on the Yachting
World YouTube
channelWatc h
the videowe went, we spent three years attending World Cruising
Club events and talking to other people about their boat
choices. After a while, our choice of boats, age, equipment
and size narrowed down very quickly. That meant we
could be very definite about what we wanted.
Similarly, when we get approached now and people tell
us their plans and the boat they’ve already bought, we
wish they’d spoken to us beforehand – we’d have steered
them away from certain styles for bluewater cruising. And
it’s common sense to make sure you trust the judgement
of who is giving you advice. Take plenty of opinions, do
your own research and then make your decision.
What’s your budget?
This is the 64 million dollar question. What’s your budget?
You can get a decent boat from the tens of thousands right
up to millions and everything else in-between.
Existing boat owners will be more than familiar with
the rookie mistake of only focusing on the purchase price
and not the ongoing costs. Boats are delightful, but
demanding. The rule of thumb that a yacht costs ten per
cent of its price to run annually isn’t a million miles off.
The key things that will push it higher or lower will be the
amount of work you choose to do yourself and how
fastidious you are at fixing things when they go wrong
(which they will, with predictable certainty).
I’d encourage you to be mindful not to blow the top of
your budget as you’ll need it for that ongoing work.
There’s no denying there is something special about a
new boat, just like there is with a new car. It’s gleaming and
ready to go. Crack the champagne, slip the lines and the
world’s your oyster. We were convinced we wanted a new
yacht early in our process, but later changed our minds
and went for a brokerage boat.
We only had a short time to get her ready before our
voyage and we wanted a boat that had already beenChoosing the right boat for long-term family cruising is all about
balancing your needs and expectations against budget
›
Jean-Sébastien Evrard