island of reclaimed land with adjacent boat moorings included with purchase.

Sophia Paraskeva, marketing manager for the site, said a feasibility study for the project showed a lack of berths in Mediterranean locations. “There is a demand for the villa/berth combination,” she said. “Buyers like the concept of sailing up to their door, but even non-boat owners want the lifestyle of waterfront communities.”

In the Caribbean, which has a healthy winter sailing trade, there are a number of highly rated superyacht marinas on islands that include Barbados, St. Lucia and Antigua. However, few offer an integrated residential aspect.

Development firms are attempting to address the issue. The Landings, in St. Lucia, is built around the only private harbor on the island with capacity for 50 yachts. Moorings are available only to residents, and one- to three-bedroom properties are priced from $400,000.

The 600-acre Albany development in the Bahamas also offers a high-concept design and quality amenities, including a golf course designed by Ernie Els and a deepwater megayacht marina that can accommodate up to 71 boats.

Berths are priced from $12,000, but all are sold, the majority to property owners. The resort is marketing build plots from $1.78 million, as well as colonial-style villas and architect-designed condominiums. Prices start at $3 million for a unit of 278 square meters with private pool.

And on the island of St. Kitts, a residential resort called Christophe Harbour opened its 300-berth marina last February. The resort’s residential offering includes fractional ownership units, villas and development plots, from $450,000 to around $4 million.

Moorings at the resort are priced from $1.5 million but are owned freehold, a rare option that qualifies buyers for the island’s Citizenship by Investment program allowing full residency.

A version of this article appears in print on January 29, 2016, in The International New York Times.