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Old 29-05-2019, 10:16   #1
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Cruising with kids?

Hi. I'm new to the forum and I'm currently converting my hartley fijian 37 into a junk schooner.
I'd like to cruise the med and baltic. But I have 8 and 6 year old boys.
Are there any sailing families out there doing the same thing?
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Old 31-05-2019, 03:38   #2
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Re: Cruising with kids?

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Alistair.
Yes.
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Old 31-05-2019, 05:22   #3
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Re: Cruising with kids?

I fail to see the problem. Eight and six are old enough. I guess it revolves around what kind of boys do you have and/or what kind of parent you are.

By eight I was making solo day sails out of the bay and into the ocean. At six I was 1st mate to my 2 yr older brother.

There are now and have been before many families sailing full time with young children, even toddlers. I suppose six years would be the minimum age if without adequate number of adults to provide assistance or supervision, any younger would become primary duty of a responsible person who is not the helmsman or captain.
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Old 31-05-2019, 05:33   #4
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Re: Cruising with kids?

I suspect that one of the most significant problems, in cruising with children, would be providing them with adequate schooling (home schooling). I believe that this has become much easier, in recent years.
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Old 31-05-2019, 05:53   #5
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Re: Cruising with kids?

We live aboard and have 4 kids - 3 girls ages 8, 5, and 3 and a 1 year old boy.

While it is much more common to see younger couples or older folks out cruising, there are still many families that do it. It's not a recent phenomenon either as my wife has gone out of the way to read sailing books to the kids and found a few from the 1970's where the crew is a family.
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Old 31-05-2019, 07:12   #6
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Re: Cruising with kids?

As with most things, it depends on the individual person although children are frequently more adaptable. Some people love cruising on sailboats and, obviously, some people would consider it torture.

When our children were 8, 11 and 13, we took a year-long cruise that included visiting Mexico, Hawaii and Alaska. It was a defining event for our family and remains a source of fond memories almost 25 years later. My recommendation would be to give it a try but be prepared to abandon the idea if your family concludes that it’s not for them.

Fair winds and calm seas.
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Old 31-05-2019, 07:22   #7
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Re: Cruising with kids?

Just because their children… Don’t discount their will and strength to survive ...

Not a single complaint or tear shed during the 10 hour overnight ordeal that bashed us on and off our hull. Separated us from our boat, and each other.

Only thing I can recommend is make sure that the children’s life vest has a little loop on the back of the neck because using two fingers, that was the only thing I had to manage to have to hang onto my daughter. One little cordura loop is all that ended up saving my daughter. She would’ve easily been ripped away by the 12 to 16 foot waves.

Just go do it!
You’ll have low moments but the good times clearly outweigh the negative!


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