The Costs of Cruising Today (2006)
by Paul Shard
One of the biggest concerns
people have while planning an extended cruise is "What will it really cost
to head off sailing?" Well, at the seminars we give across North America,
we are asked this question more than any other and I thought it might be
interesting to look at the cost of cruising today.
One thing that has changed over the past 20 years is that more people are
cruising in larger and better equipped boats, making use of many of the
fantastic developments in our sport. For instance..
-
Radar (formerly less than ¼ had it – now over 50 percent of long-term
cruisers)
- SSB
(formerly 20-30 percent had it now 70-80 percent)
-
computer (now almost all boats have at LEAST one) refrigeration (we cruised
for 3 years without it)
-
built-in Autopilot - now many cruisers have one – especially since many need
it to handle the larger boats
-
chartplotter – almost all boats have some form of electronic charting – but
in many cases this has actually cut costs since you don't
-
need to buy as many paper charts.
-
Electric windlass – still on my list but there are very few cruisers in the
Med who don't have one
-
generator, watermaker, scuba compressor, air conditioning, diesel cabin
heater etc...
-
insurance – it is being required in most marinas to have at least
third-party insurance but most cruisers also have hull insurance –as boats
get more expensive it is getting harder to risk losing it all!
All seem a good deal and many people feel they couldn't go cruising without
almost all of this list. But we left on our first transatlantic crossing
with just one of the above list – the SSB radio.
So its not surprising that costs have risen and some cruising budgets are
MUCH higher than they might once have been.
So what does it really cost the modern cruiser
today?
Well, how about a different take on this. Meet three typical cruising
couples who cruise in VERY different styles.
Sue & John
have a 33 foot trimaran they bought used a couple of years ago.
The boat isn't up to major passages although they have made a few
overnights. Future plans include some glass repairs to the deteriorating
plywood but this will wait. For now they are happy to slowly visit various
Caribbean and Bahamian islands – more or less moving on when the seasons
dictate. They fix everything themselves and although not a great mechanic,
John has learned enough about diesel engines to repair his own – and make a
little money fixing other boats in the anchorages they're in. Once a week
they go out for happy hour to a beach bar for a beer. Total monthly expenses
in restaurants is less than $40. Groceries are kept simple and treats like
steak are very rare (no pun intended ;-). The last time they stayed in a
marina was 1 year ago when they stayed 2 nights after completing a haulout.
They redid the bottom themselves and they buy most boat items used. These
are the most frugal people we have met and although they won't offer you a
Heinekin when you come to visit, they may serve you a fabulous fresh-caught
fish dinner. You can be rich in other ways than with money! Total monthly
expenses of $800.
Paul & Sheryl – Our monthly
budget has crept up from an average of just over $1000 US in the early 1990s
to recent numbers closer to $2,500. Having added refrigeration, a computer,
electronics, radar etc. means we seem to spend more on repairs – and
besides, Two-Step is getting older so costs are bound to go up. Still, we do
all mechanical work on the boat ourselves. This year there will be a budget
item to have the bottom epoxied - $2000 – something I would have done myself
if I weren't trying to find the time to make a television series about
sailing at the same time! (see links to “Distant Shores” below and consider
buying our excellent cruising DVDs – you can help our budget and get some
sailing inspiration at the same time ;-)
An increasing and unpredictable portion of the budget comes from dockage. In
the Med – you can spend quite a bit on dockage. In Italy we were faced with
fees of over 2 dollars a foot to tie up in some ports. And in many ports
docking fees are based on beam times length. So our narrow 37-footer can be
paying less than half the rate of our friends on their beamy 55 footer (see
below). Another larger item these days is eating out at cafes and
restaurants. From Greek Tavernas wafting the smell of calamari, to Pizzerias
in their native Italy – and the inexpensive delights of Turkish cuisine – I
am glad we could increase the budget to extend to regularly eating out!! Who
would want to miss it? Anyway our restaurant budget has sky-rocketed from a
low point of $50-80 per month in the Caribbean and Bahamas to a startling
height of almost $500/month in the last year. But BOY was it worth it!!
Dave & Joan – cruising on a new European 55
footer they are living the life! Sailing next to them last year
we needed to wear sunglasses for the glare from all the perfectly polished
stainless steel. But better neighbours you couldn't ask for! Stuck in a
small Greek harbour with no electricity they were kind enough to allow us to
plug in and charge our batteries from their generator – since they needed to
run the air conditioning anyway! Sampling the local cuisine regularly adds
to the budget even more than us. They spent over $10,000 in one year just on
meals out but then the next year just $2,000. The bigger boat cost more to
run as well. And as Dave says – keeping it in top condition is a priority
even if it means they spend more than they planned. Total boat repairs and
upgrades (including hull insurance) is almost $2,000 per month. but even so
they do most of the work themselves. Says Dave “We do not do bottom
painting, fiberglass repair and sail repair, but we do just about everything
else including maintaining the engine and genset, repair of all electrical &
electronics parts including nav equipment, computers, water makers, etc.”.
Their budget for slip fees vary per year – but for a 55 footer they are
always going to be higher in general. Last year was $5000 but the previous
year was $11,000. It depends so much on where you cruise and what kind of a
deal you can find for a winter slip if you intend to spend a few months
staying put as most people do in the Mediterranean. But this budget has lots
of room for some great extras – like some inland touring,
So there you are – from a low of $800 to a high of 8-times that. It
is possible to cruise quite inexpensively in some areas. Anchoring as much
as possible, doing your own repairs and keeping an eye on the big expenses
like slip-fees, restaurants and new boat-bits will help keep the budget
reasonable. But depending on where you cruise it could make sense to budget
more if you can afford it. Do you really want to walk past that wood-fired
Italian pizzeria to save $15. Or come home WITHOUT the pictures from that
new digital camera. Or miss the scenic ruins at Ephesus to save a $60 car
rental? (don't mention this one to Sheryl – its a sore point ;-)
Frugal Cruising
The style of cruising will
obviously affect the cost. Two people who repair their own boat, don’t eat
out much and prefer to anchor could keep to a budget of less than
$1500/month. If we try for this number we can occasionally splurge on other
things though. We use laundry services, rent a car once in a while and never
stint on buying food.
Quite a number of cruising boats today cruise on much less. For roughly
$800, the cost-conscious couple can cruise, but not likely on a boat larger
than 35 feet. Certainly above 40 feet the costs of any boat related item
(dockage, fuel, repair, replacement parts etc) go up dramatically. Out of
$800 (only $26 per day), much goes to groceries, with boat parts and even
clothes having to be carefully planned for.
Reducing Cruising Expenses
At
the core of the successful cruising philosophy is "self-sufficiency".
Sailing and wandering the world’s oceans by definition takes us far from the
services and conveniences of home. And what is a sailboat but a tiny perfect
self-contained system - harnessing the wind to take us across oceans, then
anchoring in a new country - our homes incorporating most of the best of the
land-based equivalent with the addition of a changeable view and backyard!
Cruisers who can keep that self-sufficiency are the most free to travel and
live months or years without depleting the bank account.
There is a tremendous satisfaction to keeping the systems onboard up and
running. Checking over the rigging to eliminate a source of chafe, fixing a
leak in the water system, changing the oil - all these things help achieve
self-sufficiency. Don’t worry if you can’t strip down and rebuild a diesel
engine – a rare enough occurrence for which you can plan a contingency fund
for major repairs - but it is the rare cruiser who doesn’t have at least a
minimal level of comfort with normal shipboard repairs. Of course this all
relates to the cruising budget! A competent mechanic not only saves on his
repair budget, but also can usually depend on regular free drinks/dinners
just for offering a hand to other cruisers!
Some more hints to reduce the cruising budget
Get
comfortable with basic repair techniques for the major ship’s systems.
Get tools for these repairs if you don’t already have them. The boat repair
end of the budget could get quite out of hand during extended cruising if
even basic jobs are left to tradesmen along the way.
Prepare to anchor a lot. Marinas are fine for occasional visits, or
carefully planned longer term stays, but at more than $1.50US per foot per
night for transient visits, the whole $1500 monthly budget could disappear
just on that. Examine your ground tackle and consider upgrading if you don’t
totally trust it. The basic light tackle carried by weekend sailors,
especially weight-conscious racers will look woefully undersized in the
middle of an anchorage of cruisers. Most cruisers have more than 2 anchors -
and the main one being slightly oversized for the boat. Usually this main
anchor is on an all-chain rode with a windlass to raise and lower it.
Plan a food and restaurant budget. If you like to eat out a lot this
could become a major budget item. Of course it’s an interesting part of
travelling to sample the local cuisine and if you are used to dining out
often you can budget this in. But eating on board and cooking local meals
can be fun, too. One of the most often heard pieces of advice from contented
onboard chefs is to take along your nice cooking gear from home. It’s not
fun to camp on board when the boat becomes home - not just a weekend
retreat. Replacing the plastic plates and cups with real ones, taking
quality stainless cookware and even real wineglasses can help make a boat a
home.
Expenses such as insurance (health, boat, and life) will all be extra.
Many cruisers keep a nest egg to cover themselves in the event of needing
medical attention or something expensive such as a new engine. This can
substantially reduce insurance premiums if you are willing to bear some risk
yourself in this way.
Another item that can blow a budget is communications – especially
cell-phones, satellite phones and internet access. Decide what you are
willing to spend and budget it in. If you really want to live the old-time
cruising life of keeping in touch by postcards and the occasional land line
call home it is still possible. But we find more and more people want to
budget to keep in touch from onboard.
Finally, as the car brochures say, “your mileage may vary”! There is a wide
variety of both cruising styles and budgets out there. And that's the main
point – TO BE OUT THERE!! See you on the water!
Visit our website
Paul Shard
December
2005
