Costs of keeping a boat in the Caribbean vs the Med

affinite

affinite

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Having kept our boat in the Eastern Med for 10 years I'm wondering about a change of scene.
I had hoped to cruise the Levant basin countries but most countries are now are iffy if not a no-go so Im wondering about the Caribbean

Id be interested to hear from anyone who's already made that move as to how running costs compare.
I know that costs arent going to be as low as Greece but just how much more expensive is the Carib ?

We currently keep our boat on the hard in Greece and are lifted in for our sailing visits.
That sailing is usually a 4/5 week trip twice a year. We currently go in Spring and Autumn but I recognise that the sailing seasons are different over there.

Any advice/input welcome

Thanks
Steve
 
I'm not a sailor as such but my son lives out there and we went over in November. Mooring can be very cheap, where he is at the moment is $30 a night, any size up to 60'. Food is another matter as lots is imported. We went in a supermarket and the booze was cheap but the food was expensive. My son is a chef so he said when he has looked for stuff he has been surprised at the costs. He is moving islands in a few weeks so keep in touch and I'll find some prices for overall costs on a wider basis. Unless someone else comes along in the meantime.
 
I live in the Windward/Leeward islands year round. Food costs are high especially if you want things like Camembert in Grenada or Johny Walker in Guadeloupe. But rum and some other local spirits are cheap as are staples like rice and pasta.

Martinique and Guadeloupe have a supermarket [ Leader Price ] that is considerably cheaper than elsewhere.

It is generally possible to avoid marinas and mooring fields as anchorages are plentiful. As you are only looking to be on the boat for 8 to 10 weeks a year it is boat storage and flight costs that will matter more.

Sailing conditions will be better and of course our season is year round.
 
I think it depends how adventurous you are, affinite. If by the Carib you mean the Antilles (which is of course just the eastern fringe), then TQA's observations are generally true. But it's a huge place and hugely variable: certainly more variable than the northern Med.
 
Assuming you keep your boat in Trinidad - Chagaramus bay (fly Tobago then shuttle to Trini) and there are at least 6 boat yards there the costs are at one of the yards on this link,
http://www.powerboats.co.tt/rates.asp

You would almost certainly keep the boat in their secure yard and splash it when you want to go sailing.

Generally, except for the tourist areas like the Virgin Islands, costs are very low compared to the Med. Even taking into account higher air fares you would make a considerable savings. The Virgins are the home of the big charter companies like Moorings etc so holiday makers come down and charter large yachts put lots of people in them so expensive (but not by Med standards) moorings fill the bays where your would normally anchor.

The big difference is that you spend very little time in marinas and normally anchor everywhere. Local people use markets which are inexpensive and even the supermarkets are reasonably priced. Rum is less than water!

Michael
 
Not everywhere and certainly not guaranteed. Last year the place my son was working (Cooper Island) dragged two ribs up the beach and into storage, the larger boat was taken to Virgin Gorda for storage on the hard. Gonzalo came and went as just a heavy thunderstorm as it changed course a few hours earlier. I'm not saying be blase but if you are living aboard for any length of time during the Hurricane season there are places which don't suffer the same as others.
 
>I'm not saying be blase but if you are living aboard for any length of time during the Hurricane season there are places which don't suffer the same as others.


The OP is only spending four to five weeks a year on the boat so missing hurricane season is easy. The only places that don't suffer Hurricanes are Trinidad, Venezuela a no go area, Bonaire, Curacao and Columbia which can be extremely windy. We used to go to Trini or Curacao.
 
affinite said:
Having kept our boat in the Eastern Med for 10 years I'm wondering about a change of scene.
I had hoped to cruise the Levant basin countries but most countries are now are iffy if not a no-go so Im wondering about the Caribbean

Id be interested to hear from anyone who's already made that move as to how running costs compare.
I know that costs arent going to be as low as Greece but just how much more expensive is the Carib ?

We currently keep our boat on the hard in Greece and are lifted in for our sailing visits.p
That sailing is usually a 4/5 week trip twice a year. We currently go in Spring and Autumn but I recognise that the sailing seasons are different over there.

Any advice/input welcome

Thanks
Steve
Click to expand...

We sailed across two years ago after 6 yrs in the Med. We avoid marinas but find the Caribbean significantly more expensive than eastern Med. Insurance is at least 50% more and getting work done on the boat and parts are more expensive although we try to do most of the work ourselves. Lift out in hurricane season is a little dearer as well. Yes there are pockets like Leaderprice in Martinique and sometimes local markets but overall provisioning is much dearer.

The winds are more constant although last year's Christmas winds were stronger than normal, and we spend a lot less time under engine than we did in the Med. The islands are all different and we are enjoying the change of scene but would hope to go to the Med again one day.

But for your initial question, don't expect prices in the Caribbean to be similar to eastern Med.

Cheers, Bob
 
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