For anyone cruising out of their home area, you may find https://activecaptain.com/index.php to be very helpful. The Interactive Cruising Guidebook gives detailed information for visiting boaters. The comments and reviews are contributed by other boaters so you are gaining the experience of other boaters. There is no charge to use the site, just register and enjoy. Any registered member can contribute information and write reviews of marinas, stores, fuel docks and anchorages. Contribute enough and you can earn a free ActiveCaptain cap.
A number of GPS chart plotter manufacturers are now including the Active Captain data with their plotters. I now have a Desire HD Android smart phone and I have the free application Nuticharts Lite installed so I can view the ActiveCaptain data.
For information on my personal choices of boating gear, visit Boat Gear.