Reality of Selling up and Living Aboard as a Family

[Serious_Dreamer]

You will also be told off/experience some antagonism from people who find the idea too scary. You're irresponsible. You haven't got enough safety equipment. You should go on a cruise. You'll be guided to YouTube scare stories. Shouldn't you have a license? The list of antidisestablishmentarianism goes on (always wanted to find a use for that word).

Yep, we have already had a lot of this, although I do always keep "this life isn't a practise run!" in the back of my mind when dealing with this. And that you can't take x,y or z material objects with you, but memories...
And well done on finding a use for "antidisestablishmentarianism" not an easy one to get into a sentence

 

[KevinV]

From the families I've met out in the Caribbean it seems much easier with pre-teens. Once they get to their teens belonging to a peer group seems to be much more important, as well as needing their own space, and being able to get away from their parents. I have seen it work though - with plenty of mutual empathy.

 

[Tranona]

Yep, we have already had a lot of this, although I do always keep "this life isn't a practise run!" in the back of my mind when dealing with this. And that you can't take x,y or z material objects with you, but memories...
And well done on finding a use for "antidisestablishmentarianism" not an easy one to get into a sentence

The main "don't do it" is related to using a boat as an alternative to a house in the UK as this is generally incompatible with "normal" living particularly with children. The 4 main downers are limited space, general discomfort, particularly in winter, finding a berth and maintaining any sort of work/ social and schooling routine. These constraints tend to go away if you intend becoming travellers heading south and west, although as several have said the schooling problem becomes greater when children pass into teens. There is also then the issue of funding without regular work/income. However if it is the semi off grid with a bit of travel that appeals canals still offer many opportunities for an on board lifestyle.

You therefore find travellers tend to be either young and childless or older and childless with a fair smattering in between with younger children taking a break before the children grow up.

 

[LittleSister]

The main "don't do it" is related to using a boat as an alternative to a house in the UK . . .

Exactly so.

 

[Sea Change]

You therefore find travellers tend to be either young and childless or older and childless with a fair smattering in between with younger children taking a break before the children grow up.

It's always nice to put things in numbers.
Using the excellent No Foreign Land app, I count 20 boats in this anchorage. This is clearly not 100% representative but it's a useful data source.
Of those, six have children onboard.
Of those, five have children all aged ten or under.

Cruising with older kids can be done, but for all manner of reasons it's much less common than cruising with younger children.