SailNet Community banner
  • SailNet is a forum community dedicated to Sailing enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about sailing, modifications, classifieds, troubleshooting, repairs, reviews, maintenance, and more!

What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

2K views 9 replies 5 participants last post by  Seagypsywoman 
#1 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

My Girlfriend and I are interested in living the sea life, we admit we are rookies and are still learning what we can before any hastey decisions. what I mean is what boats are best suited for traveling between islands that are affordable to live in, and to buy (under $15,000)
ei. houseboat, sail boat, catatmaran???
any info is greatly appreciated
thank you
Jared
 
#3 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

There is a big difference between living aboard and long range cruising and there is also a very big difference in the requirements for both. The cheapest and most comfortable way to live aboard, assuming that you don''t care about sailing or going anywhere is to buy an old houseboat with blown engines and just park it somewhere. If you really want to go somewhere, then you give up a lot of room and potentially add a lot of cost. It will be extremely hard to find a suitable live aboard with decent accomodations and good sailing ability in ready to go condition, for anything like $15K. Anything in that price range will be a compromise. That said, you are young and fit, and so probably can live with some degree of compromise.

In your price range you are probably looking at a roughly 28 to 32 foot sailboat from the 1960''s or 1970''s, probably with a gas engine. It will probably need a lot of work to make it capable of cruising the Islands but some of this can be done over time. I doubt you will find a decently constructed catamarran in that price range.

Jeff
 
#4 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

Thank you again Jeff, for your help.
IS someone able to lie aboard a 28 ft sailboat?
can a house boat travel from island to island?
Are catamarans one of the best choices? but usually alot more expensive as well?

We are canadian residents, would you think we would ever be able to finance a boat? taking into consideration that we will probably not have a job when we get there, (unless she lets us go ONLY if we have a job lined up) and that we will be living and travelling in the boat?

BTW are we chasing an impossible dream? is what we are looking for possible?

We *really* appreciate your guys'' help. and I am sorry to flood you guys with questions.
Thank you
Jared
 
#5 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

got to yachtworld.com and look up boats from 28-33 ft. and with a price range of $15k-$20k. the boats on yachtworld tend to be higher priced than they should be, but it will give you a good look at what''s out there.

I''ve met a retired couple who lived on an older 27'' Tartan. they were happy. headed north in the summer, south in the winter.

you can live on almost anything, as long as you''re willing to make lifestyle changes.

my fiance'' and I are getting ready to move aboard our Tartan 30. close quarters for two, but managable. we paid under $10k for the boat initially, but we''ll have far more than that invested when she''s done. but if you''re willing to look around, and make lifestyle decisions, it can easily be done. we''ll have no oven in our boat. our head/shower area is the size of a porta-potty, no hot water... and many other scrifics. but it''ll be an adventure. and we don''t expect to liveaboard forever.
 
#6 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

Jared,
For what it''s worth here''s my opinion. I think you would be well served by #1 doing some research. By that I mean read. There are a myriad of resources available from magazines, and the internet to classic sailing adventures. #2 do some sailing. Find the local sailing club or yacht club and volunteer as crew for the weekly races. Talk to people. #3 Define your goals a little better. Do you just want to live on the water or do you want to travel. If you want to explore and actually go somewhere other than from one side of a lake to the other or up and down a river somewhere, then forget the houseboat idea. (I knew a guy that brought an old wooden houseboat from Monterey Bay all the way up the San Joaquin delta using a AAA road map but I wouldn''t count on that kind of luck too often). Are you pretty handy with tools? If not find a job working on boat in some capacity. Boatyard are always looking for honest hardworking people.
In short, it''s kind of like you are trying to decide what kind of automobile to purchase without ever having been behind the wheel or even having ridden in one. Don''t jump into this. You may end up wasting a lot of time screwing around with a boat that won''t serve your purpose or that needs too much work.
 
#7 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

One of the most inspiring books ever written (to me, anyway) was Lyn and Larry Pardey''s book, "Cruising on Serrafyn". Written probably around 1970 and recently re-released. They sailed on a very small boat that Larry made himself. No head, limited accomodations, but very seaworthy. Their motto was "Go small, go now". That book was written with great joy by Lyn. If you have any interest, read this book. Also, Annie Hill (from England) has written a book on cruising on a limited income, which also discusses some of the compromises that you can and must make. ANY boat less than 100'' is some version of camping. And "its always better on the boat...".
My advice is to maintain and feed the dream, read, research, and know it is possible.
 
#8 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

Jared - I''m also Canadian and will be heading south this year. There are boats you can buy for under $10k Canadian that are suitable for living aboard and cruising the islands. You have to be prepared to rough it a bit tho.
Examples: any Pearson Triton in reasonable shape will go around the world, price range from about$7500 cdn to $20k. My old boat, Challenger 24, sisterships have done Toronto to Honduras, I''m selling it for $7800. There''s an Alberg 30 for under $15k on sale now too. Check around, read lots, such as Vigors Twenty Small Sailboats to Take you Anywhere.
But forget about cruising in a houseboat - unless of course you''re looking to kill yourself. As for a cat, you won''t find anything worthwhile in the price range you''re thinking of so forget it.
Good luck, contact me directly if you want more help or info.

Wally
 
#9 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

I would second all of the above, good advice. There is one additional point I''d make. Don''t base your dreams on what you think you can afford, instead, base your income on what your dreams require.

As said above, do some research, think through what you actually want... ie, to travel across large stretches of ocean, to live aboard, to enjoy hot water showers and refridgeration. Then, do research into the best kind of boat to do those specific things. Then, check yachtworld.com and boat classified ads to see how much it''s all going to cost (keep in mind there are a lot of expenses outside of the purchase price of the boat). Then, you''ll have a pretty good idea of the money that you will need to have up front, and the money that you''ll need to spend monthly, and then, you look for ways to raise that money... not as hard as it sounds. Once you have a clearly defined dream, you''d be amazed at how resourceful you will become.
 
#10 ·
What affordable "type" is best for longterm cruising?

A sailboat has the most options but least room for your money. Where do you want to live? Canada? South Pacific? Mexico? In some places like B.C., or Mexico you can anchor for free, in others, like California, it''s difficult which makes it less affordable. Do you want to work your way around the world or stay put in one place? Read everything about boats you can get your hands on to help you firm up your preferences.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top