Cost of Liveaboard Dockage?

[benjiwoodboat]

Winter at the dock: $1600 including elec.
Summer on mooring: $500 (no launch service)

I shower at the local gym ($60/month) and I get WIFI from various places using a 15dbi antenna. Thats about all I need.

This is Long Island NY on 27' using a 350lb mooring.

[s/v Lyric]

A side tie slip at Mario's Marina on the Rio Dulce river in Guatemala is only $225.00 per month. This covers water, shore showers, and swimming pool. Wi-Fi is $30.00 per month. There is no extra fee for liveaboards. The electric is metered and some what expensive at $0.40 per kw-hour. An extra bonus is the Rio is probably the best hurricane hole in the entire Caribbean! Mario's has a very good restaurant and bar on site - meals average less than $8 for dinner and bar drinks are less than $2.

Other marinas on the river have similar prices. There are probably 500 boats on the river for this H season.

[Minitee]

It's not the money that costs you. It's the time. Many locations have waiting lists three to five years long. I'm not for high prices, but maybe it would get rid of the floating junk that is taking up valuable slips.

[Ron Tan]

I'm at a very small marina (a large dock, basically) on the St. John's river in Jacksonville, Florida, paying $9ft with water/electric/shower, telephone/cable/wifi available...but I want to move. The owners are great, neighbors are great, I'm just ready to go and see new places/new faces. I'm going to go traveling late in the year and see what I find.

No waiting list here, if there's a slip open, first come first serve. There's one available now if your draft isn't over 5'

[systech]

Wow.....Those prices are pretty high......I am moored in Vancouver Island and I'm paying $4.25/ft on my 26ft Sailboat which includes power/fresh water/shower/washroom/liveaboard......Basically paying $110/month.

[Ron Tan]

And for South Florida $9ft is cheap. I have friends in Texas that want me to stay with them where they're paying $3ft + $20 per person LA fee, but I can't imagine spending a summer in South Texas...bring out the giant spatula, this boy is extra crispy and done. Other people are dreaming of the South Seas, right now I'm dreaming of Maine. Newfoundland. Superman's Fortress of Solitude at the North Pole. I'm so hot I could lay nekkid on an iceberg and in ten minutes it would be clinking around in my ice tea glass. Too damn hot.

[Pblais]

Location, location, location. The three rules of real estate apply to marinas. Go to some place terrible that no one want to be at and live dirt cheap. Venezuela!

[Mick Harvey]

revisiting this one; i am considering moving to Ft. Lauderdale and instead of buying a place was thinking of buying a boat and living on that. the only marina that i found that would expect live aboard was $2,100/month - min and went up from there.
i found 2 roads off of Los Alos (sp?) and met a live aboard guy from UK and he stated the fees where 600-900 and you get water/sewer and power but its in the cove and the water gets over 90 degrees and you can feel the heat coming up.
SO, are these my options? any input from anyone would help.
thanks

[almost_there]

wow...we're definately in the wrong place. Espirit Marina in Marina Del Rey...paying over $2200 for a 45 foot boat. (included in that is a 55% live aboard fee...)
What you get for the money: new bathrooms, lousy mail service, and the privledge of looking at the empty pool and gym that only the apartment renters are allowed to use.
Thank goodness we're leaving in a month!

[El Jeem]

Rio Dulce, 306/month for a side tie, metered power, free water, WiFi, Pool, Showers.. no live aboard fee. The Med moors are cheaper.

[Sea Wolf]

We're at the Palm Bay Club in Miami with a 50' catamaran and are paying $18 a foot, plus electric. The norm around here is about $20 a foot. There's no 'live aboard' fee here as there are at so many Miami marinas. Also the amenities are fantastic. 24 hour security, guard gate, gorgeous pool with a hot tub and a gym, all included in the price. The only drawback is that there is no covered parking. Oh woe is me... no covered parking in paradise. Go figure!

Loree
Aboard SeaWolf
CruisersLife.com

[SKhan]

Live aboard has never become cheap and its always difficult to manage the budget and resources. I did travelled in marine 2 or 3 times so far but the things that really matter for me is to manage my romaing on cellphones. Being a traveller i feel its difficult to manage every thing but my phone bill really hurts cost me around 700- 800$ for week or so. Even i tried Vopium for cheap international calls and its gr8 but coverage is the issue. Rest Live aboard is like any thing i wish ...

[shibbershabber]

SKhan:

$7-$800/Wk for your phone?

HOLY CRAP!

I dont think I've made that in wages before, but a phone bill!

[Rayallyn]

I am planning on sailing down the ICW this coming fall from New London CT. and have been looking at prices and locations on the internet. I don't want to spend a fortune on slip fees as I plan to cruise more than dock. I found a site called Active Captain and it has lot of info on dockage, mooring, and anchorages. It still leaves a lot to be desired but seems to have more info then most sites I have found.
My boat is on the hard in a boatyard referred to by many as the boatyard from Hell but I kind of think it is a great place, lots of spare parts that can purchased there and working class boat owners. Its' rate is $70.00 per foot for the season but for this part of New England that is cheap. I wanted to move the boat up to New Hampshire or southern Maine but slip prices are for the season and run on average $135/ft. or more. If try to get a slip mid-season they still want the full season amount. Don't know how long they can keep charging these prices with economy sliding down hill.
I think that what size boat you live on has to do (not entirely) on how much and what kind of cruising you plan doing. Sailing more than being at a dock with a smaller boat will in my opinion not be as noticeably as incontinent as staying tied to a dock with less sail time.

[Sea Wolf]

Rayalln,
Bill and I always found that local knowledge far outweighed anything we found in the cruising books. The books are a good starting point, but don't always hit the 'locals' places, which can be much better and/or much cheaper than what's published. I would suggest you connect with locals who can help along the way. Join all the sailing/cruising forums and ask for help. You'll be amazed at how many people are ready, willing and able to help. We're getting ready to head out again and now have contacts all over the world. We're in Miami and you can feel free to contact us when you get in the area.

Loree
Aboard SeaWolf
CruisersLife.com