Yachting World — November 2017

82 November 2017

Practical

PRACTICALS THIS MONTH QUartEr tONNEr rEFit •  PiN END StartS • UNDErWatEr SNaGS • crOSSiNG BiScaY

SPECIAL REPORT

TERySA VANdERLOO on BLUEWATER BUDGETS

wo years ago my partner Nick and I set

off from the UK aboard our Southerly

38, Ruby Rose, to fulfil our dream

of sailing around the world. We had spent

many years planning for this moment and had

dedicated a huge amount of thought to all

aspects of our cruise.

We had researched extensively how much it

would cost us and, to our mild alarm, had not

come up with a firm figure. Some costs were

easy to estimate, such as the expense of the

boat itself, insurance, as well as all the obvious

equipment that must be included on such a trip,

but it was our ongoing monthly costs that were

the real mystery.

We originally budgeted for a total of £2,500

per month. This would include all expenses

except for the occasional large and unexpected

outgoing, which would come out of a separate

slush fund. Our budget was simply based on our

projected take-home income from our rental

properties, rather than any evidence that this

amount would be correct, or even sufficient. We

really had no idea how much we’d be spending

on fuel, groceries, repairs and maintenance –

only experience would tell us.

While in the British Virgin Islands we met

a couple who had an incredibly beautiful,

new 55ft semi-customised catamaran.

Unfortunately, after 18 months of cruising, they

had run out of money and were now forced to

go back to work. We were a little baffled: why

didn’t they buy a slightly less expensive boat,

and use those savings to fund an extended

cruise? It became evident to us that they had

vastly underestimated their monthly expenses

and the running costs of such a large, valuable

yacht. The cost of their insurance alone made

my eyes water.

The yacht purchase is naturally going to

be the biggest expense for anyone planning

to go cruising. This couple’s experiences

highlighted the importance of buying a boat

that you can afford to run and not spending so

much that you are subsequently limited by an

uncomfortably small monthly budget.

Living costs

Our monthly expenses have been relatively

stable since setting off two years ago. We have

sailed in the UK, the Atlantic coast of Europe,

Morocco, the Canary Islands, the Caribbean,

T

Tor Johnson Mike Robinson/Alamy

THE COST Of CRuISINg