Would/have you ever considered living onboard with children?

[Saguday]

Sorry, bit late to the thread.

Yes, we took time off and went live aboard with our two boys, aged 5 and 7 at the time.

No regrets, in fact it was one of the best things we've ever done.

Well, one regret - that we didn't do it for longer.

Actually, two regrets - that we haven't been able to do it again since.

It wasn't a massive round the world adventure, it was mostly coastal with couple of offshore parts up and down the US East Coast. We'd planned for a year but had to shorten to 6-7 months due to factors outside our control (nothing sinister or to do with the trip). Went from north Chesapeake Bay to the south and back, then all the way up to Mt Desert Island in Maine via Long Island Sound, Cape Cod, Plymouth and Portland with a side trip to Nova Scotia, then back to the Chesapeake via Rhode Island, New York, Delaware Bay etc.

The kids benefited hugely from it, no problem with schooling on board at that age there is tons of source material including of course the internet. They learn an enormous amount from the environment they are in, far more than a go-to-school child (I have a fundamental disagreement with our glorious Government over this issue).

There was no problem when we came back to the UK and they went back to school, they integrated immediately and have done very well since. They are now 16 and 14 and seem to be heading for uni.

Similar concerns to Jonic about the amount of screen-time they now enjoy but anyway they seem to be self-contained, mature and confident and I'm sure they'll do well at whatever they choose to do.

I would do it all again tomorrow if I could.

 

[Owd_Nell]

Thanks for this Saguday.

The more I read posts like this, the more determined I am to do it. I long for the freedom.

 

[JustinC]

We did Balearics, Corsica and Sardinia for 9 months with a 7 month baby, came back with the second child in the pipeline, went again 2 years later for 5 months along the French Canals, and are now waiting for the third one to get past the 2.5 year mark to go again, hopefully further afield and for longer.

IMHO there is definitely and age bracket (1-3 yrs approx, depending on how mobile they are) where it's more of a challenge, but the 6-12 months age group window is wonderful, and 3+ they're that little bit less of a liability.

Netting is essential and either lifeline or life jacket (depending on your preference) when on deck when underway is also important.

SY Totem's blog (sailingtotem.com) is another useful one to follow - they have 3 kids.

 

[JustinC]

Forgot to add that there was a sailing blog community for families with children set up a few years ago called kids4sail.org, which also had links to other blogs of families out there.

 

[Cardo]

Haven't read all the posts so someone may have already mentioned them, but there's a couple of liveaboards here in Ragusa with kids. Both boats are on indefinite cruising schedules.

http://www.thetunacakes.com/
and
http://www.sailingbritican.com/

As expected, sailing with young kids has its own challenges, but I have yet to hear from anyone that's done it who has regretted it.

 

[Owd_Nell]

Thanks for all your replies, folks, it's great to hear it is do-able.

Do you lot mind if I ask a further question.... How much money roughly per year did you need to do this? Me and my partner both work and have some savings between us. How much did you need for fuel/food/maintenance and repairs? Just wondering how long realistically we could survive cos work is always going to be an issue/obstacle that gets in the way of living.

 

[duncan99210]

That's a real piece of string question.... There's just so many variables to work in. There's a thread running at the moment which is looking at exactly this question, so perhaps have a read of that and then see if there are some more specific questions that arise from it that you can ask.

 

[Owd_Nell]

Thank Duncan,

I don't suppose you can paste the thread link on here? Would be greatly appreciated

 

[duncan99210]

Nell, no ideas to how to do a link....... The thread is by mick and is ten or so down in this forum!

 

[Tranona]

Just scroll down this page for the most recent. The clue is in the title of the thread.

To answer your question in general terms. Costs are in 4 main categories. First living costs - food and drink - which are much the same on balance as they are at home. Some things are cheaper, some more expensive and you may have to modify your diet a bit to reflect availability. Eating out is perhaps more common and cheaper in many parts, particularly away from the tourist spots. Second, and probably the most difficult to generalise are mooring costs. In some parts of the world you can anchor most of the time and perhaps only pay for periodic haulout costs. Others difficult to avoid high cost marinas, which again vary enormously depending on location and time of year. For most med bound cruisers the killer areas are western Med and Italy. Croatia marinas are high cost but there are many opportunities to anchor. Greece and Turkey are low cost.

Third area of cost is boat running costs. some are predictable such as insurance, but many costs depend on the state of the boat and level of usage. You need to budget for regular maintenance and be able to deal with the unexpected. Usually better to get the boat up to scratch before leaving as apart from the hassle of constant boat fixing, costs of parts are generally higher outside the UK. Final costs are those discretionary costs such as trips ashore, car hire, flights back to UK etc.

As you will see when you get to the more detailed threads, budgets of between £1-£2k a month for a couple cover most lifestyles except the really sybaritic. Where you fit in this range will depend on where you are and how frugal you are with the necessities.

 

[Carmel2]

As long as they don't become adult children who have lost their childhood. Seen that one a few times......