Our cruising costs - month 14 for a middle-aged couple on a modest boat.

[Cthoops]

We just finished up our 14th month of cruising full-time on our Bristol 29.9.

Not our best month as far as expenses are concerned, but not too bad either.

It was a pretty high month for the restaurant/entertainment category, but we had a lot of fun socializing with other boaters in October, and we also stopped in Belhaven where we tend to eat out several times at our favorite places. *The other two outliers were in the "boat stuff" category where we primarily stocked up on spare engine parts and bought hardware and lines for our drifter, and the purchase of a long-awaited inflatable stand up paddle board at the boat show.

We spent most of October in Annapolis, MD before starting to head south in earnest, landing in Beaufort, NC by the end of the month.

Below is our spending in October:

Groceries/Non-food Groceries/Alcohol: $530.53
Diesel/Gasoline: $90.21
Propane: $7.59
Medical: $60.43
Cell data, iCloud storage, and Garmin inReach subscription: $87.74
Amazon Prime: $12.99
Restaurants/Entertainment: $514.66
Uber: $23.76
New York Times subscription: $20.20
Marinas: $113.40
Boat stuff: $743.28 (spare engine parts, paper charts, chain hook, antifreeze, engine oil, halyard/sheets/hardware for drifter, boat hook, boat cleaner, ditty bag, electrical wire for autopilot)
Clothing: $59.36
Life Insurance: $220.75
Subscriptions: $118.53
Random: $708.16 (inflatable standup paddle board, foot warmers, waterproof spray, pocket hose, two wrenches, two boat pillows, dry bag backpacks, marina tips)

Total: $3,311.59

2019 monthly average to date: $3,376.65

2018 monthly average (September – December): $4,465.95.

Monthly average since starting to cruise: $3,687.88

I hope this is helpful.

[TravelinLight]

I love seeing these types of posts from people out there doing it. TY

[MountainStone]

This is extremely helpful, if discouraging. If you are open to the suggestion, I would be interested to know what the 'marinas' cost comprises. If it's just straight docking/mooring fees, can you maybe add the note of how many nights you spent. I know it'll be wildly variable from one marina to another and season to season, but still an interesting data point. Thanks for posting, even if you aren't interested in adding further info!

[ronstory]

Cthoops--

Thank-you for your willingness and taking the time to share your "cruise" with the community. One day... I'll be there too.

[Cthoops]

Originally Posted by MountainStone

This is extremely helpful, if discouraging. If you are open to the suggestion, I would be interested to know what the 'marinas' cost comprises. If it's just straight docking/mooring fees, can you maybe add the note of how many nights you spent. I know it'll be wildly variable from one marina to another and season to season, but still an interesting data point. Thanks for posting, even if you aren't interested in adding further info!

Sure, I can try to remember to do that. In this case the marina cost was for 2 nights. On the occasions we stay in a marina we do try to pick one where the daily rate is around $1.50/foot, but sometimes that’s not so easy to find.

[Cthoops]

Originally Posted by ronstory

Cthoops--

Thank-you for your willingness and taking the time to share your "cruise" with the community. One day... I'll be there too.

It’s a bit of a cliche, but the day will definitely arrive more quickly than you think.

[sailorboy1]

Good to see “alcohol” as part of the groceries line

You are doing fine (just wait till I post my month next week). All we can do is keep the costs in mind. But living a “cheap” life isn’t the real goal for most cruisers.

[nightowle]

This is very helpful, indeed. Hope to see more of your posts along these lines.

[Cthoops]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

Good to see “alcohol” as part of the groceries line

You are doing fine (just wait till I post my month next week). All we can do is keep the costs in mind. But living a “cheap” life isn’t the real goal for most cruisers.

You’re right about primarily keeping the costs in mind - that’s all we can do.

It feels GREAT to have alcohol in that line again, and given that the doctor-permitted quantity is so low, Mr. cthoops and I are both cheap dates!