Where to Retire and sail.

[gtwashio]

Greetings,

I am getting ready to retire and want to find somewhere affordable, reasonably safe and friendly to sail and liveaboard. Either at a marina or on the hook.

As a young man, I lived, worked and sailed in the USVI, so I know what it's like to leave the U.S... I became a cop in South Florida at 44 and am retiring at 61. Got a modest IRA out ot it but want to make it last.

I would appreciate input about

Grenada, Belize, Mexico, Costa Rico, etc.

I currently own a 76 Irwin 44 center-cockpit with A/C a replaced yanmar and new mainsail. I'll probably spend a few months going and forthbetweenBahamas and Ft. Lauderdale to see if the life and boat suit me.

I'll probably have crew getting there then live alone.

I'm sorry if this is the wrong place to post this but I would appreciate and guidance.

Thanks

Tom

[valhalla360]

If you don't have a particular country you want to be in, I would consider just puttering up and down the ICW.

Cruisers (as opposed to liveaboard) are welcome just about everywhere and you can manage cost with plentiful marinas and anchorages. Larger bays and offshore passages allow for sailing if you don't want to motor.

[Q Xopa]

I'm pretty happy hanging out in Panama.

[belizesailor]

Both Costa Rica and Belize are expensive, so if you want to make it last then may not be the best choices. However, a lot depends on how you choose to live.

The CA4 (Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador) are the least expensive in Central America, but also have issues with crime/security/infrastructure.

Panama is a good compromise. Its a little more expensive than the CA4, but way cheaper than BZ or CR. Booming economy and better infrastructure than the CA4. Dollarized economy (no exhange...spend US$ directly). Reasonable crime rates vs the high rates of the CA4. No hurricanes.

Grenada is a pleasant place. More expensive than Central America. Low probability of hurricanes. A friend of mine has lived aboard at anchor there...in exactly the same spot for years now.

[bobnlesley]

Originally Posted by gtwashio

...ready to retire and want to find somewhere affordable, reasonably safe and friendly to sail and liveaboard...I'll probably spend a few months going between Bahamas and Ft. Lauderdale to see if the life and boat suit me.

You'll do OK, that plan's a good first step - well, perhaps not Ft L if you're looking for 'affordable'
All things are relative and if you've been a policeman in any urban area in the developed world, then there's few places that you're likely to sail to that are not going to be safer and those few that are comparably dodgy, you'll hear about long before you reach them
Invest in a good anchor and learn how to use it, marinas are NOT affordable over the long term.
Double and triple-check everything on your boat and stock up on spares for all consumables and anything that you're still suspicious might be a weak-spot with the boat (enquire of other owners); it won't help of course, only those things that you don't have a spare will break, but at least you've tried.
Load up on beer - this is VERY important - the Bahamas aren't nearly as expensive as we were warned provided that you're easy going about what you eat, but there's no affordable alternatives with regard to beer, bring all that you can carry - don't worry about rum/gin/whisky, off-brand but drinkable alternatives are to be found cheaper in the Bahamas.
Take small steps, despite the horror stories and concerns regularly posted here and elsewhere, if you wait for a suitable weather window - you're a cruiser now, so there's always tomorrow, next week or even next month -
it's an easy 24-hours from Florida to the Abacos.
Once you reach there you'll meet no end of like minded people (especially if you've got lots of beer!) so talk to them and decide where or even if you want to go any further at that point.
Lots of people do stay in the Bahamas through the hurricane season, but they're all braver than me. So once that season approaches (the preceding thunder/lightning storms will already be worrying you by then anyway) wait for a weather window, up anchor and make the short passage back to Florida's east coast from where you can head as far north (or inland) as you think you need to be to feel safe(ish). Do the decent thing though: If you've got beer left at that point, put the word out and sell it off to the remaining cruisers at US prices, then replenish the supply when you get back to Florida
By the following autumn you'll be an 'experienced' cruiser and know for yourself where you want to go next and by what route; who knows where it'll end?

Just DON'T FORGET THE BEER!

[Salt to Sea]

This sounds so great, congrats on living your dream. I’m not sure if it’s been mentioned, but I’ve heard it’s important to take lots of beer down there. Good luck.

[LauraleeG]

Isnt it great to be able to plan your dream...finally!!! Just go. Also....a secret tip and boat hack: little known fact, beer is a commodity and in some countries, with some people...it carries more weight and has more power. Dont know if has been mentioned here or not....

[boatman61]

Whats with this 'bring beer'..???
Its a readily available commodity down their.. unless your into gnats piss like 'Bud'..

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Whats with this 'bring beer'..???
Its a readily available commodity down their.. unless your into gnats piss like 'Bud'.. [emoji3]

Kalik, Bahamian for "gnat's piss", is stoopid expensive in the Bahamas...as is most everything else too. For those prices you could bring craft beer from the USA. In the USA gnat's piss costs a fraction of Kalik in the Bahamas.

However, once you get out of the Bahamas beer gets reasonable again. Here in Panama you can buy the local gnat's piss for about $0.50/can and lots of good beer is available too. Craft brew is really catching on here with many very good Central American breweries and even a few brew pubs now. Even the larger super market chains now have a good selection of better quality imported and regional beers...another pro of Panama! [emoji481]

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

Kalik, Bahamian for "gnat's piss", is stoopid expensive in the Bahamas...as is most everything else too. For those prices you could bring craft beer from the USA. In the USA gnat's piss costs a fraction of Kalik in the Bahamas.

However, once you get out of the Bahamas beer gets reasonable again. Here in Panama you can buy the local gnat's piss for about $0.50/can and lots of good beer is available too. Craft brew is really catching on here with many very good Central American breweries and even a few brew pubs now. Even the larger super market chains now have a good selection of better quality imported and regional beers...another pro of Panama! [emoji481]

I was talking about the Caribe not an off shore Florida sand bar..
And yes, Panama does have some good beers, also some great Spanish style 'Curado Cheese's' to go with it..

[Q Xopa]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

Kalik, Bahamian for "gnat's piss", is stoopid expensive in the Bahamas...as is most everything else too. For those prices you could bring craft beer from the USA. In the USA gnat's piss costs a fraction of Kalik in the Bahamas.

However, once you get out of the Bahamas beer gets reasonable again. Here in Panama you can buy the local gnat's piss for about $0.50/can and lots of good beer is available too. Craft brew is really catching on here with many very good Central American breweries and even a few brew pubs now. Even the larger super market chains now have a good selection of better quality imported and regional beers...another pro of Panama! [emoji481]

Yes, food and drink anything is available in Panama.
Many Boat parts are not always available. I get a lot of mine from the US without too much messing around.
Cruising is great, and mostly not too crowded.
Like everywhere it has some issues, but IMNSHO you can easily do worse.

[Saleen411]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Whats with this 'bring beer'..???
Its a readily available commodity down their.. unless your into gnats piss like 'Bud'..

I believe I paid $52 bucks a case for the local stuff last October in Marsh Harbour.

I was later told I should've stuck with rum.

[Ndavies]

Sounds like you have a good plan with one exception - I would avoid SE Florida like the plague! Each time I pass through the area from West Palm to Miami, I shorten my stay and just get through. Things get better on the west coast of Florida, but the real gem area is the northern Gulf. Now I'm not going to advertise it any more than that, because we don't want it to become SE Florida! But if you do your research, there are amazing bays, anchorages where the locals welcome you, beaches that by far beat the Bahamas, and you are within reach of a West Marine. More info on my blog.

[Sailor647]

Although it would take some time for you to get here, take a look at the Sea of Cortez in Mexico. La Paz, Mazatlan, and La Cruz/Puerto Vallarta are hotspots for cruising now.

And with the dollar to peso exchange rate hovering at 19,you can maintain a lovely lifestyle.

Plenty of gorgeous white sand anchorages, plenty of sailing, and plenty of space. And the people are lovely.

[Dave22q]

Problem with BZ is not that it is expensive (it is not). Very few marinas, need to go outside the reef to sail. CR is generally affordable but few marinas on the East coast and Pacific coast overrun with snowflakes from Ca. Panama seems like a good option.