Caribbean Cruising

[Guest]

Hi there, planning to spend a season in the Caribbean with two friends on our 41" Dufour Sortilege - just really seeking some advice on the cost of living while we're out there as this seems to be the hardest part of the trip to plan/budget. We plan to do the ARC and then spend the next 5/6 months working our way up to Miami - obviously with a fair amount of R&R along the way. Would be grateful if anyone with any Caribbean experience could get back to me and shed some light on the matter - thanks, Mike

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[snowleopard]

i went across with arc 2001 & spent 5 months there. the cost of living was higher than in europe but most things were still cheaper than the uk.

anchoring costs nothing, shop when possible in the local markets travel by local bus services for a few EC or euros, not taxis. the expensive things are car hire, taxis, marinas & processed food. i hear the BVIs are the most expensive though we didn't get that far. you can eat out cheaply if you avoid european dishes. we lived on rotis and chicken colombo!

if you need repairs, head for st maarten, for good food & european goods the french islands.

you'll be plagued by boat boys in dominica, st lucia, st vincent & grenada but not further north. they charge at least 4x the shore prices for food, bread etc, just smile and say politely 'we're ok for now thanks'.

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[tony_brighton]

evrything in the BVIs is $20.
- mooring buoys
- chicken
- lobster
- steak
- fish

- all $20 each.

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[Seafort]

It's the usual story.
Follow the locals, shop where they shop.

If you like your meat, you may get a bit fed up with chicken and fish, with take-aways (cheap if you avoid the big name brands) look out for chilli and the massive cholesterol hit. /forums/images/icons/smile.gif

I mostly know St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Lucia and Barbados too.
I have friends that live in their own house out there and they live in comfort on £50 p/w between them. (entertainment extra) /forums/images/icons/smile.gifBooze included/forums/images/icons/smile.gif.

As for the boat boys, just be good mannered but firm. Some of these guys can actually make your stay a lot easier, a bottle of rum, eg. Sunset Very Strong Rum, on board can open up many doors.
<font color=red>WARNING</font color=red>
If you drink this stuff yourself, wear a life jacket. Can also be used to light bbq's. (84.5% by vol).
More about Boat Boys <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.usual-suspects-sailing.com/exp-grenadines-boatboys.htm> here </A> .

One last caveat, you don't mention the gender make-up of the party. In my experience women often find the locals "Forthrightness" a bit unnerving at first, can expand if you wish. /forums/images/icons/shocked.gif

Dave.

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