Liveaboard Dating

[JanetGroene]

Originally Posted by Tellie

You want to have a boat and a girlfriend?
One's gonna be more demanding than the other.

And it's probably going to be the boat, especially if she has a lot of brightwork.

[ArtM]

If having a partner in your life is important, and living aboard is important, then it will be important to you to obtain a boat on which a woman will want to live aboard.

That is probably not going to be a 1985 gunkholer with a fold-down table and single-sink gallery.

To me, this means one of the French boats. Specifically one of the designers who is known to have said "I want a woman to walk on to this boat and say Yes, I WANT to live here." And that means money. It means that you might need to whack your expenses down to nothing for a year, or two years, and put away the kind of cash that it takes to buy a "condo on the water" instead of a "hole in the water." At least, that's what it is going to mean for me. I've budgeted the next 5 years to this endeavor, but I have the luxury of planning ahead (if you can call having teenaged kids a "luxury"!)

Got a nearly vintage 34' Sloop? I agree, you can invite potential dates for a few hours sailing. If they're into you, they might even volunteer for a weekend. But a lifetime? It depends on the woman.

I guess you have to ask yourself the question Am I feeling lucky?

Part of this, though, has to do with your age, your tastes in women and lifestyles, and your patience. Very young women may be up for an adventure, but have trouble developing romantic feelings for an older man. A middle aged woman,if she does not already have a family may be secretly wishing for one. An older woman is - well, an older woman - and more importantly, has a range of older men with sailboats to consider.

Do you like the glamorous type? The earthy type? Are you hoping to meet a woman with her own financial resources? Whatever it is, you should make a realistic assessment of whether you can provide an appropriate lifestyle for the type of woman you hope to meet, and for the type of lifestyle you hope to share. Don't expect a fashion queen to go gunk holing with you. I don't think there is a YachtNaughty hiding behind every piling!

Yacht Naughty - YouTube

[highseas]

The fastest way to scare off a prospective partner,is to tell them you 'live on your boat'.Say instead you 'stay on your boat'.Most want the comfort of knowing they will at some point have a home to return to.

[minaret]

Originally Posted by highseas

The fastest way to scare off a prospective partner,is to tell them you 'live on your boat'.Say instead you 'stay on your boat'.Most want the comfort of knowing they will at some point have a home to return to.

Unless you don't plan on returning to a shore home, in which case that might be misleading. You might be looking for someone who is also not interested in returning to land...

[foolishsailor]

Jassen,

Il be honest, i stopped reading at around post 30 so forgive me if i repeat whats been said.

you mention "dating crazy" and alternative lifestyle...

I have to ask, are you looking for a long distance sailing partner or just a fun date? If your not thats cool, but if you are then you need to change your focus.

Like many young men, especially those who live aboard when young, i finely tuned my "crazy radar" and used it for fun dating. it worked great and a boat lifestyle helped. however in later years I used my "crazy radar" to learn to stay away from partners who were chaotic. Chaos and a boat really dont go together, contrary to what all my relatives think !

If you are looking for a partner sometimes those who are most reluctant to join you, as an alternative individual, are those who may be best suited as partners...

unless your partner is a boat owner...good sign that - its a good kind of "crazy" - takes focus and consistency to be crazy enough to own and sail a boat...

[sww914]

This is EXACTLY where we draw the line between boat and yacht. Clearly you live on a yacht.

[Tony B]

Originally Posted by David_Old_Jersey

......does that mean I should stop peering into your porthole at 3am whilst wearing a bikini? .

David
I was not aware that you wore a bikini.

[Laffangurl]

This may be a bit generalized after all the sometimes wonderful words of wisdom thus far... but to me it is much like dating in any other scenario. Ideally you have in your mind general values you want to find and share, (and I dont mean just a ht/wt/age/hair & eye color lol) as well as anything you know you dont want (ie any non-negotiables, for some may be smoking, drinking, etc.).

A love for boats is like any other compatibility factor to me...no different than a great friend who will never be more because one of us is a summer tropics/water lover and the other is a cold/snow skiiing guru. Just doesnt fit, no ones fault!

There are women who love boats and many who want to live that dream as much as any man...same financial and situational issues to square away. Classes, clubs, forums, marinas, etc are all places to find like minded souls.

Best of luck!

[Ocean Girl]

Well said, I was just gonna box some ears
Ocean Girl

[Highland Fling]

I really wonder why you would post that question.................meeting 'the one' is down to so many imponderables few of them predictable. Then i am sure you will have a few no no's about your potential partner as will she - obviously her no no's cant include a fear of water and living on a boat while enjoying a nomadic live-aboard lifestyle

Finding that match is down to you and her...........i am assuming you are heterosexual of course.

All the advice here on this subject is basically useless yes even mine as IF you find her you will probably meet somewhere you have not thought of and both you and her will probably find that some of your no no's are not so critical once you have met and decided that you want to be / need to be - together.

Sailing boat owning and maintenace is easy peasy truly a walk in the park compared to finding and maintaining a successful caring sharing loving one on one relationship. Doing that on a boat is an added complication and will bring its own issues.

Be Lucky is my only advice

[Inquisitive]

My husband did not sail when I met him, but he enjoyed the laid back cruising on weekends idea. So maybe it doesn't have to be someone who sails but someone who is open to the lifestyle?

[sww914]

"The One".
The world has 7 billion people, if there were only 1, the odds of he or she even speaking the same language is low. You just need to find one who is some kind of crazy that you can deal with.

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by Tony B

David
I was not aware that you wore a bikini.

Sometimes I only wear half. Like now .

[Jassen]

Originally Posted by GaryMayo

New lifestyle and a new girlfriend? Seems like a lot of new irons in the fire. Enjoy the sailing class. Don't be in a big hurry to compound and complicate your life. For a lifetime, a boat is your girlfriend. One girlfriend should keep you busy for awhile. Once things on the new boat become second nature then start looking out of the corner of your eye to see who is watching you.

That's the cool part, I don't really consider it a new lifestyle, per se, just a different approach to living a lifestyle I've been living for 6 years in various forms. And hey, a boat is more comfy than a car, a van, or a storage unit, and far more private than a dorm room in a backpacker's hostel. Although some of my new best friends around the world I've met in hostels. Good times.

[neilsailingrn]

Originally Posted by zeehag

the only difference i found in the dating life area was on docks in marina slips there are more weirdos in residence--inclusive of perverts and stalkers.
have fun and live safe.

Aint that the truth!